Today, we honor those who have given their last full measure of devotion, for their country and for their countrymen. Over the years, I have had the privilege of meeting hundreds of families who have sent their sons and daughters, their sisters and brothers, their nephews and nieces, off to keep the American dream alive and the American people safe. The pride in those families’ eyes cannot help but enter the hearts of all who meet and spend time with them. They are all sacrificing to stand on the watchtowers for the rest of us. Because of their noble efforts and sacrifices, the rest of us can sleep safely at night. Sadly enough, not all of them come home. And while we especially remember those soldiers this weekend, I think it should be our resolve to think about them every day.
Each and every one of us that has ever known someone or known of someone that went off to war, never to come back, should recommit to thinking about that warrior for freedom, that soldier for peace, that consummate American, each and every day.
We reap the blessings of their efforts every day and thus their memory should be similarly alive with us. All of God’s children have work to do, some in uniform, some not. But those in uniform take on a higher order of citizenship and service for the rest of us. I ask myself everyday what more I can do for these amazing Americans. I ask my friends to consider it, too.
America is a sun-kissed, special place on Earth, with a government of, by, and for the people. Those who have kept it that way and help keep it that way today are all heroes. But beyond memorializing them in our hearts and souls, we should regularly teach about them in our schools. Our nation’s children need others to look up to, they need to know these heroes who shared this sacred ground with them and fought for it. They need to better appreciate how this special place we call America has not perished. It is because of those we memorialize especially today. God bless them all.
— Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.