Just as no one should be left behind, no one should ever be forgotten

I am posting this today with mixed emotions. Please know that while I still adhere to my stance on not discussing politics, I do feel that our government holds a huge responsibility in our country. We count on them and defer to them in times of crisis to make responsible, reasonable and well informed decisions. Being a paid public figure who sits in such positions is an awesome responsibility and certainly not one that I would want, so I certainly don't mean any disrespect with this post. I just feel that with their job there can not be any room for error. Just as our military is bound by a code of conduct much higher than any other organization in this country, shouldn't our government be held to the same standards? It is because of that immense weight we lie upon their shoulders that I'm torn between what I came across this morning.

On August 1st, 2013 U.S. Representative, Scott Rigell stood before the house and asked the speaker to bear with him for five minutes as he paid honor to the 32 American Heroes lost nearly two years earlier on August 6, 2011 during Extortion 17. Please know that the number 32 referenced above is not an error or typo on my part. That is the number he mentioned twice during his five minute speech. Then he listed the names of those American Heroes, going through the Navy, Army and Air Force personnel until all 30 names were read. Once again, when I wrote 30, that was not an error. If we are counting only American casualties, from Extortion 17 alone, the number would be 30, plus 1 military working dog named, Bart. To read the entire record for that day, please click HERE.

The faces of the 30 American heroes lost in Extortion 17 on August 6, 2011

Please know that I believe Mr. Rigell's intention to be pure of heart and obviously his assistant or whoever slipped him the little piece of paper gave him wrong information. However, I can't help but wonder how quickly someone in the military would be reprimanded (severely) if they made even the slightest error on a mission. Regardless, I will digress as I am neither judge, nor jury. My biggest bone of contention with this is that sadly we lose countless lives every week, month and year and these names do not get mentioned. They do not take five minutes out of their sessions to read their names. My question is why? Now, to the people who are saying to me right now, "but, it was the greatest loss of life for NSW (Naval Special Warfare) in a single day since Operation Red Wings in 2005" I completely agree with you and can't tell you how much my heart hurts for the families that lost loved ones that day. 

Marine Sgt. Daniel J. Patron

However, how many know that on that same day, of the same year, we also lost a Marine? Marine Sgt. Daniel J. Patron was 26 years old and from Canton, OH. He died in Helmand Province, Afghanistan while attempting to disarm a roadside bomb. We've all heard the names of the 31 heroes (including Bart) that were killed during Extortion 17, but how many of you can honestly say they've heard of Marine Sgt. Patron? Did you know that he has a highway which has been dedicated to him? Did you also know that after serving two tours in Iraq in 2005 and 2009 that he voluntarily extended his service? When he was killed, he only had three months left on his tour. In November he would have been home. Home with his family.

Every day on Honor Them the names and faces of the our fallen heroes are shared with everyone who wishes to take a moment to say thank you for the tremendous sacrifice these heroes have made for our country and us. In light of Mr. Rigell's five minutes wishing to pay remembrance to those American heroes lost, I can't help but feel that an injustice has been done to the other families who also grieve on this day. So, please, if you would, join me in a moment of silence while I list the other names that were not mentioned and who lost their lives on August 6th during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation New Dawn.

