We gather here to pay our respects to the brave men and women living and dead that fought in the battles and wars so that we could have our freedoms.
The freedom of a child to say his prayers at twilight. The right for a teacher to teach the a, b, c's to a young fresh mind. The freedom for a young boy to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah. The freedom to speak our opinions without fearing for our lives and the lives of our families. The freedom of a farmer to go into his field at dawn and know the earth beneath his feet belongs to him. So many freedoms; big and small that touch our lives every day.
To OUR Veterans from Gettysburg to Bunker Hill, up to the rice paddies of Vietnam, to the deserts of Saudi Arabia and Iraq,
A word so inadequate but from our hearts, Thank You.
M.C. Atwood 1994