LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: November 8, 2007

 

by State Representative Addia Wuchner

“ To Our Veterans, With Gratitude for Your Noble Sacrifice ”

Greetings from Frankfort! November 11, Veterans Day, is just around the corner. The title of "veteran" is a term of great respect in America. All who served, whether for a few years or for many, have stood ready if the order came, to risk everything for their country's cause, and to put the nation’s needs above their own. Veterans Day reminds us to extend our gratitude and respect to the men and women who have served in our armed forces through the generations.

Until just a few years ago, every Veterans Day, I would take two of my favorite veterans', my father and my father-in-law, out for lunch. Both are deceased now, their memories live on within our family. Like most World War II Veterans, they did not talk much about their service. They returned home, put away their uniforms, and went to work. Yet they all knew the magnitude of what they had experienced and achieved. Only in the few years before their deaths, could we engage them to share stories about their service to our country. We are loosing many of those remarkable individuals each day. As we revere their memory, let us lift our heads today to honor our military who are giving their lives for our country all over the world. May we appreciate and respect the sacrifice still being made for freedoms we have cherished for generations.

Since those first soldiers stood in the snow at Valley Forge, muskets in hand, barefoot, half starved, and ravaged from the carnage of war, America’s courageous sons and daughters have fought and died to defend the ideals Americans hold dear. America continues to stand as a “shinning city on a hill,” a beacon of hope and freedom throughout the world. The colors of our flag, like the American spirit, have not faded with time or strife.

I have met many of our men and women in uniform who are serving today. They are brave and proud members of the armed forces and strong, kind, compassionate, and decent individuals. By their courage, they keep us safe; by their honor, they make us proud.

Peggy Noonan reflected, “Those who first sought our shores thought the streets were paved with gold, but it was more than gold--they are paved with the greatest thoughts man ever had, the greatest decisions man ever made, and the highest ideals about how to live.”

We have free thought, free speech, and freedom of worship. We hold that freedom is a gift from our Creator, yet the noble sacrifices of so many remind us “freedom is not free."

Tonight, like most, I will turn out the lights and fall asleep, safe, secure, and free. I am truly grateful and thank all who serve for your noble sacrifice. May each of you be blessed, and may God bless the United States of America