Army Spc. Zeferino E. Colunga KIA 2003-08-06

Army Pvt. Kyle C. Gilbert KIA 2003-08-06

Army Staff Sgt. Brian R. Hellermann KIA 2003-08-06

Army Sgt. Leonard D. Simmons KIA 2003-08-06

Marine Cpl. Roberto Abad KIA 2004-08-06

Army Spc. Joshua I. Bunch KIA 2004-08-06

Marine Lance Cpl. Larry L. Wells KIA 2004-08-06

Marine Lance Cpl. Chase J. Comley KIA 2005-08-06

Army Sgt. Brahim J. Jeffcoat KIA 2005-08-06

Army Spc. Kurt E. Krout KIA 2005-08-06

Army Sgt. Carlton A. Clark KIA 2006-08-06

Army Staff Sgt. Tracy L. Melvin KIA 2006-08-06

Army Staff Sgt. Stephen A. Seale KIA 2006-08-06

Army Cpl. Jose Zamora KIA 2006-08-06

Army Cpl. Juan M. Alcantara KIA 2007-08-06

Army Sgt. Nicholas A. Gummersall KIA 2007-08-06

Army Cpl. Kareem R. Khan KIA 2007-08-06

Army Spc. Christopher T. Neiberger KIA 2007-08-06  

Army Staff Sgt. Jacob M. Thompson KIA 2007-08-06

Marine Lance Cpl. James D. Argentine KIA 2009-08-06

Marine Lance Cpl. Travis T. Babine KIA 2009-08-06

Marine Sgt. Jay M. Hoskins KIA 2009-08-06

Marine Cpl. Christian Guzman Rivera KIA 2009-08-06

Marine Cpl. Daniel L. Linnabary II KIA 2012-08-06

My final thought is more of a question for Mr. Rigell and every other politician who serves in such an important capacity for our country. I ask you to not forget the sacrifice paid by so many others. We have lost thousands upon thousands of heroes since the global war on terror began. Not just 30, or even 32. I ask you to please make note of every loss of life, not just the ones lost in certain tragedies. It should never be about the number of lives lost. The person who was lost should be what matters the most. 

Since Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation New Dawn has began (and at the time of this post), U.S. Central Command has confirmed 6,714 deaths as the result of these conflicts. They were fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, they were husbands and wives. And more importantly, they were heroes. They served our great nation valiantly, they put duty before self. 

Quite simply, they gave their today, for our tomorrows. 

Let us not forget any one of them.

With respect, and immense gratitude. I thank you for your time in reading this message.
~ Amanda HONOR THEM! 

Has honor and integrity taken a back seat? You be the judge

When I started my mission to Honor Them over 2 years ago, it was a personal one. While I admittedly was still trying to find my niche in how to accomplish this, I knew one thing above all else, Honor would be the prime focus. While I may have begun on Twitter, I soon branched out into Facebook and began this blog. My mission may have begun as a personal one, but not too long after I had people joining me in my endeavors. After some time it didn’t just become important to me, but became a part of who I am. That is why not a day will go by that I will not Honor the sacrifice paid by so many. This brings me to the purpose of this post.

There are some who sadly have chosen to use the death of our heroes for their own ill gotten gains. It’s really become an epidemic in today’s society. As unbelievable as it may seem, there are those who are worse offenders than others. Please, before you read on, I ask you all to consider the fact that I don’t normally call out any company and/or organization. In fact, I’ve never done so. I stick to my mission and ensure the families of the fallen are taken into consideration in all my efforts. Respect for them and all that they've endured is very important to me. However, there is one company who as I understand it, hasn’t done this in the past and my fear is they are repeating the same patterns.

Below you will see some information along with screen shots (please forgive the haziness of the images as I blew them up for ease of reading), which points to a pattern of behavior. It, in my opinion, not only appears to be dis-honorable, but calls into question this company’s true intentions. I’ve chosen to post this on my blog because the owner of this company either ignores or deletes anyone’s comments (on Facebook) who attempt to make an inquiry into the questionable activity. Furthermore, this company usually blocks those inquiring immediately after. So, I ask you to look at the information I’ve provided and draw your own conclusion.

