Salute to veterans
Dear editor:
Respect and honor are rightfully due to the brave men and women who have worn and still wear the military uniforms of the United States of America.
Roanoke Baptist is particularly proud of our military members, retired and active: Air Force — James Wright; Army — Eddie Brown, Bobbie Hampton, Elijah Harris, Lawrence Garner, Curtis Craft, Greg King, LaNiece King, James Haywood Jr., Billy Perkins, Jimmy Perkins, Oliver Thrist, Melvin Grimes, JoEllen Roberson, Palmer Oliver, Lonnie Tidwell, and James Hudson, Purple Heart recipient from service in the Korean War; Marines — James Steward; and Navy — Leon Massey, corpsman, and Robert White.
Mark 3:24,25 reads: “And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” Abraham Lincoln made reference to these verses in his speech after he accepted the Illinois Republican Party’s nomination as that state’s U.S. senator. He was referring to the division regarding the issue of slavery.
Our nation is experiencing division, brought on in part by the downward spiral in the values of respect and truth. We question whether our nation’s leaders are working for all the people. We long for the days of Walter Cronkite, when the facts of the news were reported and we were thought intelligent enough to form our own opinions. We harbor fear from some who are commissioned to protect and serve, and on and on.
Perhaps this Veterans Day observance will put all of that on pause, allowing reflection time on what we are privileged to enjoy at the expense of our veterans’ sacrifices on our behalf. Those whom we love donned the uniforms of the United States military branches and saw their lives altered, their dreams deferred, but for a higher cause than self-gratification.
Not to despair! Through the gloom of the present age, hope is our salvation. May we endeavor to keep hope alive, to unite this nation’s house into a home of peace and trust, if not for ourselves and future generations, then as a tribute to our heroic veterans! Deloris Massey Hot Springs