It's something we hear daily, let alone weekly: Thank a veteran.
And it's a wonderful piece of advice.
It doesn't matter if you are pro-war, anti-war, far left, far right, deeply moderate, young, old, tall or short - thanking a veteran is easy. We don't know all of their stories, but we don't need to. They sacrificed a chunk of their life - and sometimes their body - so we can continue this experiment we call the United States of America.
On Sunday, I had the privilege of sitting down with Dale Roenneburg, a 23-year Army veteran from Brodhead who served in World War II and the Korean War, exiting right before Vietnam went from small occupation to war.
Hearing his story, beginning to end with meandering in the middle of small details that gave even more of an insight into his life, was awe-inspiring. First, he wanted to join the National Guard when he was just 16, like so many others of his generation. Then, after joining the Army, he was shipped across the Pacific to Fiji and then to the Solomon Islands where, as a member of artillery, he saw the horrors of war up close. Later, serving in Germany during peacetime, he and his family had a scary close encounter with Russian guards in Vienna. He left Germany, along with 32 other bedridden soldiers (from illness to injury) and lost three of the four engines of their plane before making an emergency landing in Boston. At the outset of Vietnam, while serving with the United Nations, he narrowly missed having his helicopter shot down - another aircraft was hit instead, containing a service member he knew.
And yet he's still alive today, back in Green County, living in the house he designed while sitting at his desk years before in the Army and sharing that home - complete with a Japanese-inspired garden in the back yard - with his wife of more than 70 years.
In 2010, he took an Honor Flight to Washington D.C. and on Sunday, he received a Quilt of Valor, the latest "thank you" he's received.
Listening to the tales of Mr. Roenneburg reminded me of other stories I'd hear from veterans over the few short years of my life. One of my favorite people in the world is Junior Robertson. He was like a second father to me when I was growing up. I spent a great deal of my high school days at the Robertson household, as his son, Cody, was one of my dearest friends. I remember some late evenings when Junior would be awake, watching a John Wayne movie, and we'd just chat. Sometimes he'd tell me stories from his Army days, some small details of the war, like how he felt upon stepping foot onto Vietnam soil for the first time, and it touched me to my core.
A few years ago, Junior was able to return to Vietnam for the first time since the war - a war he left because of injuries sustained during a firefight. During his trip, he met a priest he helped save during the war. Those stories are rare but always uplifting.
Junior's advice to me was always simple: Just be decent. Be respectful and a decent person. Also, respect your elders.
And he's right. It takes very little effort to be decent. Respecting our elders has been a motto for many cultures throughout time. To pull a phrase from Farmers Insurance, which my daughter constantly quotes: They know a thing or two because they've seen a thing or two.
Thanking veterans of any age - be it active service personnel, or war veterans of the Middle East, Vietnam, Korea and WWII - is a small and meaningful gesture. It is also the bare minimum we can do. Waiting for Veterans Day to reach out is not enough. While yes, absolutely thank all the veterans you can on Veterans Day, there are 364 other days in the year.
And don't just thank those who served - it's OK to thank their spouses as well.
"I told them at the ceremony, 50 percent of this quilt should go to Louise," Roenneburg told me, referring to his wife.
A little bit of humility and gratitude from us all can collectively make a big difference in slowing down the vitriol that's spilled into our daily news cycle. And maybe, just maybe, that will help us restore some peace and kindness into our world.
And it's a wonderful piece of advice.
It doesn't matter if you are pro-war, anti-war, far left, far right, deeply moderate, young, old, tall or short - thanking a veteran is easy. We don't know all of their stories, but we don't need to. They sacrificed a chunk of their life - and sometimes their body - so we can continue this experiment we call the United States of America.
On Sunday, I had the privilege of sitting down with Dale Roenneburg, a 23-year Army veteran from Brodhead who served in World War II and the Korean War, exiting right before Vietnam went from small occupation to war.
Hearing his story, beginning to end with meandering in the middle of small details that gave even more of an insight into his life, was awe-inspiring. First, he wanted to join the National Guard when he was just 16, like so many others of his generation. Then, after joining the Army, he was shipped across the Pacific to Fiji and then to the Solomon Islands where, as a member of artillery, he saw the horrors of war up close. Later, serving in Germany during peacetime, he and his family had a scary close encounter with Russian guards in Vienna. He left Germany, along with 32 other bedridden soldiers (from illness to injury) and lost three of the four engines of their plane before making an emergency landing in Boston. At the outset of Vietnam, while serving with the United Nations, he narrowly missed having his helicopter shot down - another aircraft was hit instead, containing a service member he knew.
And yet he's still alive today, back in Green County, living in the house he designed while sitting at his desk years before in the Army and sharing that home - complete with a Japanese-inspired garden in the back yard - with his wife of more than 70 years.
In 2010, he took an Honor Flight to Washington D.C. and on Sunday, he received a Quilt of Valor, the latest "thank you" he's received.
Listening to the tales of Mr. Roenneburg reminded me of other stories I'd hear from veterans over the few short years of my life. One of my favorite people in the world is Junior Robertson. He was like a second father to me when I was growing up. I spent a great deal of my high school days at the Robertson household, as his son, Cody, was one of my dearest friends. I remember some late evenings when Junior would be awake, watching a John Wayne movie, and we'd just chat. Sometimes he'd tell me stories from his Army days, some small details of the war, like how he felt upon stepping foot onto Vietnam soil for the first time, and it touched me to my core.
A few years ago, Junior was able to return to Vietnam for the first time since the war - a war he left because of injuries sustained during a firefight. During his trip, he met a priest he helped save during the war. Those stories are rare but always uplifting.
Junior's advice to me was always simple: Just be decent. Be respectful and a decent person. Also, respect your elders.
And he's right. It takes very little effort to be decent. Respecting our elders has been a motto for many cultures throughout time. To pull a phrase from Farmers Insurance, which my daughter constantly quotes: They know a thing or two because they've seen a thing or two.
Thanking veterans of any age - be it active service personnel, or war veterans of the Middle East, Vietnam, Korea and WWII - is a small and meaningful gesture. It is also the bare minimum we can do. Waiting for Veterans Day to reach out is not enough. While yes, absolutely thank all the veterans you can on Veterans Day, there are 364 other days in the year.
And don't just thank those who served - it's OK to thank their spouses as well.
"I told them at the ceremony, 50 percent of this quilt should go to Louise," Roenneburg told me, referring to his wife.
A little bit of humility and gratitude from us all can collectively make a big difference in slowing down the vitriol that's spilled into our daily news cycle. And maybe, just maybe, that will help us restore some peace and kindness into our world.
