I was Humbled this AM

[sandy]

Returning from a camping trip on the wing with some friends. We were in Heber, AZ for breakfast. I noticed an elderly gent in a booth. He was wearing a pale blue sport coat and a red cowboy hat. An odd combination but my back was to him while I ate so I didn't see him again till I was up and paying the cashier. I noticed a paratropper pin on his lapel: so I asked where he jumped into. He said; "I jumped onto Normandy beach on June 5th, 1944". He was part of the pathfinder group that snuck in before D Day to assist with prelanding details. So I asked if he got through the landing unskathed. "Yes, but in the Balkins my leg was shot off. I walked over and thanked him as I shook his hand. He ask about my service, which paled compared to his. I explained that I took care of ICBM's with nuke warheads. At that point he raised his hand again and shook MY hand. My helmet was in hand and he asked about my weekend. Then he said that he still rides motorcycles and skydives. I think he was about 85. After saying goodbye, I realized that I won't soon forget the moment I met a hero. This meeting won't soon be topped.

[f6john]

Returning from a camping trip on the wing with some friends. We were in Heber, AZ for breakfast. I noticed an elderly gent in a booth. He was wearing a pale blue sport coat and a red cowboy hat. An odd combination but my back was to him while I ate so I didn't see him again till I was up and paying the cashier. I noticed a paratropper pin on his lapel: so I asked where he jumped into. He said; "I jumped onto Normandy beach on June 5th, 1944". He was part of the pathfinder group that snuck in before D Day to assist with prelanding details. So I asked if he got through the landing unskathed. "Yes, but in the Balkins my leg was shot off. I walked over and thanked him as I shook his hand. He ask about my service, which paled compared to his. I explained that I took care of ICBM's with nuke warheads. At that point he raised his hand again and shook MY hand. My helmet was in hand and he asked about my weekend. Then he said that he still rides motorcycles and skydives. I think he was about 85. After saying goodbye, I realized that I won't soon forget the moment I met a hero. This meeting won't soon be topped.

 Those men and women have never received the recognition and respect they justly deserve. Their humbleness keep their service and their stories hidden from most of us. Glad you were able to shake his hand.

[Fla. Jim]

Those men and women have never received the recognition and respect they justly deserve. Their humbleness keep their service and their stories hidden from most of us. Glad you were able to shake his hand.

Yes it was only after my fathers death that I learned  he had earned 4 bronze stars while also earning the Purple heart I knew he had. Seems near Luxenburg while attacking a morter placement in a barn which had pinned down his men (He was a staff seargent at that time) a morter fragment tore off his ring finger and broke beyond repair his little finger and also shattered his rifle. He was crawling out to get medical attention when hearing the cries of his wounded troups he went back and forth 4 times to rescue his people that were unable to retreat from the morter and machine gun fire. Never mentioned that one to me! Said the only true Hero's he knew during the war were all killed making sacrifices for their men. I know however he was and is still my Hero.

[RoadKill]

I am impressed and Jealous at the same time. Those are Hero's in every aspect of the word. Thank God for ALL the hero's and I must say...The fallen will NEVER BE FORGOTTEN, From WWI to the current conflicts around the world,Vietnam,Kosovo,Iraq,Afghanistan.....ECT... ALL HERO'S in my book!

[stormrider]

Spent the weekend with my mother in law's cousin, William Carey Jarvis. He landed on Normandy Beach. He survived the Battle of the Bulge, among many other battles. 87 years old and loves to go on Cruises. And has a great sense of humor. Great hero in my book. If you live near Tampa, give me a shout and I'll let you know his addy and go by and look in on him for me. And BTW, he has been up here and seen the Valk. He says it is the best looking bike he's ever seen. I tend to agree.

[Wingman]

My Uncle, who is still living, was also with the Pathfinders. He was in the 506th, 101 Airborne. He dropped in at Normandy and fought through the bulge in Belgium's freezing winter and after enduring paralyzing fear, starvation and freezing weather, was wounded (in the butt!) while on patrol.

