thedrifter
04-23-04, 05:48 AM
04-21-2004
Guest Column: Another Mission for Veterans
By Kevin Cook
I write this essay from the safety of my home. My service in Operation Iraqi Freedom lasted for 4 months in 2003. I was able to go to the war zone, perform my duties and return home safely.
Having been active in the Naval Reserve for 11 years and as a member of the Seabees, I am keenly aware that the call could come again. Especially with recent events in Iraq, it is likely that there will be a need for the Seabees’ unique talents again.
But today I am writing about another calling that requires a response from all veterans. That call is for you, as a veteran, to be active in your local veterans’ organizations. If you look around your local community, you will quickly find such organizations that have long been the cornerstone of your town – the American Legion, the VFW and your local Veterans Service office. These organizations are there to assist all veterans and make sure that those who fought and died are not forgotten.
I enjoy the camaraderie of being in the company of the veterans who participate in these groups, who are mainly from the World War II and Korean generations. At the age of 44, it’s great to hang out with a group whose members call me “youngster.” It is a brotherhood of shared sacrifice and service, each member enjoying the knowledge of how much we have to be thankful for each and every day.
Members of local veterans group know that there are still battles to be fought. These battles are not taking place overseas. They are battles we need to fight here at home to make sure that all veterans are remembered and given the honor they deserve. We can accomplish this by being active in our local veterans organizations.
In my town, we have a memorial that hangs over an archway in our town hall commemorating the citizens from our town who fought in World War I. There are 14 plaques listing the names and decorations earned by over 400 citizens who left a town with a population of roughly 2,500 to go fight in the Great War – The War to End All Wars. Many of those citizens never came home again.
When the town hall was renovated two years ago, the renovation did not include replacing those plaques to their place of honor where they had resided since 1918. Whether by design or negligence, the plaques were not restored to their rightful location. Local Veterans got together and protested this decision. We were initially rebuffed by our Selectmen for a variety of reasons, including that they didn’t want to take away from the new renovations by rehanging these plaques in their rightful place.
But veterans, along with the assistance of other voters, gathered support that the plaques be restored to their place of prominence. After many meetings and protests, town officials refurbished and restored the plaques to the place where their fellow citizens had placed them over 75 years ago. This was a great victory for the veterans group, but the real victory was for the World War I veterans whose names were on those plaques. They were unable to be there to speak for themselves, and we, their brothers-in-arms, were the only ones who could ensure that they would not be forgotten.
Today, it is up to all veterans who served and came home to make sure that all who served and especially those who never made it home are not forgotten.
There are functions that occur each year in every town that need your attention and assistance, including Memorial Day observances, July 4 events, and Veteran’s Day ceremonies. In each, veterans play a major role in carrying the Stars & Stripes prominently for all the citizens to see. We also carry the flags of each service and the POW/MIA Banner, which declares that those who are missing or held by the enemy will never be forgotten.
I call on each and every veteran to take part in these ceremonies and other important civic functions. The number of World War II-era veterans is dwindling, and “The Greatest Generation” has long been the backbone of these efforts and organizations. It is up to us, the next generation of veterans, to pick up the flag and carry it forward. Without our support, those who fought and died will not be given the honor that they deserve.
Plant flags on local graves on Memorial Day, volunteer to provide transportation for a disabled veteran who needs to go to the VA, participate in your local Legion post, VFW hall or other organization. There are a great number of ways to lend your support, time and effort that will make a difference. The time you give will be extremely important to your fellow vets and assist in carrying on the memory of those who fought and died for our country.
Each veteran who served, in peacetime and war, is an important member of an exclusive club. That club is a fellowship of those who know what the price of freedom is and the high cost of liberty. It is our continued responsibility to take that lesson and apply it to the rest of our lives, and make sure all our fellow citizens never forget that “ Freedom is not free!”
I hope to see you out there, marching in the parades, volunteering with veterans’ groups or planting flags on Memorial Day. Each of us who participates in these remembrances greatly honors those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and cannot be there on that day.
And that is a cause worth fighting for.
