Veterans Day 2009

Veterans Day always means a lot to me.
Originally meant to remember the end of World War One and called Armistice Day, it has changed to honor all Military Veterans in times of War and times of Peace.
The Armistice ending that horrible useless war took effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.

Now it means even more with my son serving in Uniform as an officer of the United States Army.
He continues a tradition in my family of service, which skipped over me.
A sanguine personality and a lack of direction had a lot to do with that.
In retrospect, it would have done me good, as it has a lot of men throughout our history.

As far back as the American Revolution, Col Miles Harvey served with General Washington and the Continental Army.
My gggrandfather James S. Harvey, for whom my dad was named served in the famous Stonewall Brigade. He did wear the grey uniform on the opposite side, as most men in Virginia and what is now West Virginia did.
My mother also had two of my Grand Dad Cupps great Uncles who wore the grey.
My granddad himself served as a Sgt in an artillery company during WWI, but he never deployed overseas.

Pretty much everyone who was able served in WWII, the last so-called 'Just War'.
My dad was in the Army, seriously injured and discharged before deploying.
I would likely not have existed otherwise, many of the men he trained with did not make it back, serving with General Patton in N Africa, Sicily and France. Virtually all of the NCO's in his unit were KIA.
My Uncle Willard Mann Jr was a Sgt with the 77th Infantry Division, (Statue of Liberty) serving in the Pacific Theatre. That unit saw major action on Okinawa and in the Phillipines late in the War.
I didn't know until years after he died that he was seriously wounded, and that he was decorated with the Bronze Star with V for his service.
I have his combat infantry badge, and the ribbons for his medals.
I also have the patches from his duty uniform, which he no doubt wore in combat.
My mom's eldest brother Jack Cupp, and her younger brother Bill served in the Navy during that war.
I was privileged to talk to Bill when he was in Duke Medical Center, just before he passed away.
He was attached to a PT Squadron in the pacific, and was strafed and bombed more than once.
I did not know until then that he "re-upped" during the Korean War, and served on a cruiser off of the North Korean coast. He told me that my Aunt Libby was less than happy he did that!
When asked how it was he said "In some ways it was the best time of my life, young and full of vim, excepting that someone kept trying to kill me!" I still remember his laugh as he told me that.

Several of my cousins wore the blue Air Force uniform, my cousin Rob Hill retired after a 27 year career.

My nephew Don as I write this is with a field Artillery Unit in Kuwait, waiting to move over into Iraq.

By this time next year, our boy will be completing Ranger Training before joining his unit, wherever they are at the time.

Thank you, all of you who serve, and who have served!
We could not exist as a free people without you.

note on pictures, Ariel receiving his ceremonial "First Salute" from the Battalion Sgt Major, the entire clan, a very rare photo as most of us are smiling to some degree.
Ariel with his mentor and friend, Major Williams.
In Army terminology, he is a really 'Square' guy.
I like him a lot.