I’ve caught bits and pieces of stuff on TV for America’s 250th anniversary. It prompted me to remember Tennessee’s “Homecoming ’86” celebration. The yearlong statewide event in 1986 anticipated the state’s bicentennial by 10 years. The guys at our newspaper office decided to grow beards for the occasion. It took my husband, who was still just my boyfriend at the time, quite a while to fill in a beard on his baby face.
While America isn’t perfect, I believe the ideals our country is built on is still make us the best country in the world. I’m proud and thankful to be an American. I’m sappy enough that listening to patriotic music can make me shed tears.
My grandfather wanted more than anything to join the Navy. And he did, despite having to lie about his age to get in. He served between the world wars, but as their family had grown he decided to look for work closer to home. He never talked much about his time as a sailor. But, an anchor tattoo on his forearm is vivid in my mind and how I’ll always remember him.
He was good to his neighbors and his family. On our wedding day, he told my hubs not to take any wooden nickels! He drank coffee with every meal, year ‘round. To me, he’ll always just be Granddaddy. I was always closer to my grandmother, his wife. She taught me how to play Canasta – and let me win.
I have a cousin whose wife is a lieutenant commander in the Navy. They have lived around the world in places including Japan and Germany. Their son has grown up with the opportunity to see so much of the world. I’m proud and thankful for the men and women who are willing to lay down their lives for our country. I pray every day for their safety that they’ll get to return home to their families.
So many countries don’t recognize life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as fundamental rights, but ours does. For this and many other reasons I’m thankful to be an American.
Have you or your family served in the military or as first responders? Please share your experience.
Chicks on the Case 
Both grandfathers were in WWII. My grandmother was a Navy nurse. My father and The Hubby spent over 20 years in the Army (Hubby had six years on active duty and was deployed to both the first Iraq War and Operation Enduring Freedom in 2004).
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So proud of their service. Thanks for sharing.
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Wow, Liz, so many heroes in your family!
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My dad was a 4F during WWII, a source of shame to him. So he joined the Air Raid Wardens and spent a lot of time visiting wounded soldiers in the hospital. I still have the award he got for that.
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Tom, visiting wounded soldiers is a wonderful way to serve our military! Kudos to him.
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That is so cool, Tom! Growing up in a coastal town, I heard plenty of stories about how impt civil defense had been during the war (and continuing).
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Dad served in the Navy during WWII and mom was a Navy nurse, yes how they met. All three of my brothers-in-law served, Navy, AF and Marines. My youngest nephew is currently an Air Force Jag officer, stationed in South Korea at the moment. Many extended family have served in the military, as members of law enforcement, and firefighters. Proud of our American freedoms and values, praying we are courageous enough to maintain them!
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Kennedy, love that your parents met in the military in World War II. Would love to see photo of them both in uniform!
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Sadly, I don’t have one. My mother never had a navy uniform. They just wore nurses whites.
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My dad desperately wanted to serve during WW2 but was 4F too. The doctor who rejected him for the last branch where he tried to enlist said, “I’m doing you a favor.” He wasn’t. Not being able to fight was the greatest disappointment of his life, it always seemed to me.
My FIL served 5 years in the army during the war. He was a medic in the South Pacific. He came home with malaria.
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God bless your dad, Ellen. Wanting so much to serve shows how much he loved his country!
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We’re a military family too. My grandfather served in the Navy in WWII; my dad is a retired Army officer (2 tours in Vietnam); my older brother paid back an Army ROTC scholarship (he also served in South Korea); I was an Army JAG for 20 years (also did a tour in Korea and deployed to Panama as the legal advisor to an infantry brigade during OPERATION JUST CAUSE); and my sister’s son served in the Iowa National Guard and did a tour in Afghanistan.
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Thank you so much for your service, Robin! And your family’s.
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Grateful for those who have served. I don’t have any in my family who’ve been in the military, though my brother did check out the Naval Academy…
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Thanks, Jen! Proud for so many who have served.
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My dad did ROTC in college and ended up as an Air Force JAG for three years after he finished law school–in Sioux City Iowa, where he and my mom (a fellow Angelino) froze their butts off. I still have Dad’s ROTC cavalry saber, which they used in their exercises.
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Nice you still have his saber! We have John’s grandfather’s sword from Knights of Columbus, which I’m proud his uncle saved for him.
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Both of my grandfathers served in WWII, one was a Staff Sergeant in the Army, the other was a Sea-Bee in the Navy. I have Grandpa P’s flag, medals, and awards in a display case on a shelf in my living room, he never spoke much to my mom or aunt about his service, but when I was older and stayed with him for a while, he told me about some close calls and was so proud of his service in the Army.
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So nice you have his medals, and that he had the chance to share some of his experiences with you!
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One grandfather saw combat during WWII. The other was drafted, but Japan surrendered when they heard he was coming. (Okay, maybe not, but that was always the family joke.)
One uncle served in Vietnam, an aunt on the other side was an army nurse for decades.
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Grateful for your family’s service, Mark! And that one of your grandfathers may have kept the Japanese at bay!
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Both my husband and I are veterans. I served my enlistment in the Navy and my husband is Army retired. My dad was in WW2 and husband’s father is retired pilot.
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My husband worked in the field of intelligence, speaking Russian and worked all over the world. My time was as a ship quartermaster and I was happy to serve in the military. Both of us, including my dad and a few relatives all volunteered.
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Every time, I visit the VA for an appointment, I am reminded that the halls have deep history of all the Vets from every corner and every war. It is an interesting place.
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Your husband spoke Russian — wow!
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Yes, he passed the D-Lab test and was placed in an immersive Russian class. I tried the test also but missed by a few points, all before I met my husband. I ended up with a MA in Linguistics! French, second language.
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Hi Vickie, great post! My parents both served in the Navy during World War II (my mom was in the WAVES). She used to joke that she outranked my dad. My uncles served as well, and my aunt was an Army Nurse.
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grateful for your family’s service, Lisa!
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My Grandpa was in the Army. Dad wanted to enlist for WWII but was partially deaf in one ear, so couldn’t. The Army’s Military Police accepted him.
I, too, am proud to be an American and thankful that my forebears from Ireland and Newfoundland were welcomed to these shores
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I had relatives in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, but I did not know them needless to say. My father and my mother’s brothers served in WWII. My husband was drafted (was a boyfriend at that time) and served in Viet Nam. They are all heroes. Thank you to everyone above that had a family member that served. God bless America and this land that we love.
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