To All Our Vets...

[ol' school]

:GoodPost: Awesome post Sully! Thanks for sharing!

I worked with a gentleman that did that duty while he was in the service. He is still proud to have served his two year duty at Arlington Cemetery guarding the Tomb of the Unknowns. He still takes his appearance seriously because of their attention to detail of their uniforms while they are serving there. They also serve at funerals at Arlington during their tour there... he has lots of stories about things that happened during funerals.

 

[Bubba49]

It is an honor to pass this on to all of you. You may have seen it before, but we should never ever forget.



Arlington Cemetery

All of you who receive this have the "option" of forwarding this on. Some of us do not consider it an "option" but consider it an "honor" to share this information by forwarding this email every time we receive it. We're proud of our men and women who have served, who do serve, and who will serve no matter where they may be! Amen

God Bless and keep them!

ARLINGTON CEMETERY Jeopardy Question: On Jeopardy the other night, the final question was "How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns?" All three contestants missed it! This is really an awesome sight to watch if you've never had the chance. Fascinating. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 1. How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns and why? 21 steps: It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute which is the highest honor given any military or foreign dignitary. 2. How long does he hesitate after his about face to begin his return walk and why? 21 seconds for the same reason as answer number 1. 3. Why are his gloves wet? His gloves are moistened to prevent his losing his grip on the rifle. 4. Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time and, if not, why not? He carries the rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb. After his march across the path, he executes an about face and moves the rifle to the outside shoulder. 5. How often are the guards changed? Guards are changed every thirty minutes, twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year. 6. What are the physical traits of the guard limited to? For aperson to apply for guard duty at the tomb, he must be between 5' 10' and 6' 2' tall and his waist size cannot exceed 30. They must commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives. They cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way. After two years, the guard is given a wreath pin that is worn on their lapel signifying they served as guard of the tomb. There are only 400 presently worn. The guard must obey these rules for the rest of their lives or give up the wreath pin. The shoes are specially made with very thick soles to keep the heat and cold from their feet. There are metal heel plates that extend to the top of the shoe in order to make the loud click as they come to a halt. There are no wrinkles, folds or lint on the uniform. Guards dress for duty in front of a full-length mirror. The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk to anyone nor watch TV. All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in ArlingtonNationalCemetery. A guard must memorize who they are and where they are interred. Among the notables are: President Taft, Joe Lewis {the boxer} Medal of Honor winner Audie L. Murphy, the most decorated soldier of WWII and of Hollywood fame.​ ​ Every guard spends five hours a day getting his uniforms ready for guard duty. ETERNAL REST GRANT THEM O LORD AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM.​ ​ In 2003 as Hurricane Isabelle was approaching Washington,DC, our US Senate/House took 2 days off with anticipation of the storm. On the ABC evening news, it was reported that because of the dangers from the hurricane, the military members assigned the duty of guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier were given permission to suspend the assignment. They respectfully declined the offer, "No way, Sir!” Soaked to the skin, marching in the pelting rain of a tropical storm, they said that guarding the Tomb was not just an assignment,​ ​ it was the highest honor that can be afforded to a service person. The tomb has been patrolled continuously, 24/7, since 1930.​ ​ God Bless and keep them.​ ​ I'd be very proud if this email reached as many as possible. We can be very proud of our men and women in the service no matter where they serve.​ ​ GOD BLESS AMERICA THE LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE WHO KEEP IT THAT WAY!​ ​

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I hate to say it, but quite a few of the supposed restrictions on personal behavior listed above are BS. Specifically, things like no cursing for LIFE, no alcohol for the REST of their lives, no talking to anyone for 6 months, all off duty time is spent studying notable people interned there. I spent 30 years in the service and I'm here to tell you that no one would sign up for this duty if these were true. Someone just got a bit overzealous trying to portray them as super heroes. They are good and dedicated, but they are human.

Bubba

 

[Downtown Cowtown]

Audie has no gold on his tombstone, per his request, as all MOH earners had that as a matter of course. Just another one of the guys, dogface, no better than anyone else, was his opinion. I respect that more than MacArthur or Eisenhower, or Patton, or any of them, east of Dallas his son runs his museum.

My dad earned the right to be buried in Arlington, He said that on occasion, instead he lays with our relatives, in an old cow pasture, full of WWII guys, i met the guy who saved the ship captains when it was shot out from under them in the pacific, he an the old man were friends, hes in the same cemetery and so,s my uncle, killed in a B-17 crash

Dad was a gunner 50 missions on a B-17, out of north Africa, two presidential citations, Hornets nest over Gerbani, and the second air raid on Polesti ball bearing factory after the Nazis had strengthened the place and the air force lost about 1/3 of their total air force that day.

