Your presentation of Nick and April is just beautiful, Dolly, and a wonderful beginning for this time of remembering our military - past and present, living and dead.
Without them, there would be no America as we know it.
Nick and April, if you click on my screen name, you'll see on my Profile Page I was a Marine during The Korean Conflict, going from Boot Camp (1952) at Parris Island to the podium, teaching women recruits classroom subjects.
It was my high honor and privilege to participate in the Dedication Ceremony of the Iwo Jima Monument on the Parade Deck there.
Having served as a Right Guide in Boot Camp, led a silent Drill Team of 8 women, and was used for any ceremony or inspection in which WM's were involvd, I was asked to be the Guidon Bearer for "A" Company for the Dedication.
There were 8 full companies in the Ceremony - the Corps at its greatest buildup in its entire history, before or since - and with our shorter strides, the WM "A" Company led it.
I returned to Parris Island in 1996 and 2002, and from the moment I got to the entrance to the time I left, I felt *exactly* as I did back in the 50's!!
The Corps never leaves you, even as you never leave the Corps..:))
It is so very wonderful to see those like you to whom our torches were passed down -- there are no weak links in the chain.....
~ ~ Rendering a salute to you ~ ~
God be with you, always --
You probably do not recognize this USMC Hero:
Carlos Hathcock U.S.M.C.
1942 - 1999
Most Influential Sniper In U.S. History.
For more information about him, go Here at
The Unites States Marine Corps
Scout/Sniper
Association
With probably more than 300 kills during the Vietnam War, Carlos Hathcock is the most famous sniper in United States History.
The North Vietnamese put a $30,000 bounty on his head and called him "Long Trang" or White Feather. Hathcock was once accredited with hitting a NVA at 2,500 yards with a special scope-adapted .50 caliber machine gun converted to single shot operation.
The year before going to Vietnam, Carlos won top honors at the National Rifle matches at Camp Perry Ohio. Hathcock began honing his rifle skills at an early age bringing home food for the family table in rural Arkansas.
When an armored vehicle he was riding in hit a mine and caught fire in Vietnam, he was sent back to the U.S. to recover from extensive burns. Although he was unable to return to Vietnam, he put his efforts into establishing the Scout/Sniper school at Quantico Virginia. Here, Hathcock spoke against the "John Wayne" mentality of many soldiers, always emphasising skill and quiet deliberate thought as essential to be an effective sniper. Sadly, what the North Vietnamese couldn't do, was finally done by the slow debilitating disease of multiple sclerosis at the age of 57.
+ + + Rest well, at peace, Noble Warrior ~+ + +