A small ceremony was held on Davis Avenue in my town, Mt. Ephraim, NJ today to honor the service of those who fought and died defending America. Around town, many of us put up our flags, and also many of us epressed our gratitude for the good fortune of having our loved ones return alive from war, at the same time as we shared the grief of those who lost a father, son, brother, husband in war.
Our family has had, on my Mother' side, a member of the Cheeseman family survive the Revolutionary War, a member of the Jaggard family survive the Civil War and Andersonville Prison, a member of the McQuiston family survive the Civil War at Gettysburg, an Uncle, Joseph Lyons, survived WW I, and my father, Joseph Robert Wright, and his uncle, Frederick Joseph Young (Yock) survive the US Navy in World War II. Dad was on a Troop Transport and Uncle Yock was on a Destroyer. My brother, Joseph Stephen Wright, a marine, came home safely from Vietnam. We have been the most fortunate of families.
When I visited the Vietnam War Memorial, like most, I cried, and thought of how that could have been our Joe on the wall and his pitiful youthful mementos placed at the foot of it, but our Joe came home.
It truly breaks my heart to think of the families who lost their loved ones It is a gap that cannot be filled. The profound awareness at holidays of the one who is missing, who didn't get to fall in love, be married, have children, enjoy holidays, and grow old. It is sad beyond measure.
But their sacrifice saved us from Hitler and the Nazi attempt to take over the world and destroy democracy.
And it is our duty to see to it that the democracy they died to protect remains sacred and safe. When I saw a varity of events on television and I saw the Capitol building, I thought of that symbol of our nation and our democracy that was so recently defiled by fakers self-proclaimed militia men, all camoflage and no honor. Their grandfathers must have been turning in their graves to know their descendants smashed their way into our sacred capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power in an American election.
Well once again, the fascist impulse to domination and destruction was defeated and democracy was maintained, so for that we also have to be grateful, and to remember the Capitol guardians who died as a result of that insurrection, those men also died serving their country!
Jo Ann
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