First, as a matter of background, I contacted the publicist for the family of fallen US Navy SEAL, Lt. Michael Murphy and this is what she had to say:

As Publicist for the Family of LT Michael Murphy I was approached by John Stiener, the owner of Infidel USA on July 23, 2011 proposing a Murph The Protector t-shirt with ALL proceeds benefitting Michael’s Foundation.  By all accounts the shirt was a hit, but I would never know exactly because I was never given the sales figures as to what exactly was sold as promised.  After endless emails, text messages and phone calls asking for his payment to the Foundation, of which there had been only a few, I threatened to sue Infidel USA.  That is when John’s Mom called and intervened on his behalf.  She felt that it was unfair that 100% of the proceeds go to that Foundation and that John should be entitled to some.  I explained to her that the agreement had been otherwise and that the memorial tee was bringing him new business. I further explained that it was an agreement that he presented. Also, I reminded her that he was promoting the tee the whole time as benefiting Michael’s Foundation when in fact only a few payments had been made. A year and a half later NO accounting of sales had been made available to me and as it appears from this that John was using all the Murph The Protector profits to expand his company. This is by his own admission in communications with me.  Regardless of John’s promises to the foundation, John’s mom made the following agreement with me. She asked that she be given one week and she would provide me with the amount of shirts sold and the rest of the money owed to the Foundation.  In addition would I allow one last print run of the shirt before I terminated the agreement.  I told her that I would not make a decision on the last print run until the monies were paid and the accounting of all sales was provided to me.  Approximately one week later payment was made for what I was told was the sale figures of all the Murph t-shirts. However, I have no way of knowing this to be accurate or not as I was not provided with an accounting of the sales as promised.  John and his Mom requested that they be allowed to go ahead with one final print run of the shirt and with that we would part ways.  I agreed, with the understanding that the accounting of sales would be forthcoming. As I previously mentioned this still has not happened.   John only paid the foundation for part of this final print run.  I of course sent him countless emails and text messages as well as tried to call and collect the money, but to no avail.  I was forced to reimburse Michael’s Foundation with my own money as I felt responsible for making such a poor business decision. 

You may ask why the above information is relevant. Well, I ask you to read on, as its relevance will soon become clear. 

 On February 7, 2013 Infidel USA came out with a new t-shirt. See the Facebook post introducing this shirt by clicking on this LINK (If for some reason that link becomes invalid because the post has been deleted. I will update this post with a screen shot of the link). The t-shirt depicted the name of US Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle who was recently killed. The company states in their post as well as on their website that 100% of the proceeds with benefit Craft International and FITCO Cares. On the surface this seems like a wonderful idea, and one that I normally would be backing 100%. However, because I am so adamantly against anyone (not including the families) profiting from someone else's death, I simply cannot stand behind an organization which has proven in the past to take money under the pretense of funds going to an organization and then not following through with that promise. Case in point, the below screen shots.

SCREEN SHOT A: In this screen shot, the publicist for the family of Lt. Michael Murphy clarifies any misleading comments made by Infidel USA by explaining that Infidel USA “did NOT give all the money to Michael’s Foundation as promised.” And further she asks a few questions, one of them being, will her comment remain. Please see the next screen shot.

SCREEN SHOT B: As you’ll see here, minutes later not only is her comment removed, but someone else asks if what she wrote is true. Please see the next screen shot.

SCREEN SHOT C: As you can see here, Infidel USA has responded with the comment “Of course not.” However, regardless of their prompt reply, you will see in SCREENSHOT D (below) that Infidel USA deleted the question, as well as their response. Also, it appears they deleted one which states they are working with FITCO and Craft International. 

 

SCREEN SHOT D: Comments referencing any question of misuse of funds have been deleted. You can tell this by the new comments appearing below where other’s comments once were.

 

 

 

 

All of this may not seem like too much cause for concern in some of your opinions. However, I was sent the below screen shot (SCREEN SHOT E) which raises all sorts of red flags for me personally. As someone who supports our military and their families I make it a habit to only give to companies who are truly helping the families of our fallen heroes. Please note the placement of this comment. It was only on the page for a short time and promptly deleted once the publicist for the Murphy family left her comment. In this comment by Infidel USA they claim to have multiple veterans that work for their company. They also claim to have “athletes that worked with Chris in Ramadi.” At which point Infidel USA goes onto explain that those who worked with Chris came to them with the idea to do something. 

