Blog Archives
USMC Birthday / Veterans Day 2022
The Marine Corps birthday has been commemorating on November 10 every year since 1775, the year of establishment of Continental Marines. Every year the cake cutting ceremony with the conventional ball follows.
Saluting the U.S. Marine Corps
Marine Corps Birthday Cake
Sketch of the original Tun Tavern
********** ********
Veterans Day
On November 11th, we pause to reflect on the history of this great Nation and honor all those who fought to defend it. Originally titled “Armistice Day” and intended to celebrate the end of World War I, “the war to end all wars,” Veterans Day allows us to give thanks to veterans past and present, men and women from all walks of life and all ethnicities, who stood up and said, “Send me.” We recognize your sacrifices, your sense of duty and your love for this country.
Thank you – To ALL our veterans!
The 11th Airborne Division jumps again!
PLEASE CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE.
For many other countries who remain free thanks to their veterans, this day is called Remembrance Day. I thank you!!
##########################################################################################
Military Humor –
#####################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Lawrence “Junior” Anderson – Blanchard, MI; USMC, WWII, CBI, scout observer
Catherine Batoff – Cedar Lake, IN; US Army WAC, WWII
Jesse G. Bell – Roopsville, GA; US Navy, WWII, USS Case DD-370
Leo E. Cummings – Jackson, MI; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 11th Airborne Division
Ralph Fiorio – Peekskill, NY; US Army, WWII, ETO, 8th Armored Division
David E. Holeman – Le Harpe, KS; US Air Force, WWII, PTO, # 646029, 17/24th Pursuit Group, POW, KWC (Cabanatuan Camp, P.I.)
Merle L. Pickup – Provo, UT; US Army Air Corps, WWII, CBI, Cpl. # 39832953, 393 BS/308 BG, KIA (India)
Paul J. Simons Jr. (102) – Wyoming, MO; US Army, WWII
James M. Triplett – King County, WA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, TSgt # 39202130, B-24 radio operator, 700BS/445 BG/2/8th Air Force
Allen H. Tuttle – King County, WA; US Army, Korea, Sgt. # 19261249, field artillery cannoneer, C Batt/38/2nd Infantry Division, POW, KWC (NK Camp # 5)
Larry A. Zich – Lincoln, NE; US Army, Vietnam, Chief Warrant Officer # 508603819, HQ/37/1st Signal Brigade, KIA
######################################################################################
Why is the only one standing the man with a wheelchair?
#####################################################################################################################################################################################
USMC Birthday | Veterans Day
US Marine Corps Birthday
10 November 2021 – The United States Marine Corps’ 246th Birthday
Prior to 1921, Marines celebrated the recreation of the Corps on 11 July with little pomp or pageantry. On 21 October 1921, Major Edwin North McClellan, in charge of the Corps’s fledgling historical section, sent a memorandum to Commandant John A. Lejeune, suggesting the Marines’ original birthday of 10 November be declared a Marine Corps holiday to be celebrated throughout the Corps. Lejeune so ordered in Marine Corps Order 47:
Sketch of the original Tun Tavern
11 November 2021 – U.S. Veterans Day
On November 11th, we pause to reflect on the history of this great Nation and honor all those who fought to defend it. Originally titled “Armistice Day” and intended to celebrate the end of World War I, “the war to end all wars,” Veterans Day allows us to give thanks to veterans past and present, men and women from all walks of life and all ethnicities, who stood up and said, “Send me.” We recognize your sacrifices, your sense of duty and your love for this country.
Poppy from MaryLou
Remembrance Day around the world!
Remembrance Day (sometimes known informally as Poppy Day) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth of Nations member states since the end of WWI, to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. Following a tradition inaugurated by King George V, in 1919, the day is also marked by war remembrances in many non-Commonwealth countries. Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November in most countries to recall the end of hostilities of World War I on that date in 1918. Hostilities formally ended “at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month”, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente.
