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In Memory of...
by Frank J. Montoya

In memory of... the Doughboys,
Who went "Over There" to fight.
They ate and slept in a muddy trench;
They suffered shot and shell and poison gas.
They lie now, silently, beneath Cross or Star,
In lonely fields, across the sea, so far.

In memory of... the GI Joes,
Who throughout the world did proudly serve,
In that dreadful "War to end all Wars".
The hundreds of thousands who bravely died
To preserve our precious way of life;
To save the world from pain and strife.

In memory of... those neglected souls,
Who in Korea waged "The Forgotten War."
They faced Siberian cold and scorching heat,
And a Gargantuan foe in a relentless land.
Can we forget the Battle of Pork Chop Hill,
And the more than 8000 that are missing still?

In memory of... those who went, in doubt,
To fight a most unpopular and thankless war.
As they died their peers maligned their deeds;
Their cause decried abroad and here at home.
No regard for the thousands that would sadly fall,
Their names engraved on that cold memorial wall.

In memory of... those who died on desert sands,
And who died "keeping peace" in foreign lands.
Whether hot or cold...wars call for sacrifice,
And our sons and daughters have paid the price.

Let us hold them ever close, in memory,
For they have shown that Freedom Is Not Free.