Guest Contributor Kevin Cook is a Storekeeper 1st Class in the Naval Reserve and served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He can be reached at hrexec1@hotmail.com.
http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=DefenseWatch.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=449&rnd=447.57580424412646
Ellie
Guest Column: Another Mission for Veterans
By Kevin Cook
I write this essay from the safety of my home. My service in Operation Iraqi Freedom lasted for 4 months in 2003. I was able to go to the war zone, perform my duties and return home safely.
Having been active in the Naval Reserve for 11 years and as a member of the Seabees, I am keenly aware that the call could come again. Especially with recent events in Iraq, it is likely that there will be a need for the Seabees’ unique talents again.
But today I am writing about another calling that requires a response from all veterans. That call is for you, as a veteran, to be active in your local veterans’ organizations. If you look around your local community, you will quickly find such organizations that have long been the cornerstone of your town – the American Legion, the VFW and your local Veterans Service office. These organizations are there to assist all veterans and make sure that those who fought and died are not forgotten.
I enjoy the camaraderie of being in the company of the veterans who participate in these groups, who are mainly from the World War II and Korean generations. At the age of 44, it’s great to hang out with a group whose members call me “youngster.” It is a brotherhood of shared sacrifice and service, each member enjoying the knowledge of how much we have to be thankful for each and every day.
Members of local veterans group know that there are still battles to be fought. These battles are not taking place overseas. They are battles we need to fight here at home to make sure that all veterans are remembered and given the honor they deserve. We can accomplish this by being active in our local veterans organizations.
In my town, we have a memorial that hangs over an archway in our town hall commemorating the citizens from our town who fought in World War I. There are 14 plaques listing the names and decorations earned by over 400 citizens who left a town with a population of roughly 2,500 to go fight in the Great War – The War to End All Wars. Many of those citizens never came home again.
When the town hall was renovated two years ago, the renovation did not include replacing those plaques to their place of honor where they had resided since 1918. Whether by design or negligence, the plaques were not restored to their rightful location. Local Veterans got together and protested this decision. We were initially rebuffed by our Selectmen for a variety of reasons, including that they didn’t want to take away from the new renovations by rehanging these plaques in their rightful place.
But veterans, along with the assistance of other voters, gathered support that the plaques be restored to their place of prominence. After many meetings and protests, town officials refurbished and restored the plaques to the place where their fellow citizens had placed them over 75 years ago. This was a great victory for the veterans group, but the real victory was for the World War I veterans whose names were on those plaques. They were unable to be there to speak for themselves, and we, their brothers-in-arms, were the only ones who could ensure that they would not be forgotten.
Today, it is up to all veterans who served and came home to make sure that all who served and especially those who never made it home are not forgotten.
There are functions that occur each year in every town that need your attention and assistance, including Memorial Day observances, July 4 events, and Veteran’s Day ceremonies. In each, veterans play a major role in carrying the Stars & Stripes prominently for all the citizens to see. We also carry the flags of each service and the POW/MIA Banner, which declares that those who are missing or held by the enemy will never be forgotten.
I call on each and every veteran to take part in these ceremonies and other important civic functions. The number of World War II-era veterans is dwindling, and “The Greatest Generation” has long been the backbone of these efforts and organizations. It is up to us, the next generation of veterans, to pick up the flag and carry it forward. Without our support, those who fought and died will not be given the honor that they deserve.
Plant flags on local graves on Memorial Day, volunteer to provide transportation for a disabled veteran who needs to go to the VA, participate in your local Legion post, VFW hall or other organization. There are a great number of ways to lend your support, time and effort that will make a difference. The time you give will be extremely important to your fellow vets and assist in carrying on the memory of those who fought and died for our country.
Each veteran who served, in peacetime and war, is an important member of an exclusive club. That club is a fellowship of those who know what the price of freedom is and the high cost of liberty. It is our continued responsibility to take that lesson and apply it to the rest of our lives, and make sure all our fellow citizens never forget that “ Freedom is not free!”
I hope to see you out there, marching in the parades, volunteering with veterans’ groups or planting flags on Memorial Day. Each of us who participates in these remembrances greatly honors those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and cannot be there on that day.
And that is a cause worth fighting for.
Guest Contributor Kevin Cook is a Storekeeper 1st Class in the Naval Reserve and served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He can be reached at hrexec1@hotmail.com.
http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=DefenseWatch.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=449&rnd=447.57580424412646
Ellie