Veterans Day: A personal perspective

A fifth-grade teacher asks her class, “What is a veteran?”  A student answers: “A doctor who takes care of animals.”

A cute story or a wake-up call? Even as our nation is fighting two wars, even as so many are putting their lives on the line in defense of freedom, many of our young people have no idea what a veteran is. And many of their elders seem to have forgotten.

When I was a boy growing up in the 1950s and 60s, patriotism was inculcated not only at home but also in school. We were taught to take pride in America, and to appreciate the sacrifices of those who have fought — and sometimes died — to defend the freedom we too often take for granted. Sad to say, in the upheavals of the late 1960s, traditional values came under constant attack. Young people grew up without an understanding of, much less an appreciation for, the values that make America great. Members of the military were scorned. Our veterans were forgotten. Although the pendulum has begun to swing back, we as a people are still paying the price.

As a third-generation veteran, I feel that I have a personal stake in Veterans Day and what it represents. My grandfather, Russell F. Morrow, served in the Army, in the cavalry, during World War I. My father, Stewart R. Morrow, served overseas in what was then the Army Air Corps as a radio operator during World War II. Both were members, and past commanders, of the American Legion’s Malverne Post #44. My mother, Audrey Alice Morrow, has been a member of Auxiliary Unit #44 for almost sixty years and is the Unit’s recording secretary.

I myself am certainly no war hero. I briefly served in the Air Force Reserve as a chaplain in the early 1980s. I was surprised, and delighted, to discover years later that I was classified as a veteran because I had been in uniform while our nation was at war in Grenada. I take pride in having worn the uniform of my country. And I am grateful that my service during wartime afforded me the opportunity to be a member of the American Legion, as my father and my grandfather were before me.

Our veterans’ organizations here in Malverne, both Post #44 of the American Legion together with its Auxiliary Unit #44, and Frank J. Ruddock Post #1073 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, do great work on behalf of veterans and their families and heighten awareness in the community of veterans’ issues. A few years ago, members of our VFW and American Legion posts went into our local public and parochial schools to teach our children about veterans and the sacrifices they have made. At least here in Malverne, no student would confuse a veteran with a veterinarian.

We need to remember that there are many veterans who have come home with serious injuries and, in many cases, permanent disabilities. Some spend the rest of their lives in VA hospitals, all too often forgotten. And they are being joined by many returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. Our local veterans’ organizations have a special concern for those hospitalized veterans who are without family or friends and spend years, even decades, in loneliness and isolation.

May this past Veterans’ Day have deepened our awareness of the sacrifices made by those who have served in our armed forces during time of war and those who are serving today. Say a prayer for them and resolve to make sure that their courage and generosity are not forgotten, and that the rights, values and ideals they defended are not lost.

The Rev. Michael Morrow is a member of American Legion Malverne Post 44.