Honoring Our Tween Veterans

Today is Veterans Day where we stop and honor the men and women who serve and have served our country. No matter which uniform you wear -- Army, Navy, Marine, Air Force, Coast Guard, or National Guard -- our volunteers deserve our respect and intense gratitude. They are the ones who protect our way of life.

Most of the attention goes to active service members and those who fought in foreign wars. They are not the only ones who deserve recognition today. The hundreds of thousands of service members who served in peace time protected our way of life as well.

Terry, my dear husband of over a quarter of a century, is a tween. He volunteered for the Air Force in peace time. He served between two wars: too young for Korea, too old, too married, and with two kids, not drafted for Vietnam. Still, he served honorably, keeping radar systems operating during the Cold War. He often wonders how he would have behaved in combat. I've watched him in times of great stress and know he would have done his job with honor.

Chris, Terry's only son and my stepson, was in the Air Force for four years, and more than ten years in the Navy. He, too, is a tween, although he nearly got caught in the ramp up to Desert Storm. Desert Shield was going on while his fleet was in the Med. He was diverted off the coast of Liberia when civil war raged. For three months they steamed around waiting to airlift Marines into the capital to rescue Americans trapped inside.

I am so proud my husband and son are tweens. Being in the service was one of the best things that happened to them when they were growing up.

I'm taking Terry out to dinner tonight to thank him for his service. Laura is doing the same with Chris.

To all tweens out there, thank you for your service. You have done us proud.