Veterans' Day

At the 11th Hour, of the 11th Day of the 11th Month we all need to remember the men and women that have served us all to protect our right of freedom. That right has been paid in blood by many of the soldiers, Marines, Sailors, Airmen and Coast Guard. We all need to think how fortunate we are to have parents that survived the conflicts. Pictured on this page is my Father Glen W. Petty as he completed Navy Basic Training in Great Lakes Naval Training Station. He wanted to enlist shortly after Pearl Harbor but Mom asked him to wait until he was drafted. He wanted to fly but settled for being an aircraft mechanic. He served in the Pacific and returned home in 1946.
There is a lot to be said about those that have served. You do it and be done with it when it is over. Most of us have put our medals and bad memories in a drawer somewhere. My father kept his uniform in a cedar chest and really didn't talk about the service much. Perhaps many of you might say he didn't do direct combat, but the Pilots of the planes he fixed sure would tip their hat to him. Doing your part is what it is all about. I think we all owe the men and women that have served a big round of thanks and a few moments of silence at 11AM, 11 Nov.
Dennis E. Petty, COL, (Ret)