Click on still pictures to enlarge.
#########################################################################
Military Humor – 
#########################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
George Ankomeus – Ft. Atkinson, WI; US Army, Korea, Co. A/187th RCT
Santina Breen – Elizabeth, NJ; US Navy WAVES, WWII
Eric David – brn: Koln, GER; US Navy, WWII, electrician’s mate
Edward Fay Jr. – Bradenton, FL; US Army, 11th Airborne Division
Robert J. Herynk – Hanover, KS; US Army, WWII, PTO, Pvt., Co K/3/126/32nd Infantry Division, KIA (Soputa-Sanananda Track, NG)
Allan F. Hicks – MO; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, SSgt. # 19145765, 319th Bomber Group/440th B Squadron, KIA (Italy)
Harold W. Lindsey – San Antonio, TX; US Navy, WWII, PTO, Seaman 2nd Class, USS Oklahoma, KIA (Pearl Harbor)
Stephen C. Mason – Jersey City, NJ; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, Pvt. # 12165894, HQ Co/505/82nd Airborne Division, Bronze Star, Silver Star, KIA (Beek, NETH)
James McDonald – Leveland, TX; US Navy, WWII, PTO, Fireman 1st Class, USS Oklahoma, KIA (Pearl Harbor)
Walter C. Stein – Cheyenne, WY; US Navy, WWII, PTO, Seaman 1st Class, USS Oklahoma, KIA (Pearl Harbor)
Michaux Turbeville – Dillon, NC; US Army, Korea, Pfc., HQ Co/3/31/7th Infantry Division, KIA (Chosin Reservoir)
Leon S. Wheeler – Conklin, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, Co. E/188/11th Airborne Division
##################################################################################################
Why is the only person standing, the one in the wheelchair?
###########################################################################################################################################################################################
Veterans Day 2020 Remembrance and Gratitude
My post for this Veterans Day is dedicated to Sgt. Walter Morgan Bryant Jr., USMC; R.I.P my dear friend!
… there is an old Marine poem… it says: ‘When I get to heaven, To St. Peter I will tell, Another Marine reporting sir, I’ve served my time in hell.” ______ Eugene Sledge, USMC veteran of Peleliu & Okinawa
For the U.S. Marine Birthday, 10 November – CLICK HERE!!
I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze
A young Marine saluted it, and then
He stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud
With hair cut square and eyes alert
He’d stand out in any crowd.
I thought, how many men like him
Had fallen through the years?
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers’ tears?
How many Pilots’ planes shot down?
How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves?
No, Freedom is not free.
I heard the sound of taps one night,
When everything was still.
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That taps had meant “Amen”
When a flag had draped a coffin
of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
at the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No, Freedom isn’t free!!
by: Kelly Strong, posted at vietvet.org
For Remembrance of the Pacific War, from: “The Voice of the Angels” newspaper of the 11th Airborne Association
For All Those In Free Countries Celebrating Remembrance 0r Poppy Day
Poem from another Vietnam veteran…
https://militaryfamilymuseumwarstories.wordpress.com/2022/06/25/remember-us/
###############################################################################################################
For The Military Today –
###############################################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Robert Avrutik – Yonkers, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII, CBI, radioman
Grover “Spook” Browning – Newdale, ID; US Army, WWII, ETO, Purple Heart
Anthony Colavito – West Calwell, NJ; US Army, WWII, PTO, demolition
James Dunn – Lubbock, TX; US Navy, WWII, Purser, USS Franklin
Morris Horton – Sidney, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, Co. F/187/11th Airborne Division
Adrian Miller – Winamac, IN; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, 101st Airborne Division
Albert Sakey – Boston, MA; US Navy, WWII, ATO & PTO, PT-boat radioman
Ottis Stout (101) – TX & CA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, B-17 tail gunner
James Thomas – Dry Ridge, KY; US Army, 188/11th Airborne Division
Paul W. Wilkins – USA; US Army, Korea, Cpl., B Co./1/21/24th Infantry Division, KIA (Choch’iwan, SK)
#############################################################################################################
I have a list of parades and celebrations, if anyone is interested, tell me where you’ll be 11 November 2020 and I will see if I can locate one near you!!
