Today is Veteran’s Day, so let us take time to not only remember our veterans but also the hundreds of thousands of our American soldiers still pulling duty in harm’s way. During the recent unbearably long election period, sadly, very few words were expressed about our military – veterans, current active duty soldiers or the many severely wounded and disabled in military hospitals across America. Whether we supported the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan is irrelevant. These soldiers – our sons, daughters, relatives, and friends – are making the supreme sacrifice each and every day. The numbers of dead and wounded continue to rise as Afghanistan becomes the bloodbath that Iraq once was.

We are the parents of a fallen soldier. He survived bullets and IEDs in Iraq only to become a victim of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) after he returned. Nov. 17 is the one-year anniversary of his burial in Arlington National Cemetery. Each and every day brings further realization of his absence – phone calls, e-mails, cards and visits. It is a loss our family will never overcome. To honor all our military heroes, we ask each of you to find one way to help our active duty soldiers or veterans during the upcoming holiday season. There are many organizations – the USO, Soldier’s Angels, Wounded Warriors, Freedom Is Not Free, The Soldier’s Project – to name a few who are actively helping our soldiers and veterans. There is one in particular here in Summit County that we applaud. It is the Soldier’s Support Program of the Summit County Rotary Club. They send packages to each Summit County soldier about every two months and go all-out during Christmas. We know from our son’s experience that these packages from home made such a difference. Choose the organization that speaks to your heart.

Please make this year’s Veteran’s Day an event for the entire family to support our men and women who have served or are now serving our country. There will soon be barrels at Walmart, City Market and other locations throughout the county to collect donations for our soldiers during the holidays. Have your children buy a bag of candy, snacks, a small game, DVD or anything a soldier might enjoy – and explain to them the importance of doing so.

The sacrifices of our military and military families are beyond what most civilians can fathom. Your gifts to soldiers, past and present, will be appreciated more than you will ever know.