Posted: 10 Nov 01 "Veterans Day Message from Lt
Bobby Ross and your LRRP Team"
Here's my Veterans Day Message to you. I wish you and your's the very
best. We are now at war, so let's all
remember the price the Veteran pays to be who he is. Let us all support our
Troops, and honor our Veterans.
Webmaster Note: Although the text
by the unknown author was written in masculine verbiage, we all know "He" is
also "She."
"He's A Veteran!"
He's a man who looks the world in the eye. He's a man who feels an extra
heart-tug when the flag goes by. He's a man who steps a little faster when
he hears the beat of a military band. He's a Veteran.
He comes in all assorted sizes and shapes. He's a big man, he's a small
man...he's a short man, he's a tall man. He is the "Doughboy" of World War
I...the "GI" of World War II... He's a man who's seen Korean skies, fought
the cold and silent battle of uneasy Berlin....and braved the booby traps
and ambushes of Ia Drang Valley in Viet Nam. He's a Veteran.
He's a sailor....soldier...Marine. He's a flyer...seabee...coast guard. He's
artillery...infantry..medic...aviation machinist
mate....armored and ordnance.. He's a Veteran.
He has the quiet dignity of
a man who knows the pride of freedom ...He has the clear eyes of a man who
respects himself. He is courage living on Main Street. He is patriotism
mowing the lawn on Saturday afternoon. He is good citizenship with a smile
on his face. He's a Veteran.
He is Republican, Democrat, Independent/..He is mechanic, farmer,
banker... He is Catholic, Protestant, Jew... He is rich and poor and
in-between. He's a Veteran
He's a man who loves peace because he knows the price tag of war. He's
a member of history's most exclusive fraternity. He knows that war is ninety
percent boredom and ten percent sheer terror. He's been there. He's a
Veteran.
He likes the majesty of America's mountains...the tranquility of America's
valleys. He likes the bustle of America's cities and the friendliness of
America's Main Streets. He likes the sound of America's children playing on
the American playgrounds. He likes to watch the flag go by... He feels a
bit sad when he hears the sound of an American bugler
playing "Taps". He is a citizen soldier...Peacetime leader... He's the
first to volunteer in time of trouble...and the last to come home.
He's a Veteran.
He is proud of his American past...alert to his American
present...confident of his American future. He likes the legends of
America's greats...the Washingtons...the Jeffersons...the Abraham
Lincolns...the Roosevelts...the Robert E. Lees....The Stonewall Jacksons...the
Pattons...the Eisenhowers...the MacArthurs...the Nimitzs....the
Pullers....the Dalys and all the proud patriots who have marched through
America's history books. He's a Veteran.
He has bivouacked at Valley Forge...charged the hill at Gettysburg...stormed
the sands at Guadalcanal...swarmed ashore at Omaha Beach..advanced on Pork
Chop Hill and fought in the bunker complex in War Zone "C" in Southeast
Asia. He parachuted into Grenada. He stood watch in Beirut. He fought in
the streets of Panama and served in the Middle East in support of "Operation
Desert Shield". He's a Veteran.
In the very rear of his secret heart there is always a tinge of sorrow, a
souvenir of sadness for lost and departed comrades. No matter how gray his
temples grow or how many inches he adds to his middle-aged waist, he always
walks with a distinctive pride that isn't given to lesser men. He is America
with an honorable discharge... He is Democracy with a Good Conduct Medal
lost in the darkness of his keepsake box... He is freedom with a Purple
Heart. He is a first class fighting man with a quiet walk and sentimental
grin. He's America's most honorable citizen He's a Veteran."
Author Unknown
Posted: 4 Nov 01
FREE Chow for ALL Veterans & Active Duty Personnel
In celebration of Veterans Day, Golden Corral Honors Veterans, with their
Military Appreciation Dinner. FREE CHOW FOR ALL VETERANS AND ACTIVE
DUTY MILITARY PERSONNEL. Chow will be served on Monday from 1700 until
2100, 011112, (5pm-9pm November 12, 2001). This is a Nation wide promotion!
Regardless if you plan to be present for Chow or if you have other plans, this
Chow is for YOU. To respectfully express our appreciation of our
invitation, we have decided to make a Certificate of Recognition to
Golden Corral, from ALL Veterans and Active Duty Military Personnel.
Have your name added to this certificate by sending the following
information to:
bradleymoore@usmc.net
- Name
- State
- Military Branch
- TIS (Time In Service)
- Brief Comment
I want to thank Daniel Brumbaugh, from the Marines of 3/4, for
providing us with information on this Veterans Day Special. He stated in his
letter, "I am sure they will ask for some sort of ID or proof so go prepared."
Yep, the Mess Hall over here works that way too! You have got to have that ID!
Ha Ha Ha! Some things just do not change.
I want to wish every one a Safe and Happy Veterans Day. Pass this on to
ALL Active Duty Personnel and Military Veterans, as we celebrate this
Holiday together.