No Veteran Should Be Without a Place to Call Home
Free Help for Homeless Veterans Dial 1-877-4AID-VET (1-877-424-3838) for 24/7 access to VA services for homeless and at-risk Veterans
Homeless Veteran Chat Confidential, 24/7 online support for homeless Veterans and friends
https://www.va.gov/homeless for more information
Are You a Veteran in Crisis or Concerned About One?
Did you know that VA offers same day services in Primary Care and Mental Health at 172 VA Medical Centers across the country? Make the Connection Resource Locator
Contact the Veterans Crisis Line (1-800-273-8255 and press 1, Chat, or Text 838255.)
Don’t know what number to call?
1-800-MyVA411 (800-698-2411) is never the wrong number
Have a concern, compliment, or recommendation for VA?
Call the White House VA Hotline at 1-855-948-2311
#####################################################################################################################################################################################
Veterans Day 2019
For each and every veteran – Thank You!!
For All Our Todays and Yesterdays
Armistice Day Becomes Veterans Day
World War I officially ended on June 28, 1919, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. The actual fighting between the Allies and Germany, however, had ended seven months earlier with the armistice, which went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. Armistice Day, as November 11 became known, officially became a holiday in the United States in 1926, and a national holiday 12 years later. On June 1, 1954, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all U.S. veterans.
For their loyalty…
War Dog Memorial on Guam.
US Military dog insignia
The Things That Make a Soldier Great
The things that make a soldier great and send him out to die,
To face the flaming cannon’s mouth, nor ever question why,
Are lilacs by a little porch, the row of tulips red,
The peonies and pansies, too, the old petunia bed,
The grass plot where his children play, the roses on the wall:
‘Tis these that make a soldier great. He’s fighting for them all.
‘Tis not the pomp and pride of kings that make a soldier brave;
‘Tis not allegiance to the flag that over him may wave;
For soldiers never fight so well on land or on the foam
As when behind the cause they see the little place called home.
Endanger but that humble street whereon his children run–
You make a soldier of the man who never bore a gun.
What is it through the battle smoke the valiant soldier sees?
The little garden far away, the budding apple trees,
The little patch of ground back there, the children at their play,
Perhaps a tiny mound behind the simple church of gray.
The golden thread of courage isn’t linked to castle dome
But to the spot, where’er it be–the humble spot called home.
And now the lilacs bud again and all is lovely there,
And homesick soldiers far away know spring is in the air;
The tulips come to bloom again, the grass once more is green,
And every man can see the spot where all his joys have been.
He sees his children smile at him, he hears the bugle call,
And only death can stop him now–he’s fighting for them all.
by: Edgar A, Guest
For All Those In Free Countries Celebrating Remembrance 0r Poppy Day
#############################################################################################
Current News –
In honor the Veterans who are in hospice, there is a drive for Christmas cards, and if possible, small gifts for those who are about to go on their final mission. Please do your best for them – they did it for you!
Veteran’s Last Patrol; attn: Holiday Drive, P.O. Box 6111, Spartanburg, SC 29304
#############################################################################################
Military Humor –
#############################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Willard R. Best – Staunton, IL; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, SSgt., 40th/1st Air Div./8th Air Force, gunner, KIA (Germany)
Leon E. Clevenger – Durham, NC; US Army, Korea, Cpl., Co. K/3/21/24th Infantry Division, KIA (Kalgo-ri, South Korea)
Harry Dexter – Davenport, IA; US Army, MSgt., 11th Airborne Division
Herbert B. Jacobson – Chicago, IL; US Navy, WWII, Pearl Harbor, KIA, USS Oklahoma
Servando Lopez – Alice, TX; US Army, WWII, ETO, Bronze Star, Silver Star, Purple Heart
Ralph Nichols – Dawson, GA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, 551/82nd Airborne Division
Robert Register – Jacksonville, FL; US Navy, WWII, PTO, minesweeper USS Notable # 267
William Timpner – Stamps, AR; US Army, WWII
Frank Wills – Columbus, OH; US Navy, WWII, PTO, submarine service
Peter Zemanick – Pittsburgh, PA; US Army, 504/82nd Airborne Division
############################################################################################
##########################################################################################################################################################################################
Veterans Day 2018
A MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES….
