It’s never too late to say ‘thank you’ to our nation’s Veterans

Americans across the country celebrated Veterans Day on November 11, a special day to salute the men and women who bravely served our
country in the military. These fellow Americans have made profound sacrifices in defense of freedom and they deserve our heartfelt thanks and appreciation. Honoring our nation’s Veterans includes supporting them throughout their entire lives, especially at the end.

I read this phrase sometime last year and it really resonates with me: “America is the land of the free because of the brave.” This Veterans Day, please thank the people you know and love who are Veterans or in active/reserve service and the families that carried on while their loved one
was off defending our liberty.

Here’s a picture of my dad – an Air Force Veteran. He fixed planes and has hearing loss to show for it! He tells great stories about being stationed in Alaska and the antics of a bunch of 20-year-olds. He still loves SOS for dinner! He also talks, with reverence, about vets who saw active duty. He worries about some being “forgotten” or misunderstood because the wars they fought were not “popular.” He’s 80 this year and he’s still got a streak of that 20-year-old in him. He’s a notorious flirt with the ladies and he’s got a vocabulary that would make a hockey player blush.

As our nation marks Veterans Day, Hospice Buffalo wants to share its commitment to increase Veterans’ access to compassionate, high quality hospice and palliative care for those who are facing serious and life-limiting illness. As part of this commitment, Hospice Buffalo is a part of an innovative program, We Honor Veterans, developed by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization in collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Through We Honor Veterans, we are ensuring that our organization is equipped to address the unique needs of our nation’s Veterans.

It surprises many Americans to learn that every day, 1,800 Veterans die. That’s more than 680,000 Veterans every year – or 25 percent of all the people who die in this country annually. The liberty that we, as US citizens, enjoy comes at a price paid by these valiant men and women.

So go ahead and tell someone your story about your favorite veteran.
We need some uplifting talk – don’t you think?

To all of our nation’s Veterans, thank you.