In Honor of the US Marine Corps’ 245th Birthday, Let’s Thank All the New Englanders Who Have Served
Happy Birthday to the U. S. Marine Corps! The Corps turns 245 years old today.
There is an organization here on the Seacoast, seacoastmarines.org, that helps out Veterans, Military Families and NH Communities with their fund-raising and support. If you are a student, you can apply for a scholarship from the organization too, with a few requirements like, you must have immediate family who has been killed in the line of duty.
Anyone who joins the Armed Forces, in my opinion, is the bravest of them all. Those of us who don't sign up, owe a debt of gratitude for their courage for our freedoms. Not everyone can join, but we can all do our part.
The Pease Greeters are a good example of that. If you haven't heard of them before, the Pease Greeters tagline is, "Thanking Our Troops, One Flight at a Time." They welcome soldiers coming in to Pease AFB back home. They provide comfort, support and sometimes snacks before the soldiers head off to foreign lands.
Here's the Mission Statement from the Pease Greeters from their website:
- To welcome troops passing through Portsmouth International Airport on their way to, or from, Afghanistan or Iraq, or any other areas of conflict in any part of the world.
- To create within Pease Trade Port an environment that reflects the respect and high esteem in which we hold all Veterans.
- To promote broad participation by the general public in this welcoming of heroes, paying special attention to the education of school children by instilling respect and admiration for the troops.
The picture at the top of this article shows my friend, Andy Conway with his brothers, Bill Herman, Mark Lucier, Dmitri Carr and Terry Hand in the Persian Gulf War. This picture was taken before the breach into Kuwait. This was Andy's gun and vehicle. Andy told me a little of what he went through when he served and it's nothing like what I have ever had to go through in my life. We owe him and others in the military huge gratitude.
Here's Andy when he was in Active Duty:
Andy did come back to the U.S. safely, thank God, and had two boys, now men. Scott, who he named after another Marine brother who saved Andy's life and Andy, Jr. who is also joined the Corps.
Andy, now a Grandfather, currently lives with his beautiful wife, Colleen and lots of dogs. One is a chihuahua named Ella who thinks she's tougher than she really is. Kinda like Andy himself.
Here's to all who served! Thank you doesn't seem like enough to say, but it's all I got.
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