Thank you, veterans

Editor's note: Byrne Bennett is a reporter for the Lincoln County Record-Times. Any opinion expressed in this column is his own and not necessarily that of The Record-Times or Free Press Publishing.

President Ronald Reagan once said, "America is a shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere."

The members of our Armed Forces are the keepers of that beacon. If not for them, that light would have been snuffed out decades ago.

Veterans Day is an important date on my calendar. My father and ten of my uncles, all from Lincoln County, served our country in World War II. They had one thing in common; they wanted to defeat Hitler and Nazism. Their duties were: torpedoman on a submarine, radioman on a minesweeper, journalist/cartoonist, ship commander, two fighter pilots, two infantry and a paratrooper.

Two of my uncles were too old for the military, so one worked in a naval shipyard and the other in the War Department.

One of my uncles, the paratrooper, never came home.

His name was Joe Mann. He posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroism.

My father and the rest of my uncles quietly assimilated back into society. They went to college, found jobs and married. I heard none of them speak of the war or their military service, so knew them only as uncles, not veterans. Uncle Joe, I knew only from his reputation as a soldier, but never as an uncle.

Years after they had passed, I looked through my grandmothers' photo albums and scrapbooks. In them I found letters, photos and newspaper clippings, each telling the story of my uncles' military service.

Some were awarded medals, others served in anonymity, all set their dreams aside to take on evil. They were much like the millions of others who served alongside them, mostly unsung, but all heroes.

I wish I could thank them all.

Since World War II, generations of Americans have answered our nation's call to military service, including my nephew, a Navy SEAL who just completed his third deployment. His mission like the men and women who went on before is to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Regrettably, I never thanked my family for their military service. But because of the Greatest Generation, we are free. Millions of men and women have since followed, prioritizing service over self. They served willingly and didn't expect praise. Nonetheless, we owe them gratitude.

Because of our veterans we are free to worship, speak our minds and pursue our dreams. They are the reason our nation's beacon still shines.

Veterans, we are grateful.