Veterans' Day

With all the anniversary hype yesterday, I didn't get a chance to talk about Veterans' Day. Little did John and I know when we set our wedding date that it would fall on Veterans' Day and little did we appreciate that for the entire time John was serving in the military, he always had our anniversary off work! :-) When we took the 20th anniversary photo yesterday, we specifically chose patriotic colors and if you could see John's shirt, it's his newest Air Force marathon shirt. That being said...

Every year, Glo's school honors the family members of the elementary school kids who are either serving in the military or have served. A red sheet of paper is sent home with a place to list a related veteran. The names and information are then posted on a special bulletin board at the school. For me (and possibly for Glo), it is always a reminder of the great heritage I have of men in my family who have served our country, four complete generations, and I always have to add another sheet of paper to the one sent home. The best part is that the legacy has continued with John, also serving in the military. If it was wanted, I could also list a slew of names of men that served in the Civil War from my family. To that end, here's the list:

James Everett McMillin, Private
US Army, World War I
Great-great-great grandfather of Gloria Kennedy

Wallace D. McMillin, Colonel
Pilot, USAF, retired
great-grandfather of Gloria Kennedy

M.F. Caruthers, Colonel
Pilot, USAF, retired
great-grandfather of Gloria Kennedy

Timothy D. Caruthers, Colonel
Pilot, USAF, retired
great-uncle of Gloria Kennedy

Richard Apgar, Major
Pilot, Instructor, USAF
grandfather of Gloria Kennedy

John Kennedy, Major
Physician, USAF
father of Gloria Kennedy

I am so thankful to all of the men and women who protect our country now and who have protected our freedom through the years. Although I may not like or agree with some of the leaders in our government, you will never hear me speak poorly about the people who give so much and honorably serve in today's military. Our closest friends to this day are people we met while stationed in Germany. As John has said, it was a far better thing to do to owe our country some time for paying for medical school than to owe money to a bank. It changed our lives and the lives of our children, and I'm so thankful we had the opportunity to serve.