https://mailchi.mp/nara/0rjknzxchj-763401?e=2018eed2da
NO MATTER WHAT COUNTRY YOU LIVE IN – IF YOU ARE LIVING FREE – THANK A VETERAN !!!
############################################################################################
Here We Go……
#############################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Daniel Buchta – Far Rockaway, NY; US Navy, USS Nimitz
Jean Danniels – ENG; WRENS, WWII
Waverly Ellsworth Jr. – Buffalo, NY; US Navy, Korea, medic
Virgil; Johnston – Grove, OK; USMC, WWII
Alma (Smith) Knesel – Lebanon, PA; Manhattan Project (TN), WWII
Samuel Mastrogiacomo – Sewell, NJ; US Army Air Corps, WWII, MSgt., B-24 tail gunner, 2nd Air Div./8th A.F. (Ret. 33 y.)
Willis Sears Nelson – Omaha, NE; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, B-17 pilot
Gregory O’Neill – Fort Myers, FL; US Army, WWII, ETO, 787th
Orville Roeder – Hankinson, ND; US Army, Medic
Nicholas Vukson – Sault Saint Marie, CAN; RC Navy, WWII, Telegraphist, HMCS Lanark
#############################################################################################
VETERANS DAY 2015
For each and every veteran – Thank You!!
Armistice Day Becomes Veterans Day
World War I officially ended on June 28, 1919, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. The actual fighting between the Allies and Germany, however, had ended seven months earlier with the armistice, which went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. Armistice Day, as November 11 became known, officially became a holiday in the United States in 1926, and a national holiday 12 years later. On June 1, 1954, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all U.S. veterans.
A military parade with crowds of excited spectators along 5th Avenue, in celebration of Armistice day and peace in Europe following World War One, New York, 1918. (Photo by Paul Thompson/FPG/Getty Images)
In 1968, new legislation changed the national commemoration of Veterans Day to the fourth Monday in October. It soon became apparent, however, that November 11 was a date of historic significance to many Americans. Therefore, in 1978 Congress returned the observance to its traditional date.
Please watch and listen!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zq1xMXOhxqE
For their loyalty…
War Dog Memorial on Guam
For the rest – Let your patriotism show!!
For the Remembrance Days around the Free World!
The Things That Make a Soldier Great
The things that make a soldier great and send him out to die,
To face the flaming cannon's mouth, nor ever question why,
Are lilacs by a little porch, the row of tulips red,
The peonies and pansies, too, the old petunia bed,
The grass plot where his children play, the roses on the wall:
'Tis these that make a soldier great. He's fighting for them all.
'Tis not the pomp and pride of kings that make a soldier brave;
'Tis not allegiance to the flag that over him may wave;
For soldiers never fight so well on land or on the foam
As when behind the cause they see the little place called home.
Endanger but that humble street whereon his children run--
You make a soldier of the man who never bore a gun.
What is it through the battle smoke the valiant soldier sees?
The little garden far away, the budding apple trees,
The little patch of ground back there, the children at their play,
Perhaps a tiny mound behind the simple church of gray.
The golden thread of courage isn't linked to castle dome
But to the spot, where'er it be--the humble spot called home.
