A Hero's Walk

To the American public who have not served in the military, I want to extend a special message from those of us who have served.  First, we appreciate the recognition that many of you have given to our military members and their families.  But I also want you to understand why so many of us struggle to respond when someone says, “thank you for your service”, or asks us to stand when we are at a gathering and be recognized.  Our reaction isn’t  because we are not grateful or even proud of our service, but rather because we all know someone who gave so much more than we did.  I was blessed to serve 20 years in the Air Force and never once be placed in harm's way.  But I have worked with so many who have served in some of the most dangerous places in the world where they stood side by side with those who have sacrificed even more, including those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Please keep in mind that when you thank us for our service and we seem a little uneasy, it’s because the first thought that comes to our mind are our friends and comrades who came home with the wounds of war, or maybe never came home at all.  So please continue to support our military members and their families, and thank our military members for their service.  We appreciate your gratitude and we are proud to have a role, no matter how small or large, in protecting America and its citizens.  Just know that there are too many of our brothers and sisters who are not here today to receive our thanks, and it is for them that we celebrate Veterans Day.

To you military brothers and sisters, I wrote a song just for you.  It’s called “A Hero’s Walk” and was recorded by my friend and country music legend Lee Greenwood. You don’t call yourself a hero, but you took a hero’s walk...

https://youtu.be/mRKfJ2zpsmg

#veteran #leegreenwood. #america