First of
all I want to say Thank You to all those in the Armed Forces who are willing to
die for those you do not even know. I would also like to thank their families
who sacrifice so much, as well.
What is
patriotism? Many would say it is a feeling of duty to your country. But it
is much more than that. Patriotism is singing along to the national anthem and
tearing up when it is over. Patriotism is shaking the hand of a veteran and
saying thank you when you see them in a store. Patriotism is celebrating the
Fourth of July but celebrating Independence every day. Patriotism is being
respectful on December 7th and June 6th and September 11th.
Patriotism is having a copy of the Constitution of the United States of
America, the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights in your home.
Ever
since 1774, we have been sending brave individuals to fight for our freedom,
starting with the Army and soon after we had the Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast
Guard.
Let’s
start with the American Revolution. We sent brave men to go and do something
that would get them killed because they knew that what they were doing was
right. They left their families to serve their country as so many are doing
today. Those men crossed the frigid waters that Christmas with General George
Washington as their leader whom they followed faithfully even to their deaths.
The next
war was the War of 1812. At the Battle of Fort McHenry, Francis Scott Key
watched in the darkness as the British fleet bombarded the fort. As the guns
illuminated the night sky, Francis saw that the American flag was still flying
over the fort. This inspired the poem The
Star Spangled Banner, which later became our national anthem, starting with
those famous words: “Oh, say can you see?
By the dawn’s early light...” We stood strong that night, not retreating
from the bombardment, knowing full well that the only way to win was to stand
strong and stand together.
31 years
later the Mexican-American War began, in which we fought for what was ours,
though others claimed what was ours was theirs.
The next
major war was one of the most famous and most tragic: The American Civil War.
Brother fought against brother, friend against friend, father against son. Boys
as young as 9 years of age paid the price of freedom with their blood. One army
fought for the freedom of others, the other fought for a way of life. At the
battle of Gettysburg we lost more men than we did in the War in Vietnam.
In the
year 1917, we became involved in the First World War. By 1918, we were sending
10,000 troops to France every day. By the end of the war we had 110,000 deaths
in our ranks. The conditions of the trenches were terrible. The rain caused the
ground to become mud puddles making it amazingly hard to move around. It was as
cramped as could be in those trenches. And in WWI the world was introduced to
Chemical Warfare. Tear Gas blinded our boys, Mustard Gas burned them, Chlorine
Gas drowned them. The process of death when it came to gas was slow and
painful. 20 different gases were used in the span of those four years of war.
The First World War was known as The War
To End All Wars. Unfortunately, it did not.
Little
over 20 years later, the Second World War began. And like the first, we tried
our best to stay neutral. But to no avail, for we were dragged into the war by
the Japanese when they attacked our air base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on
December 7, 1941 and so on December 8, we declared war. The tragedy of the
attack on Pearl Harbor reached around the country by December 8 and the
Americans were both infuriated and remorseful at the same time. Those ships
that had been sunk are the final resting place for all of the sailors that died
that day. We sent our boys overseas to fight to stop the wrong that was being
done all over the world. On June 6, 1944 our Marines, Navy, Air Force, and Army
liberated France on D-Day, Codename: Overlord. The casualties of D-Day reached
up to 5,000 out of 50,000 of our troops dead and only 1,200 of the Germans
dead. Not long after, in the winter of 1944 also known as the Battle of the Bulge, we pushed the
Germans to retreat by the first of the new year. During the span of late 1944
and a majority of 1945, we freed thousands of Jewish people and those who were
empathetic to their cause from the concentration camps. The President ordered
that we take pictures of these “death camps” because he knew that some would
say that it never even happened. He knew that there would be some who would say
that the Holocaust was not real. And that is happening. They are not teaching
this in our schools. We need to teach this or else it is sure to happen again.
The casualties of this war reached up to 60,000,000 to 80,000,000 deaths, more
than 2.3% of the world’s population. I pray that we will never have another war
like that terrible war again. I do know that if it happens, we have the
strongest and bravest men and women on the planet that will come to our aid.
The
Korean War, also known as America’s
Forgotten War was next. I will make a statement here and now. This war will
never be forgotten. It, like every other war, will haunt our country forever. The
U.S. suffered casualties of 33,686 deaths in battle and 2,830 deaths not in
battle. 373,599 South Korean civilian deaths have been reported and 137,899
South Korean military deaths. My great-grandfather served in the war in the
Navy, he was my best friend. I looked up to him and I want to be like him. The
Korean War may have been known as America’s
Forgotten War, but I say: "You Are Not Forgotten, Nor Will You Ever Be."
One of
the bloodiest wars America has ever known was the Vietnam War. I had the
pleasure of speaking with Mr. Rocky Olson, a veteran of Vietnam. He had written
a book called Sgt. Rock Last Warrior
Standing. The book is the first hand account of his experience in Vietnam
when he served with the 101st Airborne Division. I had read the book
and I had found it to be amazing. He was a kind man and he asked me if I ever
planned on joining the Army. When I said it was a possible career choice, he
said: “Well here are some tips for you: One: Graduate from college first, then
you will go into the Army as an Officer and they don’t send Officers into
combat. And two: Don’t go into the infantry. I was in the infantry and it is
the most dangerous.” I knew that this was worth remembering so I have
remembered those words of wisdom. He gave me and autograph on the back of a
business card for I had forgotten my book, this is what the card said:
Keaton-
Do your
best
Make
your
Mother
proud
Sgt.
