Let us remember those who have served and sacrificed
By ROBERT E. L. INGRAM
It is important for us to remember those who are serving in uniform, those who have served and those who have given the ultimate sacrifice. I remember the time when I stood before that black wall of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D. C., with the 58,000 names of those who died in Vietnam—including, among many others, the name of Bravie Soto of Somerton.
I remember the time I stood before the white wall with the 1,600 names of those who died on the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor.
I remember the times when I stood before the forest of white stones at the national cemeteries in Arlington, VA, and in the Punch Bowl in Hawaii.
I remember the time when I stood before the Tomb of the Unknowns and watched the steady pacing of the vigilant sentry of the honor guard there.
I remember the many who have struggled for the freedoms which we enjoy. The price that has been paid through the years for our right to be free is not to be forgotten, nor are we to fail when the bill falls due again.
I remember the many times men and women have stood and fallen—the brave farmers at Concord Bridge, Boston, Long Island, Princeton at Chriatmas time, the winter at Valley Forge, in the trenches at Yorktown, at Lundy’s Lane, Fort McHenry and before New Orleans.
And those who stood at Manassas Junction, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, Shiloh, Vicksburg, in gthe Wilderness, at Petersburg, and at Appamatox Court House.
And the men of the USS Maine and those who charged up San Juan Hill, The battles of the Marne, Meuse, the Argonne, Chateau Thiery.
I remember Pearl Harbor, Manila, Bataan, Corregidor, Wake Island, Tulagi, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Midway, Leyte, Lingayen Gulf, Guam, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, North Africa, Sicily, Salerno, Anzio, crossin the Arno, Normandy at Omaha, Utah, Sword, and Gold Beaches, the Ardennes, the Battle of the Bulge, the bridge at Remagen and crossing the Rhein and the historic meeting with the Red Army along the Elbe. And the Pusan perimeter, the Inchon landing, Hamhung, Chosen, Hue, Lang San, Mae Ly.
All around the world, valiantly they stood and fought for the right as they understood the right.
To this list I can add those who took part in Desert Shield and Desert Storm, Somolia and Haiti.
These were the days when uncommon valor was a common possession.
On November 11, 1918 on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month the end of the "War to End All Wars" was marked. This date must continue to remind us of the great cost of freedom and that this precious possession cannot long survive without at least a common desire to see it stand.
All those who share its benefits must stand ready to come to its defense. Even though it is not perfect, it is the best system in the whole world and we can do our best to see that it is perfected!
Robert E. L. Ingram is a Yuma resident.