A President’s Ultimate Sacrifice
A brief reflection on this Memorial Day
Saturday, May 29, was John F. Kennedy’s birthday. If President Kennedy were still alive—this man who will always be young in the nation’s memory—he would be 104. He was a veteran, of course, a Navy Lieutenant who earned a Purple Heart and a Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his life-threatening heroism helping to rescue his crew from the torpedoed PT-109. And though we might not often think of him in the context of all the fallen military heroes who died for their country, he surely was serving his country when his blood was spilled and he made the ultimate sacrifice.
He was a committed public servant, just like we assumed every president would be up until the last White House occupant, whose desecrations of the office included mocking the sacrifices made by our soldiers as “suckers” and “losers.” In times like these, when we are witnessing so many officials exploit their offices for self-enrichment and abandon any hint of higher purpose, John F. Kennedy’s famous words from his inaugural address particularly resonate: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”
I’m feeling grateful to all the brave men and women who’ve given their lives in service to their country and in support of the democracy and freedom that we cherish. (That includes over 400,000 American soldiers who died during the Second World War, a battle for the survival of democracy that could have taken the life of one 25-year-old Navy lieutenant.) In the coming months and years, it’s up to all of us to do our part to sustain America as a democratic country and uphold the principles of self-government.
Wishing everyone a peaceful Memorial Day. I welcome any stories of fallen heroes or photos you’d like to share here with me and this community.
They lived and died for our freedom and democracy, as well as our liberties! My Uncle Tom Dodson died(mom’s brother)...MIA in the Korea War and my great Uncle, John Bernard Ernest, is in Arlington, who sacrificed his life in France in WW1. And in my family tree, Michael Dodson was the first to die from Blair’s county PA, in the American Revolution...and many many more in my family. It is because of all veterans that we still have democracy and freedom. I hope some day we are all seen as equal with the same freedoms, and humanity and democracy truly valued!
Thank you all for your service now and then! Would like to post the news articles( photos) not sure how to do that? Have a peaceful Memorial Day!
And the heroes who gave their sweat, tears, and life-energies to keep us all Free in a hostile world. The Dead gave all but the loyal remain to remind us that Freedom is never Free. Treasure it and protect it if you really love it. One Nation, Indivisible 🇺🇸