Semper Fi,
Sgt. Moore USMC
Posted: 10 Nov 00: "Veterans Day 2000 by
Lt. Bobby Ross"
As I travel across my country, touring the Great Land, I am mesmerized by
the passing of one minute. Never mind the second looks I've had to
take, down that long trail behind my life. I've touched the Atlantic
ocean with my toes, and I've waded footloose into the cold Pacific. At
times these past several years on my Cyber-Tours, and once again, I end up
in Nashville. I will sing once more on Veterans Day, this Saturday,
the 11th of November, 2000, at the world famous Bluebird Cafe. It's getting
to be an annual event here in Music City. I will be a guest of honor
in the grand stands, again, another tradition, for the Veterans
Day Parade on the streets of this great city.
This is my Veterans Day Message, to you, the Veteran, the person who fought
for his country, or the man or woman behind the American Radio air waves
saying something nice about America's Fighting Force, or the
music or entertainment executive who donates time or energy to the Veteran
Outreach Center in his community, or a junior reporter for a small town
newspaper who asks the senior editor if it would be ok for him to write a
human interest story about the Veteran down the street who won the Silver
Star in Korea, I am writing to you and all the rest of you because I want to
remind you of a very sacred day in our American scheme of things. I
want to keep it fairly, simply, and to the point this year of 2000.
(The actual end of the Twentieth Century. And not the beginning of the
21st Century.)
I've picked up two pieces of writing I want to share with you this Veterans
Day on the road. The first is a short statement by Jamie Fitzpatrick,
14 years old:
"I see what happens to the families and friends that have just been
told their son, daughter, brother, sister, aunt, uncle or cousin had been
killed in the war or died helping someone else, so they could live.
The sound of tears and guns, the sorrow and pain of broken hearts. The
faint sound of lost souls and a life taken so harshly from what was once a
wonderful thing is now gone for good, never to be seen again.
What does it feel like, to feel the pages run up and down your fingers?
You can just feel how strong the emotions are, just by feeling and touching
the pages, not knowing what will happen next.
The bitter salty taste of tears, rolling down from so many people crying,
over loses and sorrows, over unending pain and confusion, and thoughts of it
could never happen to me or my family. But still how could
it have happened to my family when it should have been me instead of them?
A strong smell of smoke from all of the things that had been burned.
Then the smell of gunpowder from all of the fighting gone on. Most of
all the most precious smell is when a long stemmed red rose has just been
laid softly against the Vietnam Veterans Memorial known as The Wall, a very
special place for many roses."
-----
Or how 'bout this one by an unknown author from a book about a World War I
soldier?
"He knew that this was because the War was still in him and that it
would be in him for a long time to come, for Soldiers who have been blooded
are Soldiers forever.
They never fit in.
Even when they finally settle down, the setting is tenuous, for when they
close their eyes they see their Comrades who have fallen.
That they cannot forget, that they do not forget, that they never allow
themselves to heal completely is their way of expressing their Love for
Friends who have perished.
And they will not change because they have become what they have become, to
keep the Fallen alive."
---
One item came to me through the internet. It was this:
Remember...
It is the soldier and the sailor, not the reporter,
Who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier and the sailor, not the poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier and the sailor, not the campus organizer,
Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier and the sailor,
Who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
Whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.
-- Father Denis Edward O'Brien, USMC
So, as to keeping my word and making this short and sweet, I do wish for you
a Real Good Veterans Day this Saturday. I will be here in Nashville
all day taking emails, so drop in if you wish. And do me a
favor! Get in touch with another Veteran and tell him how proud you
are of him, or her. You'll never know how doing so can brighten up a
Veteran's life. And I look forward to you all continuing playing The
SPLASH!
PEACE,
LT Bobby Ross
Posted: 13 Jun 00: "Memorial Day
2000"
I come from a family that has sent many to answer our Nation's call--My
father, my paternal grandfather, several cousins, a maternal aunt, and my
brother, just to name a few. So far I have been able to trace them
back as far as the Civil War--on both sides. I am proud to be a part
of this tradition. I spent over 12 years in the Navy, from '69 to '71
and '82 to '91. Many of America's citizens have forgotten why we
actually observe
Memorial Day. Most think of it as just another holiday---a day for
picnics and friends. While that is all well and good, it would be even
better if they would all take the time to remember those who paid the
ultimate price
for their freedom to enjoy another holiday as they wish. It would be
nice if Americans would remember that "Freedom is not free" and
would take a just a few minutes from their day to pay their respects to our
departed
comrades and to say a small prayer of thanks that these men and women were
there to protect our freedom.
I guess I'm just old-fashioned, because I still get teary eyed when I hear
the National Anthem or look at our flag and I still cry when I think of
those who died so that I could be free to sit here and write what I think
without fear of reprisals.