If anyone would like to familiarize themselves with the perils of the Pathfinders, get the series "Band of Brothers", it does a pretty good job of telling their story.

He gave me a hat with the emblem for the 101st on it and I said that I can't wear it, I was just in the Signal Corps and never saw combat. He said, "I saw enough combat for both of us!"

[Doc Moose]

Great stories about great people.  Thanks for sharing them! 

[bludragon]

Thank you for these moving messages.  We often take things for granted and these type of stories certainly make me appreciate the freedom we have because of these heroes

[HayHauler]

I, for one, appreciate ALL members of the armed forces.  God bless them all and I pray that all current members get to return home to their families and friends.

Hay
Jimmyt

[Gear Jammer]

A veteran - whether active duty, retired, national guard or reserve - is someone who, at one point in their life, signed a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" , for an amount of "up to and including my life." That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it. -- Author Unknown

'nuff said,,,,,,,

[R J]

A veteran - whether active duty, retired, national guard or reserve - is someone who, at one point in their life, signed a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" , for an amount of "up to and including my life." That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it. -- Author Unknown

'nuff said,,,,,,,

Especially those Southern Illegals..........

Semper fi 50 - 54. 1st Division, Korea  at the start.

[hubcapsc]

I used to buy loads of cedar posts from a Mr. Hubert Higgens... as I returned over and over
again, we got to talking about more and more things... he served in WWII in the pacific, he
told me stories about dealing with kamikazes...

He passed on a few years ago, this line is from his obituary...

   Mr. Higgins was owner of Higgins Used Cars, a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, having served on the
   USS Uhlmann, member of Beulah Baptist Church, and was also a Mason.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Uhlmann_%28DD-687%29

-Mike

[SlowRoad]

  I have had the honor of meeting several of these Heroes as a member of the Patriot Guard Riders. It is truly a blessing to meet the heroes that have put their lives on the line for the freedom that too many take for granted.
 
  If anyone is interested, I learned last night of a ride on Oct 3 meeting at About Bikes in Blount Springs AL at 0900 going to the Veterans Hospital in Birmingham AL to visit with the Heroes there. I have never been on this ride, but the guys that were talking about it were almost in tears while telling of their experience last year. Both said they went with the intention of blessing these men and women, but turned out they were the ones who were blessed. There will be a LEO escort for the entire ride and they are hoping for a good showing. Last year, the hospital staff brought the blind patients out to the street as the bikes were coming in. The riders said you could see them waving and smiling from ear to ear as soon as they heard the bikes coming. I am planning to be there and if anyone else would be interested, let me know and I will get you more info about the staging location. It's easy to find and should be a good ride down. The ride will happen rain or shine. This is not a PGR event, just a good opportunity to show these veterans a little of the respect that they deserve.

Tim

[Dangle]

My WWII hero is my father-in-law. He was a Army Capt. of a infantry company which was part of the 80th Mountain Div. He was severly wounded in Belgium Nov 1944 from German shell fire and spent the next 3 years recooperating from his wounds. He is 92 years old now and still as sharp as a tack mentally but physically wheelchair bound.  Great guy.

[the inspector]

I can't thank all the vet's ever enough. They are the core of the "United States of America"

I am so proud of them and always will be...........

"the inspector"

[razor]

Thanks for shaking this hero's hand and thanking him for his service to this county.  I truly believe they were the greatest generation!  Thanks again for letting him know there are a lot of people like us that really appreciate what he did, and thanks for sharing.  Bless you my friend!

[Jabba]

My ol'man lied about his age and joined the army at 16 in 1944.  He was a paratrooper, and jumped in the Pacific right at the end.  He stayed in the Guard for a whole career after that.  Attaining the rank of E-7 BEFORE they created the E-8 and E-9 Rank.  He then went to OCS and earned his commission, and was the OLDEST 1st Lieutennant in the Army for a while.  He eventually retired as an O-6 (Colonel).

