- Time is running out...
Recently I had the opportunity to
attend the premiere of Hudson Valley Honor Flight: "Generation Bridge", A Documentary by Joe Allen.
Being the wife of a Veteran, and the daughter of a NSO for the Purple Heart I'm
sure it comes as no surprise that I absolutely loved the film. I had an
idea that I was going to like it... I just didn't know by the end of it I would
be crying like a baby.
Hudson Valley Honor Flight (HVHF) is a
501c3 nonprofit organization which “Honors American Veterans” for all their
sacrifices. They transport these heroes to Washington, D.C. to visit their
memorials at no cost to them. Hudson Valley Honor Flight is a local hub of
the National
Honor Flight Network (which consists of over 100 independent
non-profit “hubs” across America). Sadly, over 550 World War II
veterans die everyday, our time to express our thanks to these brave men and
women is running out.
There were moments in the film that
just hit me like a brick. One in particular was an interview with a student who
had attended a Q&A session with the Veterans. He made the observation that
the veterans gave up so much. The student couldn't imagine anyone today going
three days without their smart phones... Yet the Greatest Generation went years
without seeing friends, family, or anything familiar. They spent years fighting
in foreign lands, with little resources and in conditions hard to comprehend. At
home and abroad Americans from the Greatest Generation made do with little,
mandatory rationing and most didn't complain.
Just think about that for a
minute... what do you think would happen today if we were put onto mandatory
rationing. Even for the sake of national security, safety or long term survival
of our nation from an enemy attack. The word chaos is one of many that come to
my mind... can anyone say hurricane Katrina? See many people in today's day and
age are far too wrapped up in "me, myself and I" to think about
giving up something for someone else, especially for a someone else you have
never met before. The men and women of the Greatest Generation did, and they
did it without complaining.
Most have no idea what price was
paid for the lives we have. The world might look a lot different today had it
not been for their courage, strength and determination. The resolve of those
men and women to stand and do whatever was not only asked of them, but
necessary to stop evil. Again another moment that hit me like a brick... Every
one of them even seven decades later knew what they were fighting for. Though
most of them don't consider themselves heroes, and are very humble about their
achievements. When telling their individual stories they all knew why they
did it, and what they were fighting against.
Today we are losing these national
treasures at an alarming rate, while at the same time facing an enemy
potentially worse than what they faced in their day. Most frightening about our
situation is that no one will give it a name. No one will call it for what it
is and for the sake of political correctness or not offending anyone, the
United States of America won't fight. Of course there are those who will call
it what it is, but they are vilified and labeled as far right loons, racist,
bigoted or all kinds of other terms intended to discourage anyone from speaking
out. All the while... evil is on the march again in the world, and the only
ones who really know what that means, who really know what is at stake are dying.
"The American's Are
Coming"... that statement meant something
to the people of the world in those days. I wonder what that means to people in
the world today? In the days of the Greatest Generation you had men like
Winston Churchill who were not afraid to call evil for what was, and were
willing to stand up to fight it. One of Churchill's most famous quotes:
"Victory at all costs, victory
in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for
without victory, there is no survival." - Sir Winston Churchill
Jump to our day and age... a person
was arrested in the UK for quoting Winston Churchill in public for "hate
speech". Ironically Churchill is one of their own, and one of the heroes responsible for preventing the UK (and the rest of the world for that
matter) from all speaking German today. I can't understand how political
correctness has become more important then right and wrong.
So sadly when evil is on the march
all over the world, and the world is on the brink of WWIII the Americans aren't
coming. Never before has our nations history been more important to our
survival. The time is now to honor the men and women of The Greatest
Generation. To seek them out to honor and learn from them, their information
and experiences are priceless.
Find them and connect them with an
Honor Flight network in their area. It's my opinion that someone in the
Veterans Administration should be tasked with contacting every living WWII
Veteran first, then down the line to provide the Honor Flight Network contact
information, and ensure every one of them are able to participate in an event.
We can all be a part of helping that happen. If you know a WWII Veteran,
or veteran of any foreign war contact them and make sure they have the
information. Some are living alone without family or help. Taking a little time
and effort could mean a life changing event for someone who gave so much so
that we may have the life we have today... time is running out.
Here is the video to my song
"I Carry You With Me" written about grief and loss. The video was
dedicated to our nations veterans because more than anyone they and their
families face grief and loss far too often. The ones we love are never really
far from us, we carry them with us until we see them again. Americans should
always carry with them the men and women of The Greatest Generation.
Blessings, Love & Music ~
Ava xo