Memorial Day is not just another holiday to me. It is another day to
remember those who died in combat and those veterans who have passed away
since. I have seen many of my comrade veterans pass away and I'm sure
I will see more. I am a disabled veteran and I work with disabled
veterans. I love to listen to their stories about their military service,
even those that tell of the horrors of war. They remind me that war is
terrible, but
that there will always be those who will take up the weapons of war to
protect our country.
No, Memorial Day is not just another holiday. It's a day of
remembrance, camaraderie, tears, and joy. It is also a day of prayer
that all of our MIA's will soon come home to rest and that we will never
have to send our young men and women into harm's way ever again.
Posted: 9 May 00: "What is Memorial Day" by
LT Bobby Ross
My years whirl past me. Swirling. Dry, broken grass hovering in a
spring breeze. Can I remember my experiences in war? Hardly.
Fighting for my country, my youth invested, seems such a long time ago, and so
moment representing one three hundred and sixty-fifth of our year. What
is the meaning of Memorial Day? Is it merely a three day escape from our
worldly duties? Or, is it the official beginning of summer? Is
selling
cried in horrible pain. Those who died fast. And, those who died
ever so slowly. They did their duty. When I see Old Glory waving
on a sunny, end of May day, the pigment red gushes from millions of souls,
floating, not with us, anymore. They are amongst our heroes, cajoling
with angels with their champions, conquerors and commanders. Friends and
loved ones gather, over the grave, witness to those who gave more than anyone
should be required to relinquish. They did not want to yield. They
were in the wrong place at the wrong time, and when the moment harshly struck
them their fatal blow, they cried for their mother, or their friend.
Then there were those, many of those, who knew exactly what they were giving.
They moved forward knowingly. They lost their lives so their
mission would be accomplished.
Few Americans know a person who died in war. Their family trees have
lost some leaves, falling as they fought in one of America's wars, or
discarded in the peacetime military. We are a busy people. We have
business to capture. Our kids are in school. We have chores.
Mundane, or surrealistic. We are a spirited society, seeking
applications to improve ourselves and our communities. We are a helpful
populace, always there when the going gets tough to help those who have
suffered the tragedies of nature, whether a hurricane or a famine.
Americans are always the first on the scene worldwide bearing their gifts of
human spirit and abundance. This is why it is so puzzling that the
meaning of Memorial Day seems to lack substance to many of our own people.
Even with the day itself. Put back to accommodate a holiday schedule fixed by
some organism no one knows, yet powerful enough to do so, the day itself lacks
consequence to too many. Many who never knew a person who died in service to
America are wrought with the invisible pain of not feeling for those who do.
Americans take things for granted. We have so much. So very
much. Endless choices. These options are not available worldwide.
Our shelves are full. Unlike many in other nations of the world.
So many are empty or offer very limited selections. Those American
fighting men and women killed in battle whose souls are floating actually made
available these wondrous choices we have every day of our American lives.
Yet, most of our youngsters have no idea whatsoever what this means.
They don't learn this in school. We must teach them. For without
knowledge, they may end up thinking, or believing, all these marvelous
selections came without circumstance. Minus anything. Equaling no
meaning.
Warriors, and extol them with a salutation. We have not come that far
with our technological miracles of this millennium to become crass. We
still need respect. Our backs can not turn from formality. Our
eyes can not look away from custom. Our voices must not resonate in
silence against honor and glory. To do so will leave us hollow, only to
fill us with that which is desolate and lacking potential. This is not
the true meaning of Memorial Day. The heartfelt significance requires
reminding. Story telling. Wisdom being passed on from our Veterans
to our younger generations. An interpretation certified by those who
remember the horrors of war. Without this core, our society can not
remain genuine. It becomes contemptible. It rots from within.
These floating souls of our lost American Warriors are a powerful force, for
they live within our hearts. They constantly seek justification for their
contributions, and they are real within us. Such is what our American
substance stands for, where character is developed, individually is
guaranteed, and a community, a nation, survives.
turn our backs on these bygone descendants, nor can we do so upon ourselves.
Memorial Day offers us the opportunity to express a moment of solitude where
each of us can personify in our own way what we feel. I
only speak for my myself, as one who has bared his soul to the dread of war.
So my father did, and his father's father before him, and their souls float
amongst the multitudes. My mother and her mother held their Veterans
after they returned from war, tears streaming down their cheeks in gratitude
for their safe return. And there were those in my ancestry who did not
return from war. And their mothers' tears soaked the pillows on beds for
generations to sleep upon. Their souls are the dreams that drift amongst
the floating, gathering at the end of May in the breeze of summer's coming, in
the cool glass of lemonade at the child's street side stand, in the cheers at
the ball game from the crowd rooting their team to victory and enjoying the
best hot dogs in the world. Let us all stop for a moment, whether it is
on the traditional day, or the observed Memorial Day, or even at the end of
May, and reach for those floating souls. Let us reveal to them how much
we cherish their sacrifice for our free people. Let these memories
harvest our recognition of the meaning of Memorial Day in a very simple word.
And let that word, simply stated be: Thanks.