And now the lilacs bud again and all is lovely there,
And homesick soldiers far away know spring is in the air;
The tulips come to bloom again, the grass once more is green,
And every man can see the spot where all his joys have been.
He sees his children smile at him, he hears the bugle call,
And only death can stop him now--he's fighting for them all.
by: Edgar A, Guest
For those who need assistance of any kind… browse through Colonel Mike Grice’s website!
##################################################################################################
Shout Out!!
It has been a while since my last Shout Out to the Veterans and Volunteers of Arkansas – my apologies! I think of you all quite often and Sheri DeGrom keeps me up-to-date on your activities. Enjoy your day!!!!!!!!!
##############################################################################
Boot Camp Humor – (you didn’t forget your D.I., do you….?)
##########################################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Carl Bove – Willow Grove, PA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, C/188th/11th Airborne
…. . and every day!
Francis Dabrowski – Chicago, IL; USMC, WWII, Korea
Robert Feigley – Hagerstown, MD; US Army Air Corps, WWII, Korea
James Hoeh – Cincinnati, OH; US Army, Korea, 187th RCT
Clive Irving – Taupo, NZ; NZ J Force # 634744, WWII
Willard Janey – Graham, NC; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, HQS/675th Artillery
Melvin McCoury Jr. – Spokane, WA; USMC; Korea, Vietnam, Colonel (Ret. 23 years)
Ronald Prentice – Sydney, AUS; RA Air Force, WWII,pilot, 461 Sunderland Flying Boat
Ricardo Young – Rosston, AR; US Army, Afghanistan, XVIII Airborne, Sgt.
Stanley Zwicker – Nova Scotia, CAN; RC Army, WWII
#################################################################################
Veteran’s Day
Always a Soldier!!
“FOR TOO LONG, TOO MANY OF US HAVE PAID SCANT ATTENTION TO THE SACRIFICE OF A BRAVE FEW IN OUR MIDST. IT IS UNHEALTHY FOR A NATION TO BECOME DETACHED FROM THOSE WHO SECURE IT.”_______Howard Schultz, author of For Love of Country
I first want to give my personal THANK YOU to each and every veteran that fights for peace and freedom!!! I tear up and become speechless at the mere sight of any one of you!! Boo-ya!! Here in the United States of America we do our best to convey our gratitude to these men and women for giving so much of themselves for our safety on this day. In such nations as: Canada, New Zealand, Australia, England, India, Mauritius, South Africa and many in Europe, a day set aside is called Remembrance Day and was recently observed.
Our fellow blogger @ Parent Rap led me to this – 100 Ways to Honor a Veteran – if you care to view it – CLICK HERE.
FREEDOM IS NOT FREE
by: Cadet Major Kelly Strong, Air Force Junior ROTC, Homestead Senior High, Homestead, FL 1988
I watched the flag pass by one day, It fluttered in the breeze. A young Marine saluted it, and then He stood at ease. I looked at him in uniform So young, so tall, so proud, With hair cut square and eyes alert, He’d stand out in any crowd. I thought how many men like him Had fallen through the years. How many died on foreign soil? How many mother’s tears? How many pilot’s planes shot down? How many died at sea? How many foxholes were soldier’s graves? No, freedom is not free. I heard the sound of Taps one night, When everything was still. I listened to the bugler play And felt a certain chill. I wondered how many times that Taps meant “Amen,” When a flag draped a coffin Of a brother or a friend. I thought of all the children, Of the mothers and the wives, Of fathers, sons and husbands With interrupted lives. I thought about a graveyard At the bottom of the sea O unmarked graves in Arlington No, freedom is not free.
#######################################################################################################
MILITARY HUMOR –
Soldiers Never Change!
Our budget-cut Air Force?
########################################################################################################
CURRENT NEWS –
The true story of WWII hero, POW, and Olympic athlete, Louis Zamperini who recently passed away 2 July 2014, has his life depicted in Laura Hillenbrand’s best seller, Unbroken, will be coming to the big screen, 25 December.
