If someone is fighting for your life, how do you respond?

Why is it America designates more than one day to recognize some facet of service from those who have served/are serving in our military branches?

For example, we have Armed Forces Day, and Memorial Day, and then there’s today, Veteran’s Day. And these aren’t just days on a calendar, Americans host parades and services and do a lot on behalf of the men and women in American military uniform.

Sometimes, they do something remarkable to “support the troops,” like the story about North Platte Canteen, as told below by Bob Greene in Once upon A Town:

Ten days after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, residents of North Platte, Nebraska heard a rumor that soldiers from their town, part of the Nebraska National Guard Company D, would be coming through on a troop train on their way to the West Coast. About five hundred people showed up at the train depot with food, gifts, letters, and love to give the boys.

When the train showed up, it was not the Nebraska National Guard Company D boys on board; it was the soldiers from the Kansas National Guard Company D. The North Platte residents decided to give out their gifts to these soldiers they did not know. It was a spontaneous act of genuine devotion that touched both the soldiers and the people who came to the depot that day.

A few days later, a 26-year-old woman named Rae Wilson wrote a letter to the editor of the local paper recounting the profound experience they’d shared that night. She then suggested the town organize a canteen, so they could do something similar for every troop train that came through. She offered to lead the effort as a volunteer.

For the next four and a half years, the people of North Platte and the surrounding communities met every troop train that came through their town. Every day, they prepared sandwiches, cookies, cold drinks, and hot coffee. They had baskets of magazines and books to give away to the soldiers, and snacks for the train. There were even birthday cakes for anyone having a special day. And they did this, some days, for as many as eight thousand soldiers and sailors.

The statistics are staggering. By the time the last train arrived on April 1, 1946, six million soldiers had been blessed by the North Platte Canteen. Forty-five thousand volunteers had served faithfully until the war was over and most of the troops had been transported home.

Why do so many go out of their way for our military personnel?

Perhaps that question is best answered with a question: How do you respond to someone who is fighting for your life?

Freedom isn’t free. The liberty Americans enjoy comes with a cost, and that cost is heavily paid by the daily sacrifice of men and women serving to protect this nation. They serve not only across our country, but also in more than 800 bases across 70 other nations. The men and women of the United States military choose to serve their nation, they choose to give, and sometimes at great cost. One story is told of a chaplain who was ministering to a soldier in the hospital and said, “You have lost an arm in the great cause.”

The soldier replied, “I didn’t lose it — I gave it.”

There can be any number of ways to respond to men and women fighting for your life, but not less than our respect and a humble thank you, which we offer today.

To all who have served, on behalf of a grateful nation, thank you for your service.

Scotty