An Independence Day Thank You

You might call this day the “4th of July,” but as a veteran I will always think of it as what it truly is ... Independence Day.

While I did not fight to win our freedom, I do respect the sacrifices made 238+ years ago to secure our freedom and to establish this great Country.

As veterans of foreign wars, myself (Panama) and Ron Rice (Iraq) want to reach out to all of those that serve and those that have served and extend a heartfelt "thank you" and to let you know we are thinking about what you are doing and what you have done for us.

This is a day we should appreciate what it means to have the freedom to live as we wish.

This is the day that we celebrate our Independence.

Happy Independence Day Tallahassee!….

This is an email that I found circulating in 2009 and I am re-sharing it (again) to all who love this great country!

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA , AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS,

ONE NATION UNDER  GOD,

INDIVISIBLE,

 

WITH  LIBERTY

AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!

KEEP IT LIT!!    KEEP IT LIT!

For all of our other military personnel, where ever they may be. Please Support all of the troops defending our Country.  And God Bless our Military  who are protecting our Country for our Freedom. Thanks to them, and their sacrifices, we can celebrate the 4th of July.

We must never forget who gets the credit for the freedoms we have,

of which we should be eternally grateful.

I watched the flag pass by one day.  It fluttered in the breeze. A young Marine saluted it, And then he stood at ease. I looked at him in uniform; so young, so tall, so proud. With hair cut square and eyes alert, he’d stand out in any crowd. I thought how many men like him had fallen through the years. How many died on foreign soil; how many mothers’ tears?

How many pilots’ planes shot down? How many died at sea? How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves? No, freedom isn’t free.

I heard the sound of Taps one night, when everything was still. I listened to the bugler play And felt a sudden chill.  I wondered just how many times That Taps had meant ‘Amen.’

When a flag had draped a coffin  of a brother or a friend.

I thought of all the children, of the mothers and the wives, of fathers, sons and husbands With interrupted lives.

I thought about a graveyard At the bottom of the sea.

Of unmarked graves in  Arlington . No, freedom isn’t free. 

Enjoy Your Freedom

and  God Bless Our Troops. When you receive this,

please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our servicemen.

Of all the gifts you could give a U.S. Soldier, prayer is the very best one.

Happy Independence Day