Happy Memorial Day... Thank You to All Who Have Served!

I wanted to take just a quick moment and talk about "Memorial Day." I know I might be preaching to the choir but many people fail to realize that Memorial Day was originally set aside to exclusively honor the fallen soldiers of our great nation. In fact, it was first observed on May 30th, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. 

The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873, hence Waterloo, NY was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May of 1966. Since then the traditional observance of Memorial Day has diminished as many Americans have somehow forgotten the true meaning and traditions of this great day. 

To help re-educate and remind Americans, the "National Moment of Remembrance" resolution was passed back in December of 2000, which asked that all Americans on Memorial Day at 3 p.m. local time, "Voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence for those who have sacrificed their lives for our great country." I know it doesn't get much air time from the press, but I thought I would make mention of it in today's letter. 

Below I have included a partial list highlighting the estimated number of Americans who lost their lives and or were wounded while defending our freedoms. 

Take a moment and think about how many families have been torn apart or splintered in the wake of a fallen soldier. I can't speak for others but I know my family is forever grateful and we tremendously appreciate any and all sacrifices made to protect our great nation.  (Source: Wikipedia) 

•    1775-1783 American Revolutionary War - 50,000 Wounded / 25,000 Dead
•    1812-1815 War of 1812 - 20,000 Wounded / 15,000 Dead
•    1846-1848 Mexican-American War - 17,500 Wounded / 13,300 Dead
•    1861-1865 Civil War - 1,300,000 Wounded / 750,000 Dead
•    1898 Spanish-American War - 6,000 Wounded / 2,500 Dead
•    1898-1913 Philippine-American War - 11,000 Wounded / 4,200 Dead
•    1917-1918 World War I - 320,000 Wounded / 117,000 Dead
•    1941-1945 World War II - 1,100,000 Wounded / 406,000 Dead
•    1950-1953 Korean War - 128,000 Wounded / 40,000 Dead
•    1955-1975 Vietnam War - 215,000 Wounded / 60,000 Dead
•    1990-1991 Gulf War - 1,200 Wounded / 300 Dead
•    2003-2011 Iraq War - 37,000 Wounded / 4,500 Dead
•    2001 - Present - War in Afghanistan - 20,000 Wounded / 2,500 Dead

Freedom Is Not Free... by Kelly Strong

I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
and then he stood at ease.

I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud.
With hair cut square and eyes alert
He'd stand out in any crowd.

I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers’ tears

How many pilots’ planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves?
No... freedom isn’t free.

I heard the sound of TAPS one night,
When everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.

I wondered just how many times
That TAPS had meant “Amen,”
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.

I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands,
With interrupted lives.

I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
And unmarked graves in Arlington.
No... freedom isn’t free.   

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