By Ralphine Major

ralphine3@yahoo.com

It is a day set aside to honor America’s veterans.  Veterans Day 2015 will be celebrated with parades, holiday sales, and many restaurants offering free meals for veterans.  It is touching to see children hugging parents returning from service and heart wrenching to see families mourning those who sacrificed all.  Yet, it is easy to take the service of America’s heroes for granted.

They have fought at home and often on foreign soil.  Because of their unselfish service to our country, we are free to worship, work, travel, or go to school.  Many veterans have been featured in my Focus column through the years, and they have represented service in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and other places and conflicts throughout our nation’s history.

Undoubtedly, lots of flags will be flying high this Veterans Day in the front yards of our homes; in schools, churches, and shopping malls; along parade routes; and at hospitals, libraries, and businesses everywhere.  The sight of our flag, with its vibrant stars and stripes, should be a reminder for all Americans to honor our veterans for their service to our country.  We cannot lift them up high enough.  May God bless all of those who have served and sacrificed for our freedoms, and may God bless our United States of America!