troop letter: I have more respect for those who served my country

December 12, 2010

They were indeed the greatest generation of Americans I think.  And even though I am proud to service in today’s military, I have more respect for those who served my country at a time of war, before me.”

I thought u might want to share w/the WHH Family what SGT Chad to say in his newsletter:

“One thing I’m sure of though is that my time of service has probably already came and gone a long time ago, and at times I feel like I’m just holding on to the idea that I still have something to give, in today’s Army. And I find myself chipping away at the original reasons I came back in. But coming in and out of Dallas for R&R, I can’t help think about all those USO volunteers, and Fire Department personnel’s that give us the best welcome home greeting each time a military flight from the Middle East makes port. I don’t know how they do it, but they are always there without fail. I try not to show it as best as I can but the welcome home greetings and cheers means so much after 9 month or however many months we’ve been away from home. It almost seems overwhelming at times. These USO volunteers are WWII veterans, Korean war veterans, Vietnam war veterans, Gulf war veterans, Moms and Dads of military service men and women, school children and teachers, your everyday average hard working Americans. How do they find the time to greet us and cheer for us every time we make port? It’s Amazing to me that they are able to do what they do, with so many flights from the war zones coming home each week. It’s amazing that they would take the time out of there busy schedules and busy lives to greet us and cheers for us the way that they do. They’ve been doing this for at least 10 years now. So many times I’ve seen the older veterans genuinely moved to tears when they say “Thank you for your service” while shaking our hands as they lineup to greet us just outside the jetway. If they only understood that when I said “thank you” back to each of them, I meant thank you for their service, for their sacrifices, for giving me and my son the freedoms that we take for granted today. They were indeed the greatest generation of Americans I think.  And even though I am proud to service in today’s military, I have more respect for those who served my country at a time of war, before me.”