I was born in the '50's, so I remember the veterans of World War I. As a child, I remember teachers, and community leaders, tall and old. My grandfather, Allen Hert, was one of them. And then in the '60's, they retired; or died.
I remember the veteran's of WW II. These men were teachers and community leaders as I grew older. My uncles, Allen Hert, Jr., and Onis Frank Hampton, were two of them. When I entered the work force, they were at every job. The man that taught me to weld was a veteran of WW II. And then they retired, and died.
It was the same with the veterans of the Korean War. My father is a veteran of that fight. I worked with many veterans of Korea. There were times that it seemed as if most of the men of that generation served in Korea. They've all long retired, and are dying.
I'm watching the veterans of Vietnam age, retire, and die. Men that I've worked with for 20 years or more.
And the veterans younger than me. Building their lives and families and contributing to the community.
It has been my privilege to know these veterans.
I will always remember them.
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Nicely said and well remembered.
ReplyDeleteI've met veterans of lots of different conflicts and all are brave men with interesting - and often terrible - stories to tell. I recently met vets from Normandy and one of the overriding impressions I took away with me was of their sense of humour. They know they are a fading generation but I think they also know their deeds will never be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog Mike! Thanks for sharing it with me.
ReplyDeleteyes very nicely said we can't forget what they have done at such a great cost
ReplyDeleteGreat tale. I love any military references!
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