What It Means To Be A Veteran

Today is Veteran's Day and for the first time in I don't know how long I have the day off for it. Well, only half a day because I still have a CPA practice to keep going. I can remember when it was a National holiday that closed the schools, parades were held, banks were closed, and of course, there was no mail. Businesses observed the holiday for the most part back then as well. Somewhere after the Vietnam war it lost some of it's significance and has been relegated to a holiday for government workers, banks and the post office. I see an attempt to regain some of its importance as a holiday but that day off, for those that have one, includes very little if any time for a formal recognition of our veterans.

In full disclosure I am one of those veterans so if this appears to be self-serving please read on. For my generation my service was typical. I was 18 years old, graduating high school and faced the decision of what I wanted to do with my life. Oh yeah, the Vietnam war was in full swing and the government was drafting folks left and right. I knew I wanted to go to college but there were no college scholarships or trust funds waiting to pay for it so I was lured to the Navy by the G.I.Bill. For many poor boys that was like a shiny ring out there waiting for us to grab. There was no history of military service in my family with the exception of an uncle by marriage that had just joined the family after two tours in 'Nam. So I went to the recruiter and signed up on March 24th, 1970. I didn't talk to anyone about it until after it was done because I was 18 and could make my own decisions. Yeah right! My announcement was not well received but I held my ground and, 8 days after graduating high school, I was in boot camp in Orlando, Florida. My life was forever changed from that moment on.

My service was for 3 years and 9 months and included a year at the Navy School of Music and the balance of my service on a refrigerated cargo ship, the U.S.S. Rigel. I never served in combat, the most dangerous duty I pulled was as Shore Patrol in Naples, Italy herding drunk sailors back to the ship. I achieved the rank of 3rd Class Boatswain's Mate and refuse any extension of my enlistment to advance to 2nd Class. I made 12 cruises to the Mediterranean, one to the North Atlantic, and one to lovely Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, long before 9/11. I did my job, was honorably discharged, and got on with the rest of my life.

End of story? Not hardly! Little did I know that when I joined and served I was joining a fraternity of some of the finest people on the face of this planet. Our World War II veterans had that fervor to take the fight to Tojo and Hitler and bring us victory. Our current veterans that serve so many tours to Afghanistan and Iraq trying to root out the evils of terrorism. Even when it seems that the politicians that send them there do not have the will to achieve victory. Many of the veterans signed up for the National Guard and that mission changed dramatically after 9/11. But they served alongside regular Army troops with distinction, making the same sacrifices. I have always been proud to call myself a Veteran and very proud to of my brothers and sisters that served our country so well. Without these people willing to step up and serve the defense of our country I shudder to think what this country might have become!

What does it mean to me to be a veteran? I am proud to live in a country that offers the freedoms and opportunities that it does to its people. I am proud to have done my small part in protecting those freedom and feel I owe so much to the Veterans that went before me and after me. It is important to honor those WWII veterans that are leaving our midsts rapidly because they did so much to make this country great. I am honored to be considered with the likes of those that made the ultimate sacrifice, those that served in combat, and those that delivered groceries to the fleet in the Mediterrean. We have a common bond in that we love our country and would give our lives to defend it.

So today as you go about your busy day think of those old guys with the funny hats on. See in their tired eyes the young man that went to war. Pause and reflect on what we would have without our young men and women that served. We owe them a debt that cannot be measured in dollars and we have a responsibility to those that returned home from their service physically and mentally scarred by their service. Honor them, not only today, but whenever you see them because we owe them at least that much!