He was a good man.  He was not my hero... he was still a drunk, and not that great of a father... but he tried, and I give him credit for that.  He dies in 1990, three years after losing my mother.  He just didn't want to live without her, and drank himself to death.  He was 61.

He wanted me to join the Airborne.  I joined the Navy instead.  I told him I wanted something other than busted up feet when I got out.

Jabba

[Jabba]

I did however, attend the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1991 when I was in the Navy.  I spent A LOT of time with those men.  10 hours a day while on duty, and an additional 5 or 6 by my own choice for several weeks while they were in town.  I got to meet President GHW Bush then too. 

Those men were fantastic to be around.

Jabba

[chief120865]

Greatest generation...period!

[JimL]

Those men and women have never received the recognition and respect they justly deserve. Their humbleness keep their service and their stories hidden from most of us. Glad you were able to shake his hand.

Great story Sandy, thanks for sharing.  John is right, none of the guys (including the veterans that are members of this forum) have gotten the recognition that they deserve.  I know that this will not go over well, but in some respects I think that the veterans of WW2 were more fortunate than many of the veterans that came after them.  All wars are controversial, never has there ever been 100% support for any military action; however starting with Vietnam the opposition stopped putting aside their difference and getting behind our veterans and our country, many saw it as an opportunity to engage in vitriolic "mudslinging" in order to garner political capital and divide the voters.  "Hanoi Jane" was just the start....and after the success she had in gaining the spotlight...many others followed in her footsteps.

Certainly there have been few campaigns as bloody as that day that our troops hit the beaches of Normandy.  With the amount of life lost that day, it would have been easy for the opposition party to publicly "second guess" the strategy of the President and Secretary of Defense.  I am grateful that these men did not have to contend with people like Pelosi, Reid, Murtha, Franks et.al. and contend with the daily name calling that George Bush had to contend with.  They were lucky to have a nation united so that they could concentrate on ending the war and bringing our troops home.

The latest news out of Afghanistan from General McChrystal is that the Taliban are now winning the war there.  Should the Republicans get behind our President and Secretary of Defense or should they now use the same tactics to regain power that the current administration used over the past 8 years?  Is it now time to start the name calling?  Is it time to start calling the President and Secretary of Defense "stupid" on a daily basis?  That would certainly be a morale booster for our troops in Afghanistan wouldn't it.  I certainly hope they would never lower themselves to that level.

We all need to remember that as far as the rest of the world is concerned, we are ALL Americans.  We will all win together or we will all lose together.  Short term political gains are just that.....short term.

[sugarbee]

Slowroad-Send me the info when you can, this is something Beekeeper and myself might be able to do.  I will have a four day weekend at that time.

Thanks!

  I have had the honor of meeting several of these Heroes as a member of the Patriot Guard Riders. It is truly a blessing to meet the heroes that have put their lives on the line for the freedom that too many take for granted.
 
  If anyone is interested, I learned last night of a ride on Oct 3 meeting at About Bikes in Blount Springs AL at 0900 going to the Veterans Hospital in Birmingham AL to visit with the Heroes there. I have never been on this ride, but the guys that were talking about it were almost in tears while telling of their experience last year. Both said they went with the intention of blessing these men and women, but turned out they were the ones who were blessed. There will be a LEO escort for the entire ride and they are hoping for a good showing. Last year, the hospital staff brought the blind patients out to the street as the bikes were coming in. The riders said you could see them waving and smiling from ear to ear as soon as they heard the bikes coming. I am planning to be there and if anyone else would be interested, let me know and I will get you more info about the staging location. It's easy to find and should be a good ride down. The ride will happen rain or shine. This is not a PGR event, just a good opportunity to show these veterans a little of the respect that they deserve.

Tim