OT Honouring Veterans OT

[PatS....]

In Canada, November 11 is Remembrance Day to honour our Veterans and the sacrifices they made.

This story stopped me in my tracks today. It's about two brave Americans and those who wouldn't let them be forgotten.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/11/07/vif2.unknown.vets/index.html

I've always given to the homeless and "street people" if I had any to give, and this story makes it even easier to give to these folks. I don't pretend to know the story of their life or how they got to be where they are but I'm happy to help out when I'm asked.

Edited November 7, 2009 by PatS....

[randroid]

Pat,

That was touching indeed. As a veteran of the Viet Nam war I have found myself to be rather cynical when somebody thanks me for my service, in light of how most of us were welcomed home at the time, but that cynicism had ebbed somewhat during the last few years in part due to stories such as that.

November 11 is celebrated in the States as Armistice Day in commemoration of the end of WWI, and during my lifetime it has also become Veteran's Day, perhaps due to Canadian influence.

Thanks for sharing the post.

-Randy

[jd52cranbrook]

Thanks for sharing that. Veterans Day seems to be the most emotional for me. I think of my father, my service, the circumstances, all of it.

Without going to in a lot of detail, the VA saved my life some almost 20 years ago and I have not forgotten that each day. After Viet Nam I was on a downward spin, soon to die or live the rest of my life in prison.

I will always be proud to be a Vet

Someone sent me this, I know many get sent around, but this one is true.

"Back in September of 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School in Little Rock , did something not to be forgotten.

On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom.

When the first period kids entered the room, they discovered that there were no desks. 'Ms. Cothren, where're our desks?'

She replied, 'You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.'

They thought, 'Well, maybe it's our grades.'

'No,' she said.

'Maybe it's our behavior.'

She told them, 'No, it's not even your behavior.'

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom.

By early afternoon, television news crews had started gathering in Ms. Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room.

The final period of the day came and, as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able

to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.'

At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it.

Twenty-seven (27) U.S. Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand along side the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Martha said, 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don't ever forget it."

http://www.snopes.com/glurge/nodesks.asp

[jd52cranbrook]

There is a local car show at the VA I will be going to tomorrow. I can't seem to get the web site up now. But it is at the Menlo Park VA and helps the homeless vets, and those in real need.

If it comes back up it is.

www.carshowforthevets.com

[Don Jordan]

"I wouldn't take a million dollars for what I've done. I wouldn't do it again for a million dollars." anon

[martybose]

Pat,

That was touching indeed. As a veteran of the Viet Nam war I have found myself to be rather cynical when somebody thanks me for my service, in light of how most of us were welcomed home at the time, but that cynicism had ebbed somewhat during the last few years in part due to stories such as that.

(snip)

-Randy

I've been rather cynical about my Vietnam service, but for a different reason.

I spent my Vietnam time on Yankee station in a brand new Guided Missile Destroyer Escort. Since it was the first ever deployment for this ship, we couldn't get anywhere near the shoreline because the Navy didn't want our electronic signature recorded. So we cruised around and acted as the ASW training coordinator for visiting submarines, which played no part in the war at all. So I don't consider myself to have served in Vietnam, even though the Navy does. The guys who were on the ground earned my respect, I don't feel I earned theirs.

Marty

[jd52cranbrook]

Anybody who put on a uniform for my country deserves respect. They have no idea whatsoever where it will take them.

[Norm's Coupe]

Marty,

You may not have actually served in Vietnam, but you did serve during Vietnam in a support role. So..........you are just as much a Vietnam veteran as those who were actually in Vietnam. I was in Army from 61 - 67. I never served in Vietnam though. Was in Korea in 62 - 63 when they were sending volunteers to Vietnam. However, Korea also needed US service people to serve there. Later, I was in the states a few years, then off to Paris, France from 66 - 67. Regardless of where we served during that period, we could have been sent into combat at any time. If we didn't serve in other places, they would have needed addition people. So........we all did our part in support, or actual combat during that period, making us also veterans of the era.

Don't forget, those were different times. We had the cold war still going in Europe. The Korean war still going. In fact, that's still going today as a peace treaty has never been signed. It's just a truce or cease fire that is still in effect today, and could open up at any time. Then of course where the actual shooting was taking place in Vietnam. The people in the states supported all three fronts. So.......even those who never left the states during that period also did their part in Vietnam by being support personnel. You can't fight a war without those behind the scene's providing support those who are fighting.

Edited November 8, 2009 by Norm's Coupe

[David Maxwell]

My father was a vet of WWII, Korea and Vietnam. Three brothers are Vietnam vets and my nephew is currently in Baghdad. On my Myspace page, I use a different version of the tattoo I designed of my wife over my P15's tire for each holiday of the year. Here is the Veteren's Day version followed by my Pearl Harbor version and my original tattoo version: In case you're wondering, the tattoo was based on a 1940s pinup image of Jane Russell who happens to live in my hometown now.

[1940plymouth]

My Father is a World War Two veteran, I am a Viet Nam era veteran('68-'72), I have one son that is retiring after just over 21 years in the Air Force in April and another son that was also in the Air Force. I have some friend that their sons are either in Iraq or Afghanistan right now. Each night I say a prayer for the saftey of our troops, no matter where they are stationed