We Must Never Forget

It’s a Memorial Day, which is always worth noting here, where we seek freedom, prosperity, and civilization. Freedom isn’t free.

I’m mostly sharing what other people have posted to celebrate this day.

First, a reminder of what this day is:

·         Armed Forces Day, for those currently serving, is celebrated the third Saturday in May

·         Veterans’ Day, for living former servicemen/women, is celebrated November 11.

·         Memorial Day, for those who died while serving, is celebrated the last Monday in May.

       

Image from Military Families United, found on Facebook.

Here are some images that remind us of the reverent spirit of the day.

Quote from Ronald Reagan,
image found on Facebook, from Founding Principles

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, in the rain,
imaged shared on Facebook in 2015 by Randy Baughn

Here are some reminders of what our freedoms cost.

Image shared on Facebook by Newsradio 740 KTRH

 

Image found on Facebook, shared by Until Every Troop Comes Home

This next section is the Memorial Day post from my US Representative, Dan Crenshaw, former Navy Seal who lost his right eye in Afghanistan, specifically honoring those he lost from his Seal Team. The words and photos are his:

Enjoy your Memorial Day and let us remember why we celebrate. We celebrate the lives of the heroes we have lost. Never Forget.

Please read the entire post.

Brendan Looney. Did our first deployment together at SEAL Team 3. One of the best and most respected leaders on the Team. Husband, son, and brother. “Be Strong. Be accountable. Never complain.”

Pat Feeks. One of the best JTACs out there. Best story teller I ever met (those who knew him will understand!). Loyal friend, husband, brother, and son. He always showed up when you asked him to.

Dave Warsen. All American. Spent a lot of time together on our deployment to Afghanistan. When not on missions, we’d hit the volleyball court (half sand, half rocks). Strongest guy in the platoon, and also the happiest. Truly loved and missed.

Kevin Ebbert. My roommate in BUD/S. One of the smartest, most capable, kindest SEALs I ever knew. Skilled medic, loving husband. Missed dearly.

Brad Cavner. Cool, collected, and a great operator. Brad taught me to shoot left-handed after I lost my right eye, and spent countless hours getting my CQC skills back up to speed. “It’s about the Brotherhood.”

Tom Fouke. My old roommate. Dear friend. The gentlest big guy I ever knew. He raised an Argentine Horned frog named Lester when we lived together. Loved life, loved Metallica. World would be a better place with him in it.

Brett Marihugh. The most motivating and entertaining guy in our BUD/S class. Told stories for hours about his time as a cop before he joined. He pretended to be a doctor so he could visit my hospital room in Afghanistan and check up on me after I got hit by an IED.

Charles Keating IV. “Chuck Heavy”. His laugh was contagious. Life of the party. He was killed placing himself in danger so that his Team wouldn’t have to. Navy Cross recipient. Epic hero, husband, son, brother.

Another story of loss is Jennie Taylor's, mother of seven whose husband was killed in Afghanistan on his fourth deployment in fifteen years. She is now faced with carrying on their life dreams in his absence, with God’s help.

Jennie Taylor with her husband and kids
image from here

Finally, below is a brief speech from President Ronald Reagan on a past Memorial Day. There’s this memorable quote in the middle:

Our first obligation to them and ourselves is plain enough: The United States, and the freedom for which it stands, the freedom for which they died, must endure and prosper. Their lives remind us that freedom is not bought cheaply. It has a cost. It imposes a burden. And just as they whom we’re grateful were willing to sacrifice, so too must we, in a less final, less heroic way, be willing to give of ourselves.

And it ends with this good summary for today:

As we honor their memory today, let us pledge that their lives, their sacrifices, their valor shall be justified and remembered for as long as God gives life to this nation.