Patriotic Sites & Info

Be Proud of Our Country and Those Who Have Served!

Many people asked me to keep this poem available after Veteran's Day, if you want a permanent copy you can go to the site linked below and order the author's books.

With Special Permission of the Author I Present Here 
A Wonderful Dedication To:

 ALL WHO HAVE SERVED!
Please Thank Anyone You Know That May Have Helped or IS Helping to Keep Our Country Free Today!

JUST A COMMON SOLDIER
(A Soldier Died Today)
by A. Lawrence Vaincourt
 
If you would also please send up a few special words for the author as he is presently in the hospital. If you would like to purchase any of his books the link above will take you to his site. Pam

He was getting  old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion, telling stories of the past
Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, every one.

And tho' sometimes, to his neighbors, his tales became a joke,
All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke.
But we'll hear his tales no longer for old Bill has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer, for a soldier died today.

He will not be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary and quite uneventful life.
Held a job and raised a family, quietly going his own way,
And the world won't note his passing, though a soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great.
Papers tell their whole life stories, from the time that they were young,
But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land
A guy who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man?
Or the ordinary fellow who, in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?

A politician's stipend and the style in which he lives
             Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives.
While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all,
  Is paid off with a medal and perhaps, a pension small.

It's so easy to forget them for it was so long ago,
That the old Bills of our Country went to battle, but we know
It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom that our Country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger, with your enemies at hand,
Would you want a politician with his ever-shifting stand?
Or would you prefer a soldier, who has sworn to defend
His home, his kin and Country and would fight until the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us we may need his like again.
For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor while he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days.
Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say,
Our Country is in mourning, for a soldier died today.
 
© 1985 A. Lawrence Vaincourt
 

Candles Across America Campaign - Please Join Us!

"Memorial Day should be sacredly observed. It is the Nation's Sabbath; a day of sweet memories and cherished associations; and an occasion which, as the years go by, stirs anew within us stronger feelings of Patriotism and brings to every lover of his Country a fuller appreciation of its true meaning and purpose. It is fitting to recall the deeds which this day commemorates. The brave men who fought our battles on land and sea settled the question once and for all that this fair land of ours shall ever be a land of free men and free women, in fact, as well as in name; and they also demonstrated to the world that this Government is not only a union of states, but that it is also a great Nation and that 'Government by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.'"

The statement above from President Lincoln and the verse is worth repeating here, once again for all of us to reflect on every day and always, not only Memorial Day weekend.

To each of you who served...

To each of you whose family member served...

To especially each of you who forever gave precious members of your family in the defense of this great land, please accept this heartfelt 
Thank You
and God Bless You !
as we remember.

 

I am your Flag, I represent the freedom of humanity, and I shall fly high, thundering in silence for the whole world to hear.

My gentle rustling in the breeze sounds out the warning to all who would bury me forever that below stands a population dedicated to liberty.

For those who have perished for my right to freedom of flight, for those who will die, and indeed, for those who will live, I stand as a symbol of freedom-loving people.

I have been carried into battle in faraway lands, always for the cause of freedom. I am bloodstained, torn, and in many cases wearied and saddened by the thousands who have made the supreme sacrifice. Do not let it all be for nothing. Tell me the brave have all died for a worthwhile cause. Be proud of what I represent, and display me for all to see.

Whether you call me "Old Glory," "Stars and Stripes" or Star Spangled Banner," I shall fly forever as a symbol of your freedom, as I did for your ancestors, and as I shall for your heirs.

I am YOUR Flag.!

.....by Ann Landers

 

"THAT RAGGED OLD FLAG"
(Author Unknown)

I walked through a county courthouse square.
On a park bench an old man was sitting there.
I said, "Your old Court House is kinda run down."
He said, "No, it will do for our little town."
I said, "Your old flag Pole is leaning a little bit.
And that's a ragged old Flag you've got hanging on it."

He said, "Have a seat," and I sat down
"Is the first time that you've been to our little town?"
"Well," he said, "I don't like to brag,
But we're kinda proud of that ragged old Flag.

You see, we got a little hole in the Flag there,
When Washington took it across the Delaware.
And it got powder burns, the night Francis Scott Key,
Sat watching it, writing 'Oh, Say, Can You See.'

And it got a bad rip at New Orleans,
When Packingham and Jackson took it to the scene
And, it almost fell at the Alamo beside the Texas Flag
But she waved on through
She got cut with a sword at Chancerville,
And she got cut again at Shilo Hill
There was Robert E. Lee, Bouregard and Bragg
The South wind blew hard on that Old Ragged Flag
On Flanders Field in World War One
She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun
She turned BLOOD RED World War Two,
And she hung limp and low a time or two.
She was in Korea and Vietnam
She went from our ships upon the briny foam.

Now they've about quit waving her back here at home
In our good land she's been abused,
She's been burned, dishonored, denied, and refused
And the Government for which she stands
Is scandalized through out the land.

She's getting threadbare and she's wearing thin,
But, she's in good shape for the shape she's in,
Because she's been through the fire before,
I believe she can take a whole lot more.

So we raise her up every morning, and we
Take her down every night,
We don't let her touch the ground,
and we fold her up right.

On second thought, I DO LIKE TO BRAG,

BECAUSE I'M MIGHTY PROUD OF THAT RAGGED OLD FLAG! 

The foundations of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principals of private morality.

~~ George Washington in his inaugural speech~~ 

I just visited another site that near to ripped my heart out as another tribute to some more of the great people who willingly gave their service to make these United States what they are today. If you would like to visit:

A Tribute to the Men of the 8th Air Force.

Send e-mail to pam@livgenmi.com

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For More Information Regarding either The Livingston County Michigan USGenWeb project or the 1895 Atlas project please contact:    Pam Rietsch at:    pam@livgenmi.com