D-Day Daughter

Veteran’s Day November 11, 2009 We have visible memorials standing through out this country as well as many countries abroad, honoring those who have served and paid the ultimate price for our freedom. We can pick a veteran out of a crowd of people when they wear a certain hat, a pin or a uniform on days like Veteran’s Day, Memorial Day and Fourth of July, but would we be able to identify a veteran at other times? Some veterans carry the obvious signs of their service – a missing limb, a deep jagged scar or that certain look in their eyes. So, who is a veteran? He’s my dad that stormed Omaha Beach at 19 years of age. He’s my uncle that flew 52 successful missions as an Air Force pilot over Italy. She’s my daughter-in-law that served in Dessert Storm, slept on the ground and yes, ate a bug or two. She’s my best friend who served 22 years in the Air Force before retiring but continues to serve as a leader in Soldiers Angels. She’s my niece who decided to join the Army Reserves and after...

The Greatest Generation ... and what a generation they all are! Friday evening, June 5th, flipping through the television channels trying to find something decent to watch, I came across the beginning of "Saving Private Ryan". Like many times before I decided to watch it, trying to imagine my Dad 65 years later, walking across the green grass of the American cemetery in Normandy, France like "Ryan" did in the movie. I wondered what Dad would have thought today looking out into the calm of the English Channel at 85 years of age. Would he still see the burning LCI 92 he was on that never made it in ... his comrades laying on Omaha dead, wounded and screaming out for help ... the clear waters of the Channel today instead of the bloody waters he witnessed at 19. Would he feel peace today as opposed to hatred and war ... smell clean air over smoke, fire and death. These questions and more were racing through my mind as I watched the beginning of this movie. For now, my q...