Memorial Day Message

By Ronny Bruce

I was asked to be the keynote speaker for the Memorial Day ceremony in the beautiful mountain town of Hiawassee, Georgia. The event will take place on Monday, and it’s quite an honor. The following is my message:

I wanna thank the city of Hiawassee and its officials and the Veterans of Foreign Wars for inviting me here on such a sacred day. Yes, it’s the unofficial start to summer, but Memorial Day is when we honor those United States servicemembers who fought and died in the line of duty. Those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

For years I avoided events like this one today for no good reason at all. I would be hunkered in – angry, sad, and depressed. So I wanna give a special thanks to Mr. Bubba Underwood for helping break me outta my shell and become more involved with the veteran community. Bubba is my combat elder, a decorated Vietnam veteran, and was a friend to my father – also a Vietnam veteran – who passed away in 2013. Once again, thank you Bubba for all you’ve done.

I think about the people I served with who’ve passed on daily. But Memorial Day is a special day of remembrance for a former battle buddy of mine named Julian Berisford from West Virginia. He died on November 4th, 2009, when our platoon was ambushed in the Paktika Province of Afghanistan – near the Pakistan border. I don’t wanna get too into the weeds about the events that day, but we were sent out on an ill-advised mission and drove right into a trap where we were outnumbered and surrounded on three sides by an enemy in the high grounds. The decision makers and officers were not only miles away from us grunts physically, yet they were also miles away from the knowledge and understanding of the realities on the ground. Our movements were predictable. So much so that illiterate people living in mud huts could easily figure them out. And half of my platoon was wounded on these missions. Julian Berisford paid the price when the vehicle he was driving was struck by an RPG 7 – killing him instantly. The sad thing about it was Julian was scheduled for R&R, and his R&R bird took off the day after the firefight. Rather than returning home to celebrate his daughter Mya’s first birthday, he was flown back to West Virginia inside a flag-draped coffin. Today is your day, Julian. Cheers to you.

Memorial Day is also a time when I think of my father. He passed in 2013 of pulmonary fibrosis – most likely due to his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. In my opinion, he paid the ultimate price for his country. I miss him greatly.

On this day of remembrance, I also think of these men: Lance Carpenter, Brandon Cox, William Greenleaf, Jeramie Speaker, Toby Stinson, and Joshua Weymers. These were men whom I served with who continued fighting the war long after we were scooped up and flown home from the battlefield. These weren’t men I knew of; they were men I knew personally. Each displayed courage and bravery on the battlefield that I witnessed firsthand. They were men cut from the finest cloth. Sadly, each of these men died by their own hands or as a result of recklessness before reaching their primes – casualties of the war. I honor the memories of these friends on Memorial Day as well.

Now before we cookout with our families, eat some fine American foods, crack open some beers, or shop for deals, let’s reflect on what this day is all about. Let’s honor the brave Americans who sacrificed everything, from all prior conflicts, so we can live freely in this awesome nation. Freedom isn’t free.

In closing, I want to mention that I was once scoffed at and reminded about how somber the day was as a result of telling someone, “Happy Memorial Day.” I was told it wasn’t a happy occasion. To heck with that. The men I served with who are no longer with us, my father and uncles, and others I knew, would not want me to be sad and depressed today. Believe me, Julian, Lance, Brandon, William, Jeramie, Toby, and Josh would want me to have a good ole time while honoring their memories. They’d want me to share some laughs and think about the good times we had. So, let’s honor the brave servicemembers who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our nation and have a happy Memorial Day! God bless and rock on \m/