My spouse works his tail end off for his country, not to mention risking his life and leaving his family behind for months at a time. So it’s pretty great when people who are not in the military recognize his service. He finds it a little embarrassing, but sometimes I secretly plot ways for us to run errands right after he gets off work and before he has time to change out of his uniform just so that I can hear people thank him for his service. It’s heartwarming.
And then there are the little kids. Even in a town with a huge military population like this one, you still run across awe-struck kiddos who think being a soldier is the coolest thing on planet earth. I love seeing them stare while they say to their parents “look, it’s a SOLDIER!”
Servicemembers and military spouses sometimes complain that America is not grateful enough for their service. Other times we question the way civilians express their gratefulness.
But I wonder if poorly expressed thanks (or no thanks at all) is at least partially due to a lack of knowledge. Like being invited to a party with no idea what to bring the birthday boy, they buy the best thing they can think of. And sometimes it just isn’t right.
So we’re here to give a little guidance. Dear civilians, here are some of our top military appreciation ideas:
Skip the sympathy — give gratitude. Military members don’t want you to feel sorry for them. We chose this life and we are happy to serve. So instead of saying “I’m sorry,” say “Thank you!” Encouraging words make us beam with pride.
If your business offers a discount, publicize it. Even though we aren’t looking for handouts, we understand that many businesses want to say “thank you” by giving us a percentage off our purchase. That’s fabulous – thank you! If it’s a secret discount, however, that only some military members know about it feels more like an advertising gimmick than anything else. Why not let all your cliental know that you appreciate the military? Consider posting a sign. Not only will you be spreading the appreciation love, but more military members will have a chance to find out about the discount and use it.
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
I wish soldiers would publicly speak about the wars in which they have participated.
ReplyDeleteTell us what those countries are like.
Tell us if they citizens appreciate your efforts - or do they resent your presence?
Educate us about our own government. How are they taking care of you? We pay a LOT of taxes. Is our government taking proper care of you?
Did they ask you or force you to participate in experimental vaccines?
Why are so many soldiers committing suicide (more than are dying in the recent wars)?
How many soldiers are addicted to narcotics? Did their service contribute to their high incident rate of drug addiction?
Soldiers can educate the public.
The public can let the soldiers know about our opinions toward the wars. A lot of communication can and should be taking place.
I am a veteran, however I never left for war. I can however comment on some of the other questions.
ReplyDeleteHow is our service men taken care of? In my experiences the service members family receives far better healthcare than the service member. Our on base medical facility had two different sides to it. The side for dependents which was run by civilian doctors and nurses, then the side for the service members was run strictly by military personnel. This was on a Navy aviation base and on the military side there wasn't a single doctor or nurse, they were all flight surgeons and enlisted Coreman. A flight surgeon is a Navy pilot who took a crash course on emergency medicine. This is who diagnoses your servicemen, at least on the base I was stationed at.
Example of the incompitence: I was injuries while in the Navy, I had an APU (auxiliary power unit) from an FA-18 blow up just above me while servicing the jets hydraulics. I went to the on base medical facility and the flight surgeon diagnosed me with a "pulled muscle" (WTH!), gave me a nearly unlimited supply of 800mg IB. Well the pain in my back continued to get worse and worse, I couldn't stand, walk, nor sit without being in a high level of pain both in my back and in both legs. I continued to go back and forth to the on base medical facility and getting the same diagnosis over the next 9 months. It only got worse. It got to the point where I was having difficulty going to the bathroom and would sometimes loose all felling in my legs for minutes at a time. Finally a decent flight surgeon referred me to a neurosurgeon, they ordered an MRI and found that I had completely blown out my L5-S1 and L4-L5 discs (nothing left in between the vertebrae) to the point where they were pushing on my spinal cord, and that I had also herniated L3-L4. The neurosurgeon was livid with the lack of care I had received and couldn't believe that I was even able to walk. He scheduled emergency surgery. It then took me more 9 months before I was healed enough to return to full active duty. However since I had no been on a limited "light" duty for 18 months, the Navy decided to administratively seperate me with less than three months left on my enlistment contract.
Even with this experience I still view the military as a great life experience and a great tool that our youth can use to help them pay for college. I'd still recommend it to anyone.