Although I have heard “I’m not a hero” from just about every veteran I’ve met, I am truly honored to be able to hear the experiences of all veterans in all aspects of what I feel was the last, undeniably just war our country fought – WWII. It took every bit of effort from all of those involved in this conflict, no matter how insignificant he or she may feel their role was, to accomplish the seemingly insurmountable goal of defeating the Empire of Japan and the German Reich and saving the World from a fate worse than any of us could possibly imagine. All generations since WWII have the Greatest Generation to thank for their freedom and way of life, and it is my hope that we will never forget the sacrifices made for this freedom.

Left to right: Brent Spencer, Romy Meacham, Robert Lyman, James Scotella, Charles Pedrotta, Robert Sullivan, James Harn, Dave Crawford and Glenn Tierney.

Charles Pedrotta, the veteran in the middle (5th in from either side) was kind enough to invite me to their weekly WWII veterans get together. It was truly an honor to be included. I spent over two hours in a casual environment with some of the greatest guys you could ever hope to meet. Charles said that the group started with him and three others and has grown to as many as 14.

 

My daughter had a classroom assignment of writing a poem. She wrote this in honor of America’s involvement in WWII. A copy was sent to some of the veterans that we visited.