Since July 4, 1776 we have celebrated this day as the birth of American independence, with typical festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues.
Today, California is home to 647 heroes who have given all in our current conflicts. This is the highest for any state in our union. Less than one percent of Americans wear the uniform of our Nation’s military. According to DOD sources, the pentagon levied more than 3.3 million positions to execute the fight against terror. More than 2 million men and women of our military have shouldered those deployments and today over 800,000 have now deployed two or three times to Iraq and or Afghanistan.
We often hear the phrase “Freedom isn’t Free”. In putting together this message I found the following definition of this American phrase.
Freedom isn’t Free
written by Robert Stokely, father of Sergeant Michael Stokely who was KIA by IED near Yusufiyah south of Baghdad 16 Aug 2005
“The cost is watching someone you love go away for a long period of time where there is little contact as they endure the rigors and hardships of training.
The cost is watching someone you love serve for pay that doesn’t always cover what it takes to live a standard of living most civilians enjoy and suffering a financial impact that can negatively alter a military family’s prosperity for a lifetime.
The cost is deployment to combat.
The cost is a loved one leaving whole but coming home less than whole, physically, mentally or both.
The cost is a loved one who never returns from a mission and is never found.
The cost is taking another’s life, even if they are the enemy, and living with that the rest of your life.
The cost is watching a close friend die, maybe even holding them in your arms, helpless to save them and living a life of remembering that moment and feeling guilty that it wasn’t you who died instead of the close friend.
The cost is a family waiting and watching 24/7, hoping and praying as they watch daily newscasts about our military personnel dying.
The cost is a knock at the door no family wants but is a special privilege of sacrifice and if not borne by some, then who would bear it?
The cost is a lifetime of love.
Freedom isn’t Free and the cost is high.”
The Fourth of July is a special time to celebrate the freedoms we have, hard fought and won at a great cost. We all should enjoy this day, and every day we have to live free, for to do less would be to waste the high price paid that we might.
Honoring Our Fallen had the honor of meeting Jamie Beeman, a 15 year old, and we are in awe after hearing her sing the National Anthem. Following her performance, I was able to meet her and tell her about Honoring Our Fallen. She is excited to support us in our work and we will be hearing a lot more from her. Jamie has given us permission to use her songs and she will be working with us on a new song for our fallen families.
Jamie sung this song to me the day we met and launched it today on Youtube in honor of Independence Day. Click here and please listen you will be amazed. . Jamie will be working with Honoring Our Fallen in the future so stay tuned.
To all those who have served or are serving both here and abroad we salute you and “Thank you for our Freedom!”
Donations to support our mission can be made using the Donate Now button on our web-site. www.honoringourfallen.org.
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About Laura Herzog
Laura Herzog is the former Public Affairs Officer for the Joint Forces Training Base, Los Alamitos, Calif. She
served as the lead for Hero Missions (fallen soldiers returning from Afghanistan
& Iraq), coordinated public appearances for the JFTB base commander,
disseminated information for JFTB to the public, and was the base spokeswoman
who acted as the primary liaison with media. Honoring Our Fallen is not like other Veterans support services in place right
now. We provide support for Families of Our Fallen specifically during the Dignified Transfer of
Remains. Our support comes in directly after the Next of Kin (NOK) notification. As
soon as we find out that a loved one is returning home for burial, we
immediately determine the family’s needs and requests. Sometimes Families
welcome the media and any associated interview opportunities. Other Families
choose to keep their story private, or want special arrangements if they do
accept a media interview.Laura is the Founder and CEO of Honoring Our Fallen. After working in Southern California to support
the Families of our Fallen Heroes, Laura Herzog realized that Casualty Assistance Officers
(Army) and Casualty Assistance Calls Officers (Marines) have quite a bit of work
on their hands when one of our Heroes is returned home. Even though these
casualty officers want to help the Families more than they do now, they have
military requirements they must fulfill. Laura’s help has bridged the gap
between the military and the Families she supports. Through her work with the
military, she also realized she wanted to assist our other Heroes – Police,
Fire, and Rescue Heroes – who sacrifice their safety and time away from their
Family every day to protect us at home.Every situation is different and every Family is different — but
they are all Heroes — and deserve proper respect during the most difficult time
of their lives.Her prior occupation was as
a General Manager for The News Enterprise, servicing the greater Orange County
region. She also worked as a freelance reporter on various local
assignments. Laura is a Member of the Executive Board of Directors for
The
Youth Center and member of the Crime Survivors
Advisory Council for Media Public Relations. She is a member of the
American Legion Post 716 Auxiliary, volunteer for the Seal Beach
Police-Community Policing Program, volunteer for the Advanced CERT (Community
Emergency Response Team) West County, and Member of the Radio Television and
News Casters Association.Laura was awarded the California Medal of Merit
in 2009, which is one of the highest civilian decorations in the United States,
awarded by the President of the United States to civilians for exceptionally
meritorious conduct.
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