In Books

Honoring All Veterans!

November 11^th marks Veterans Day. It’s always the same date each and every year.

Why is that?

World War I ended on the 11^th month on the 11^th day—at the eleventh hour.

You can read more about the veterans highlighted in the Village book.

You can also learn about the poppy. The poppy should always be worn on the right side. The red represents the blood of all of those who gave their lives. The black represents the mourning of those who did not see their loved ones return home. The green leaf signifies the growing grass and crops marking the hope – and future prosperity. The war destroyed so much.

Dad was only in his early twenties when he went on a boat to Korea to serve in America’s “Forgotten War”. Not only did he help assist injured soldiers, he had the duty of identifying the corpses of the fallen ones. There were days where he wasn’t sure if he’d ever return home again. He knew that his mother was praying for him though. She and grandpa had four sons who served our country. Thanks Joe, Louie, Bernie and Ed!

My Uncle Louie barely survived his traumatic injury. When he was eighteen-years-old, he was with a group of soldiers that were all returning home from Christmas Eve Mass. On the way back to their barracks, they ran into a hidden machine gun nest. Every soldier he was with died—most were instantly killed. Bullets hit both of his legs. He barely held on and played dead until January 6^th. He had enough reserve, but barely, to survive his blood loss and shock from the injury he sustained. He was discovered and cared for by medics who did what they could do for his ravaged legs that were littered with bullets. Gangrene set in. His right leg was amputated 3 times: below the knee, above the knee, and eventually half-way up his thigh. They could never remove the bullets from his left leg without causing muscle damage. His severe pain and suffering lingered. It was truly a miracle that he survived! He eventually made it back to his beloved Saint Paul, Minnesota where he married Laura—the love of his life–his Italian beauty. The young couple built a life together—raising their children and providing the very best for them. His health struggles plagued him and tested his physical endurance and strength, but he had to adapt to a burdensome prosthetic leg for the rest of his life. He had no choice! He would have to learn to live with this severe injury he endured. But through it all, he was a resilient man who would flash his ready smile and enjoy and participate in life to the fullest. He was very skilled at building, creating, inventing and providing the very best for his family. His God-given talents were never set aside by his physical limitations.

Here’s a photo of Uncle Louie’s grandson, Paul, who served as a Green Beret!

There are two more special men I would like to recognize. These once-young men bravely served our country and fought for our freedom as faithful and devoted servants. My other uncles—Dan and Mark.