Rock
Every
time I read that card I say aloud: “I will.” When I read that book, I realized
that man had been through so much and had seen things that no human being
should ever have to see. Rocky Olson is the perfect example of a classic
patriotic American man. The US soldiers who fought in Vietnam didn’t get the
welcome back they deserved. Rather than being welcomed back with cheers and
pats on the back, they were welcomed back by the anti-war mobs. As one soldier
had put it: “Welcome to the airport that I left on. I saw some people pointing
at me, I just had to get home and get out of that uniform. Something I had
become so proud of had become something to be ashamed of.” The anti-war people
called the soldiers Warmongering savages even
though not one of them had even done as little as sit down and have a glass of
water and little chat with one of the soldiers. They did not now the heck that
the soldiers had been through. In Korea and Vietnam, we were fighting to stop
communism, but now in this present day, we are allowing communists to basically
run our country. We are letting anti-Americans into the country. America is
becoming a socialistic prison and we are all too blind to see. The casualties
of the Vietnam War reached up to 58,220 American deaths, 444,000 enemy troops,
the republic of Vietnam lost somewhere between 171,331 and 220,357 troops. You
veterans of this terrible war went through much. I hope the best for you and
your families.
For the
next couple of wars there is a story I would like to tell you. It is the story
of Joe and Earl Granville from Carbondale, Pennsylvania. They joined the 109th
Pennsylvania National Guard. The recruiter told them that that regiment hadn’t
been called to combat in 52 years. Two weeks after their training had began, the
attack on the twin towers had happened and they were shipped to Bosnia and were
put into different Platoons. Joe would ask Earl whenever he could, "You all right bro? Staying Safe? Are you
keeping out of trouble?" A while
after their deployment was up, Joe called Earl saying, "I’m volunteering for Iraq, are you in?" Earl said, "Let’s go." Joe met his wife, Stephanie,
when they were training at Fort Drum. They were married the day before Joe left
for Iraq. In June of 2005, Joe and Earl were Convoy Security, one of the most
dangerous jobs in the Army. Many civilian and military lives were taken in that
job. The brothers worried for each other, always. Five of Joe and Earl’s
buddies were killed when one of the Convoy trucks hit and IED just outside of
town. The brothers had known those men for years. Joe had never gotten over
their deaths. Though both brothers were devastated, Joe took it harder than any
of them. Joe had a terrible case of Survivor’s
Guilt. They got home from Iraq in June of 2006, Earl went back to college.
Joe got a job at the state prison. He and Stephanie had their second child. In
December 2007 Earl volunteered for Afghanistan and by February he was being
shipped out. Joe could not go for he had two kids. In June 3rd 2008 Earl
and his Platoon were in HUM-Vs when his vehicle hit an IED. He was launched
from the vehicle. When he came to he saw his HUM-V. It was completely obliterated.
"I have to see if my men are okay," he thought.
Earl tried to stand, but he could not. That’s when he looked down and saw that
his legs were as messed up as could be. Then a friend came over and started
praying over him and Earl thought, Is
this it, am I going to die? He kept asking if his buddies were okay and the
men said "Yeah, yeah, they’re just fine,
we’re working on them". But then Earl saw some body bags, and that told him
all he needed to know. He was flown to a hospital in Germany where the Doctor
said, "Son, we’re going to have to
amputate your left leg, but we think we can save your right one." Earl
replied with, "Doc, do what you have to
do, I’m just happy to be alive." His family visited him in the hospital a
few weeks later; his mom, his dad, and his brother Joe. When the nurse came in
and took the blanket off Earl’s legs, Joe left the room. Joe blamed it on
himself that Earl lost his leg. Joe visited Earl in the hospital for three
years. Yet Joe didn’t seem well. Earl kept saying, "Man, I’m going to be okay. I’m alive, there’s nothing you could’ve done".
Joe would go silent and Earl would say, "Bro,
talk to me. I love you." Joe was so full of guilt for his brothers-in-arm’s
deaths. He started visiting the graves if the men who were in his Platoon. Then
the 109th was called again to go to Iraq. Joe would’ve gone like
lightning but after what happened with Earl. Their mother went to command and
asked them not to send Joe. At the same time, Stephanie’s unit got called to go
to Iraq. It was a hard year for Joe, he had a job, he had to take care of his
kids, and he worried about Stephanie. When his wife came home, they had their
third child and Joe got a job as a trainer in the Army. He became more and more
depressed. He became anxious; he would lose his temper over tiny things.
Stephanie suggested he see someone. She told him it was not a sign of failure
to ask for help. Joe started seeing a doctor once a month. Then in December,
the 109th got called up again to go to Quetta. They didn’t send Joe.
December 18th 2010, Stephanie and the kids were wrapping presents
and Joe said he was heading to the store to get a new shirt. He kissed her on
the cheek and said "I love you." The
police found his car parked at a bridge in Carbondale. Joe jumped. He left no
note. Just a Christmas present for Stephanie in the back seat. If only he just
talked to his family. They didn’t see the signs. Earl, Stephanie, Mom, Dad, the
kids, they were all crushed. There were over 1,000 people at Joe’s funeral.
People stood in the freezing rain to say goodbye. Earl wept, he loved Joe so
much. He would’ve given everything for Joe to have lived. You can see the story here.
From the
very beginning to today, Americans will always fight for Freedom. Let us not
forget those who will not come home. And let us not forget those who make
sacrifices to keep us safe. We cry for you and we cry with you just as we
celebrate for you and we celebrate with you. Let us raise our American flags
high in honor of those brave men and women who are willing to give up their
lives so that we may have Freedom. From the bottom of my heart, I thank all of
you out there who have or are now serving in the military, reading this or not.
THANK YOU
Keaton
Winter
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