Fourth of July
I am filled with so many emotions during this 4th of July weekend. I am so blessed to live in this country where our freedom was purchased with the blood, sweat, tears, and, too often, lives of the men and women who have sacrificed so much so that others might live. I think about the strength of those who put their names on the Declaration of Independence. I think of the men and women who gave their lives in service to keep our country safe and free. I think of the men and women today who answered when their country called and who live with visible and invisible wounds of war. And I am so grateful.
Patriotism is about believing in our nation. It is about knowing that, despite its faults, it is a nation that people clamor to get to – crossing oceans, leaving families, changing lifestyles. It is a nation that is full of opportunity. It is a nation full of promise -- a country that, over the last four months, has shown great care and support for its citizens and who has demonstrated that the freedom of speech that men and women have died for is still upheld.
That freedom comes at a heavy cost.
I wrote an article recently about United States Army Specialist 4th Class, Donald Eugene Dermont Jr. A 1963 Woodstock High School graduate, Dermont enlisted in 1964 to serve his country, receiving his basic training at Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio, Tex., serving in Germany, and the re-enlisting to go to Vietnam.
Spc. Dermont was a medical aidman with Company C while it was engaged in “fierce” battle according to military documents released to the family. In reading through these documents, it was clear that the posthumous awarding of the Bronze Star Medal with a “V” Device for heroic actions was not given lightly.
The documents indicated that Dermont exposed himself to intense Viet Cong fire so that he could take care of those already injured. During this time, he must have noticed that a machine gun was left unarmed – a machine gun that he took up to use to protect his company. The military deemed this action “instrumental” in helping Company C hold steady during the assault. He then went back out to attend to the wounded before finding it necessary to occupy that machine gun once again. He went back and forth until he was fatally wounded.
The government document stated that Dermont displayed, “extreme courage and dedication,” and that he, “gave his life in the defense of his wounded comrades during the second assault. He made the supreme sacrifice so that others could live.”
Stories of bravery from those who serve give me pause. This man – the teenager – gave his life for his country – for our country. For 244 years, men and women have died for our country. I am so proud to be an American. I am thankful every day. For the freedoms we have in this country, for the rights we have, for the democratic republic we live in, I am thankful.
Happy birthday, America.
