Remembering our country’s heroes honored at Arlington
T. J. Ray, Guest Essayist
As T. J. Ray writes about visiting Arlington National Cemetery and shares the words below, hopefully we can catch the echoes of thoughts many hear when they visit the places where veterans lie–their lives mutely represented by words and dates etched in stone. It is so sad that many treat service people as nobodies or forget so soon what prices they paid to join the army of those who have died for our freedom. Could such forgetfulness be the essential sickness of a great nation? The blood of a lot of men and women paid for that greatness.
Should you find yourself sightseeing in Washington D.C., please take the time to visit Arlington National Cemetery, perhaps grave sites 656-77. The soldier buried there was born in August 1938 and died in May 1979. A few graves away lies a soldier born in June 1926 and died in May 1971. And just across the well kept grass is one more (of many) soldiers of distinction. He was born in December 1887 and died in September 1964.
Dates, of course, don’t tell us very much about a person. These three men all lived through days so significant to many men around them that their final rest pales in comparison.
YORK’S STORY
The oldest of the three, Sgt. Alvin York, performed a deed that led to these words in his Congressional Medal of Honor Citation: “After his platoon suffered heavy casualties and 3 other noncommissioned officers had become casualties, Cpl. York assumed command. Fearlessly leading 7 men, he charged with great daring a machine gun nest which was pouring deadly and incessant fire upon his platoon. In this heroic feat the machine gun nest was taken, together with 4 officers and 128 men and several guns.” The great day in his life was Oct. 8, 1918.
The second of the three heroes was Sgt. (later Major.) Audie Murphy. These words conclude his CMH Citation: “… then made his way to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. 2d Lt. Murphy’s indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy’s objective.” This action from a soldier who had been refused by the Marines and paratroopers, who said he was too short! His day of supreme courage was Jan. 26, 1945.
IRONIC TWIST
The last of the three noted above served as one of the pallbearers at Audie Murphy’s burial, surely not knowing he would one day return for the same honors, was Sgt. (later Captain) Joe Hooper. Having served in the Navy, he joined the Army and found himself in Vietnam as a staff sergeant. The close of his CMH Citation reads thusly: “He then established a final line and reorganized his men, not accepting medical treatment until this was accomplished and not consenting to evacuation until the following morning. His supreme valor, inspiring leadership and heroic self-sacrifice were directly responsible for the company’s success and provided a lasting example in personal courage for every man on the field. His actions were in keeping with the highest tradition of military service and reflect great honor upon himself and the United States Army.” His outstanding deeds happened on the very long and bloody day of Feb. 21, 1968.
NOT JUST A HOLIDAY DEAL
Our Nation “celebrates” Armistice/Veterans day on Nov. 11, and you will probably think these words are almost a month late. Let me assure you they are not because every day there are men and women in an American uniform who may well rest one day in Arlington.
At this moment we can’t know who will be the most decorated soldier of this rotten war, as the above three were the most decorated heroes of World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War. And now, all those airmen, soldiers, sailors, and Marines are volunteers, volunteers who too often come home to a place where no one but their loved ones even know what they have experienced, too often returning to a nation that no longer needs them and can’t seem to find the resources to give them the support they earned on the battlefield.
But for a moment, think of the hillbilly from the Tennessee hills, Alvin York, the short guy who would become a movie star, and the soldier who kept enlisting in the service. And if you happen to be in Section 46 in Arlington National Cemetery, give pause and remember that many of us are here now because people like them were there when it mattered most.
##### THANKS for this stirring reminder, TJ. THE WORDWRIGHT