You’ve done the near impossible....made me well up over a memory not my own. It’s fitting that on this Memorial Day I add Tommy to that unwritten long list of those who sacrificed for me.
He must have graduated with my brother Hunter. You certainly painted a clear picture of his spirit and brought back many emotions of those lost in Viet Nam, so long ago, but still fresh in all of our minds.
That's a very beautiful rendition. Today, I was at Land's End in San Francisco for the annual commemoration at the USS San Francisco memorial. At the Battle of Guadalcanal, Admiral Daniel Callaghan (San Francisco native and graduate of St. Ignatius High School), took the San Francisco right into a fray with a larger Japanese squadron. His second in command, Cassin Young, told him, "This is suicide." Callaghan replied, "Yes, but we have to do it." The San Francisco took some big hits, and these two were among the many killed. The Allies won the battle, which was an important turning point in the war.
It was an honor to take part by handing out doughnuts and coffee and other goodies to the veterans and other participants (as part of a DAR volunteer hospitality crew). What valor.
You’ve done the near impossible....made me well up over a memory not my own. It’s fitting that on this Memorial Day I add Tommy to that unwritten long list of those who sacrificed for me.
He must have graduated with my brother Hunter. You certainly painted a clear picture of his spirit and brought back many emotions of those lost in Viet Nam, so long ago, but still fresh in all of our minds.
What a memorial, Professor -- poignant and inspiring. His generosity of spirit earned him immortality; a lesson there, maybe.
Thanks for this.
It's one thing to talk about the sacrifices our veterans made for our freedoms.
It's another thing entirely to meet someone who lost a friend or a family member and has lived with that loss every day of their lives.
Mine came the day I met a man whose father was lost on the USS Indianapolis. He looked me in the eye and said: "I never knew my father."
Over the years I learned that as a result he knew more about his father than most of us do.
I also came to realize that you can never fully understand the loss and grief, but at least you can get a glimpse of what it cost them.
Robert - Thank you for this article. It is important to remember those young lives. KenMc
That's a very beautiful rendition. Today, I was at Land's End in San Francisco for the annual commemoration at the USS San Francisco memorial. At the Battle of Guadalcanal, Admiral Daniel Callaghan (San Francisco native and graduate of St. Ignatius High School), took the San Francisco right into a fray with a larger Japanese squadron. His second in command, Cassin Young, told him, "This is suicide." Callaghan replied, "Yes, but we have to do it." The San Francisco took some big hits, and these two were among the many killed. The Allies won the battle, which was an important turning point in the war.
It was an honor to take part by handing out doughnuts and coffee and other goodies to the veterans and other participants (as part of a DAR volunteer hospitality crew). What valor.