Greeting Loyal Airmen, this weekend American celebrate Memorial Day, the day set aside not so much to remember our veterans, as to remember specifically those men and women who gave their all for our great country and never came home.

What a lot of people don’t know is that two days before leaving Vietman, in late June of 1968, the Air Chief had a vivid dream of being in the jungles and seeing an entire army of GIs all sitting around campfires, smoking, telling jokes and just enjoying each other’s company. Then a bugle sounded and they all stood, got into formation and marched away into the night. As they moved past us, we realized they were all the fallen and their pleas to us we’re simple enough, “Don’t forget us.” We woke up in a cold sweat and right there and then made a vow to never…ever forget them.

This weekend, in honor of Memorial Day, the replica of the Washington Vietnam Wall, called the Traveling Wall, is in the Veteran’s Plaza here in Fort Collins.  It is as impressive as the actual Wall itself, with all 58,000 plus names on it.

This is the Veteran’s statue that stands at the entrance to the plaza. A GI with a small child on his shoulders.  Indicative that American fighting men and women have always answered the call to aid the weak and the oppressed in the name of freedom.

To help memorialize all those lost souls, the Veterans’ organization here in Fort Collins sent out an internet plea for volunteers to help read all the names.  The Air Chief, remembering his pledge, signed up and this afternoon, for thirty minutes, we read through a long..long list of names.  Names of sons, brothers, daughters, husbands and wives who never came home. But we did come home. Thus whenever anyone stops to thank us for our service, our reply is always the same, “You are welcome. It was an honor to serve our country.”  And this afternoon, it was a heartfelt honor to read those names. Rest in peace, my brothers and sisters in arms, we haven’t forgotten…and we never will.

Ron – Over & Out!