 

[Sully]

If you don't already, get your Flag out and Fly it this weekend.

Mine is up 365 days a year. Salute

 

[rhino 2]

Same here, 24/7..........

 

[David357]

LikewiseThumbUp

 

[Burnerboy]

This weekend only :clapping:

 

[gwnut]

24/7.......Very proud of my Flag!!

 

[LadyonaMission]

To those who have fought and those who are fighting, I admire your courage and appreciate your sacrifices.

 

[Sully]

Salute to All Veterans

 

[Ed Hobgood]

I fly mine 24/7 365 and very proud of it.

 

[Dave59]

Likewise 24/7 365 days

 

[Blueline]

 

[Blueline]

We fly All our flags..

 

[rhino 2]

View attachment 45537View attachment 45538

 

[Gone2Three]

To all of our Veterans and their families we thank you for your service and sacrifice for our country. God Bless you all !

 

[ol' school]

To all of our Veterans and their families we thank you for your service and sacrifice for our country. God Bless you all !

View attachment 45542

Awesome pic Randall!!!

 

[ol' school]

Thank you to all who have served our great country!

 

[Blueline]

 

[Gold Rush]

If you don't already, get your Flag out and Fly it this weekend.

Mine is up 365 days a year. Salute

View attachment 45474

Same here. Except for really bad weather. I do take the big flag in during storms but have a small one I put up on the front porch. Retired from the Air Force in '91 and moved where I live. The flag went up the week we moved in!

 

[peteg59]

 

[peteg59]

I hope its not a photoshop, or an old war story...

 

[trike lady]

There must be truth to it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergeant_Stubby

 

[desertclassic]

It is a hard time of the year for some of us that were in combat. How do you say thanks to the ones that gave it all. Honor is the only way that I know. SALUTE

 

[Blueline]

 

[Sully]

"Angel Flight" is the call sign for a USAF C-130,

carrying a fallen hero on board. Their "salute" with flares looks like an angel with wings.

 

[peteg59]

The Final Inspection on Memorial Day...

THE FINAL INSPECTION

The Soldier stood and faced God,

Which must always come to pass.

He hoped his shoes were shining,

Just as brightly as his brass.

'Step forward now, Soldier,

How shall I deal with you?

Have you always turned the other cheek?

To My Church have you been true?'

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,

'No, Lord, I guess I ain't.

Because those of us who carry guns,

Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,

And at times my talk was tough.

And sometimes I've been violent,

Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,

That wasn't mine to keep.

Though I worked a lot of overtime,

When the bills just got too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,

Though at times I shook with fear.

And sometimes, God, forgive me,

I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,

Among the people here.

They never wanted me around,

Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,

It needn't be so grand.

I never expected or had too much,

But if you don't, I'll understand'.

There was a silence all around the throne,

Where the saints had often trod.

As the Soldier waited quietly,

For the judgment of his God.

'Step forward now, you Soldier,

You've borne your burdens well.

Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,

You've done your time in Hell.'

~Author Unknown~

 

[ISP-FL]

Several years ago my BIL lost his battle with cancer, that was later placed on the VA list for being caused from exposure to AO. A couple years later my cousin died of the same type of cancers. BIL was refused benefits by the VA but just a couple years later my cousin qualified.

I spent most of my time in country with two other buddies. Vernon (Ohio) and Mark (IL). Mark died last week from cancer which began as bladder cancer. He was approved for benefits from the VA so his cancer was related to AO exposure. When I called my buddy Vernon to inform him about Mark, I discovered he was just diagnosed with bladder cancer.

All three of us spent much of our time hauling napalm in a transportation company and then part time in choppers. I am just beginning my research on current developments related to Agent Orange, but it certainly appears direct exposure was not needed in order for this toxic material to continue to kill us in our 60's and 70's. I encourage all of my brothers who served in VN to keep this in mind and do your own research. It also would be a good idea to make sure your Doctor is aware of your posible exposure.

 

[Sully]

Joe, go to Facebook and search for Agent Orange, they have a group there and you can find a lot of info and you can post some questions.

Welcome Home, brother

 

[Hocky]

old Veteran

From one Old Veteran to another >> welcome Home! Lots of Veterans Groups available EXCEPT for the Old Vets in retirement homes, ALF's and the such. Supporting our Heroes should carry on throughout all ages. The Real Forgotten Heroes are those Old Veterans that "live" in those facilities. Personally I'm looking for some ideas on this issue. Of course those "old folks" being Veterans or not are unfortunately forgotten when they're shelved into the "Retirement Living Facility Group!" Looking forward to communicating with anyone who has ideas in this issue. I'm in South Florida >> yep, also know as G-d's Waiting Room! Thanks for sharing my rant!

I can be reached at xhockybro@aol.com :Joker3: