700 New Hampshire National Guardsmen deploy to the Middle East

  We all know what September 11th means to all of us. For many of us it symbolizes the day America lost her innocence. While it is true that Americans have been called to fight many times before for just and noble causes all across the globe, for this generation of Americans who have had it so easy for so many years because of the sacrifices of earlier generations, September 11th was a wake up call. A call to arms which hadn’t been heard of in so many years.

  But to those who are either serving in the military or who have a family member that is serving in the military, the sacrifice in the name of freedom that these people endure on a daily basis is a burden that is incomprehensible to those of us who enjoy the freedoms that these people guarantee us. While we may appreciate and admire the sacrifice made by these people we can never  truly understand what they actually have to endure.

   To paraphrase Col. Jessep in A Few Good Men, I “rise and sleep under the blanket of the freedom they provide,” yet I have done nothing myself to secure that blanket of freedom. This is a guilt that I carry every day, while I admire what the men and women who serve our country do on a daily basis, I am ashamed that I haven’t done anything to secure that freedom myself. This is why I try so hard to honor those that serve, fight, and die for this country. It is the least I can do for our heroes. We must live our lives as honorably as those that serve this country, we owe it to those that put it all on the line.

  September 11th, 2010 had an additional meaning to so many New Hampshire families this year. On this day, 8,000 New Hampshirites packed into the Verizon Wireless Arena to see off 700 members of the 197th Fires Brigade–the largest deployment of New Hampshire soldiers since WWII.

    I may not agree with Governor Lynch on many issues, but I agree with him when he told the deploying soldiers that “you are our heroes, all of you.” Brig. Gen. Craig Bennett, commander of the N.H. Army National Guard said it best when he stated:

The soldiers of World War II have been called the greatest generation, a worthy description for sure,” said Brig. Gen. Craig Bennett, commander of the N.H. Army National Guard. “But after nine years of war, this generation of all-volunteer soldiers has earned a place in history no less important

  Maj. Gen. William Reddel III said:

When you talk to our warriors, they will tell you that their ultimate hope is that their fight will be the last,” he said. “They have taken up the cause so their children and their grandchildren don’t have to

  On the ninth anniversary of September 11th 700 New Hampshire National Guardsmen left their families and friends behind and deployed to Kuwait and  eventually to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

  This is the reality of September 11th that so many people are living with to this very day. Those of us who do not bear the burden of having loved ones in the military can never fully understand what these people go through. This is not a war that we asked for, it was thrust upon us, yet so many of our younger generation have met the call and volunteered in the face of grave danger–it truly is awe inspiring to see so many of this generation ready, willing, and able to fight for the cause of freedom around the world.

  To the soldiers of the 197th Fires Brigade–as well as all the troops from around the country who have met the challenge–I say thank you, and please come home safely to the soft embrace of all your loved ones who you are leaving behind.

  You are loved and admired by people that you don’t know more than you will ever know. 

  Godspeed.