Did you know? – One of most inspiring anthems, God Bless America, sort of has a birthday – Irving Berlin wrote an earlier version in 1918, but the one we hear today was first performed on 11 November 1938, in a radio broadcast by Kate Smith. The song eventually became her theme song.
########################################################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Harold A. Blake Jr. – Fulton, NY; US Army, 11th Armored Div., WWII, ETO, Battle of the Bulge
Margaret Yang Kim – Oahu, HI, WAC, WWII
Gordon Lewis – Waterbury, CT; USMC, WWII, PTO, First Lt., pilot, MIA
Samuel Melish – Cincinnati, OH; USMC, WWII, PTO, Cpl, gunner, MIA
Gilford Muncy – Hyden, KY; US Army, WWII, ETO
Marcus H. Muncy – Hyden, KY; USMC, WWII, Cpl, PTO
Harry Phillips – Sunderland, UK; Merchant Marine, WWII, SS Empire Webster, Lloyds War Bravery Medal
Everett A. Smith – Broad Channel, NY; US Army, 11th A/B Div., WWII, Cpl.
George Zimmerman – Tampa, FL; US Army, WWII, PTO
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NOTE _ All the Farewell Salutes today are friend or relatives of our fellow bloggers.
#########################################################################################################
VETERAN’S DAY
In my own small way, a Thank You to each and every person who has served in the military to help protect my way of life…
“Ole Top”
by Chuck Hall
1st Sgt. Phil “Ole Top” Dierickx, USMC, WWII, Korea, Vietnam
Night Intruder Lament
__Author Unknown
I have a story to tell you A story of men bold and brave Have fought, and some died for their Country With a brightly burning plane for their grave. On an island we called Honshu With the broad, blue Pacific all around We set up our tents and our shelters And dug holes for our safety in the ground. At night, when day fighters are sleeping And we call Hacksaw for a fix The Heavens are filled with our thunder And the roar of our Baker-26. On a cold moonless night in December The order was read with a sigh And a happy-go-lucky young pilot Took his plane and his crew out to die. They went with a smile all unknowing ‘Twas only a Korean patrol Too bad that their duty included Their answering God’s Final Roll. Moonshine gave them their vector Surveillance to the Yalu and back They say the last words they transmitted “We wish we were back in our sacks.” One hour stretched into seven It was no time to jest or grin We knew as we waited and listened Another Night Intruder had augured in. There was no one to see and report it No help from a searching patrol Just three name scratched from the roster Who will no longer answer the call. So lift up your glasses my buddies In honor of those who fought the fight The sleep you enjoy out of danger Is because of the boys who fly at might.
#####################################################################
I wish I could include so many other links for wonderful Veteran’s Day salutes, but that would be impossible – here are a few –
Pierre Lagacé and his cousin Joe pose us questions about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at:
http://athabaskang07.wordpress.com/2013/10/18/lest-we-forget-3/
CJ did a great job with:
http://morguemouse.wordpress.com/2013/11/03/the-things-that-make-a-soldier-great/
And, concerning our future generations:
http://allaboutmanners.wordpress.com/2013/11/08/the-inquisitive-child-a-remembrance-day-poem/
######################################################################
Farewell Salutes –
Dorothy Baldwin – Devonshire, England & Arlington, VA; British Army nurse, WWII
William Benson – Clearwater, FL; US Navy, WWII & Korea
Alexander (Sandy) Cameron – Toronto, Canada; CSTJ, CD, AdeC, Colonel
Thomas Camp, Jr. Washington DC; BrigGeneral, US Army, WWII & Korea
August Genge – Niles, IL; US Army, WWII
Charles Nardoni – Chicago Heights, IL; US Army, Korea & Vietnam
Ted Okita – Chicago, IL; US Navy, WWII
David Polzin – Toronto, Canada; WWII
####################################################################
Pacific Paratrooper 