The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave: Thank you, Veterans!

The enthusiasm in celebrating Veterans Day runs deep in our communities, and this past weekend we have seen reverence, solemnity, and appreciation for our Veterans at ceremonies throughout the Valley. The City of La Quinta began honoring its Veterans with a dedicated art piece and ceremony over ten years ago, acknowledging the sacrifice made by those who serve and have served our country, as well as the sacrifice made by their families. During the solemn celebration on November 11th, past honorees and nineteen current honorees were celebrated.
Every year we face a quandary as a nation.  How can we recognize actions with words? We simply can’t. Words cannot begin to express the debt of gratitude we owe our Veterans. Yet we humbly express our appreciation to the brave men and women who served our nation. We honor those with us, remember those no longer with us, and pray to the Lord for those currently serving. There is a saying that will always hold true and will never be said enough: a Veteran– whether active duty, discharged, retired, or reserve – is someone who, at one point in his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to “The United States Of America,” for an amount of “up to, and including his or her own life.”
To our Veterans across the United States of America, we say that the voice of freedom resonates loud and clear, and it is alive and well because of your sacrifice. Every year, we take this opportunity to renew our promise of embracing your gift as well as the responsibilities that come with such a majestic gift.  Veterans have shown us the essence of character, the meaning of integrity and the nature of serving a cause greater than ourselves. They are a permanent and constant reminder of our duties to our country, our communities and each other. Therefore, we must thank our Veterans through our everyday actions, by trying a little harder, making it a little better, appreciating our freedom a little bit more, and living our lives to the fullest.
In a world tormented by tension where the possibility of conflict seems to be omnipresent, we join together to honor those who made our freedom possible. As we seek God’s guidance in broadening and deepening the peace we are currently enjoying within the boundaries of our homeland, may we always be humbly grateful to those brave American patriots who served and sacrificed for the glory of God and the freedom of all Americans and many nations on earth. Dear Veterans, we honor you, we thank you, and while it is simply not enough, it is from the bottom of our hearts. God Bless You All.