Our all-volunteer military touches most American families and many shores.  The military is more educated, more married, more female and mostly high school graduates who serve our country with their life...  and for that we are more than a grateful nation.

Generations  of  Valor

November 2005 - Pearl Harbor Survivor, Houston James of Dallas, embraced marine Staff Sgt. Mark Graunke Jr. during a Veterans Day commemoration in Dallas. Graunke lost a hand, a leg, an eye and fingers when he defused a bomb in Iraq last year. This week’s images of US troops in combat in Fallajah deepened the day’s significance for many who attended tributes held in San Diego and across the nation.  -Associated Press-

This statue stood outside the Iraqi palace, while it was the home to the 4th Infantry division with a final resting place in the memorial museum in Fort Hood, TX. The statue was created by an Iraqi artist named Kalat, who for years was forced by Saddam Hussein to make the many hundreds of bronze busts of Saddam that dotted Baghdad. Kalat was so grateful for the Americans' liberation of his country; he melted three of the heads of the fallen Saddam and made the statue as a memorial to the American soldiers and their fallen warriors.  Kalat worked on this memorial night and day for several months. To the left of the kneeling soldier is a small Iraqi girl giving the soldier comfort as he mourns the loss of his comrade in arms.

Artistry  By  Kalat

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.   Know the line has held, your job is done.   Rest easy, sleep well.   Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.   Peace, peace, and farewell...

Readers may be interested to know that these wreaths…some 5,000 are donated by the Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine. The owner, Merrill Worcester, not only provides the wreaths, but covers the trucking expense as well. He's done this since 1992. A wonderful guy. Also, most years, groups of Maine school children combine an educational trip to DC with this event to help out. Making this even more remarkable is the fact that Harrington is in one the poorest parts of the state.