SCREEN SHOT E

If what he states is true, then why delete it? Or, as a matter of interest, why delete so many other comments as well? If Infidel USA truly has veterans who worked along side Chris Kyle in Ramadi working for him who asked him to take on this project, then why remove it once question is raised? Further, why would Infidel USA block people who have only asked questions? After all, they are only questions. If in fact Infidel USA’s only motivation is to help the families of the fallen, why not simply address the issues and rebuild their company's reputation? 

These are all things which trouble me and make me wonder where the funds for this shirt will really go. However, to be fair, I must state, I have not personally approached the company. I have chosen not to do so because of the numerous people that have approached them to only receive no response and then be blocked. I further would like to state that I am merely a concerned citizen and also 100% civilian. I do what I do because I choose to and while I normally would 'vet' a charity/organization before I decide to endorse them, sadly I don’t feel confident that any correspondence by me asking questions to Infidel USA would be met with anything other than ignoring and blocking me. 

My only concern is that the family of Chris Kyle is taken care of and this isn't going to be a repeat of what transpired with the Murph t-shirt. Other than that, I have no skin in the game, so to speak. The main purpose of my post is to ask everyone to truly consider the organization they are giving their money to before they do so. Just because someone claims to be on the up and up, doesn’t always mean that they are. This could be said for countless companies or organizations.

Once again, and in closing, this blog post contains what I have witnessed and have been able to ascertain from the events unfolding on a public social networking site. My statements are my own and contain my opinion on a matter that is near and dear to my heart. I do not know without 100% certainty whether or not the allegations against Infidel USA are factual because as best I can tell they refuse to respond to them. Perhaps in the future they will work with the companies they state they support to ensure all funds go where they are promised. I also hope that Infidel USA will make good on their promises made to the Murphy Foundation. If they choose not to do either of these things, I am left with no other alternative but to question their motivations and intentions between making products of this nature and selling them under the guise of "giving back" to charities. 

Has Hollywood lost focus?

There was a time not so long ago, less than a century in fact, when Hollywood and all of the talent that arose from it knew the importance of supporting our troops. People like Bob Hope and Marilyn Monroe who were in high demand still made sure to take the time out of their busy schedules and entertain the troops. The USO was founded in 1941 as a way to provide morale to service members through entertainment. At the time and throughout the following years there were dozens upon dozens of entertainers who followed suit. If you research some old interviews with those entertainers you will hear one common thought amongst them all. They all truly believed in the importance of supporting our troops. They all truly understood the sacrifices being made by those serving. Well, it would seem times sure have changed. 

Now, before I go on I think it's only fair to state that there are many performers who are still actively involved in the USO and all it stands for. To those, I offer my heartfelt thanks and gratitude for their selfless and generous offering of both time and compassion. However, Hollywood has taken a different turn in the past couple of decades. Some of that talent that receives millions of our dollars each year are instead using their spotlight for politics. For those of you who have been watching "Honor Them" for a while, you know I make it a habit to never discuss politics. My political beliefs are kept silent because (in my opinion) honoring "them" has nothing to do with politics. It comes from your heart. It is a sense of patriotism that runs deep and is fueled by the pride of being a part of one of the greatest nations in the world. 

One of the most amazing and wonderful things about our country is our freedom of speech, our freedom to think our own way and form our own opinions. We are not under a ruthless dictator that some of the other countries we assist have suffered through. With that being said though, I can't help but wonder why politics have taken such a nasty turn. I know what you're all thinking, that there has been mudslinging and dirty play in politics for decades if not longer. I don't disagree with that, but when did Hollywood become the voice for politicians and their agendas? More so, when did those stars who received millions upon millions every year decide that they were the know all-end all to tell us and our military what is right and what is wrong? 

Let's face it, the last several years have been quite tumultuous for our country. The political arena has changed greatly and with it more and more of our nation's "talent" have decided to use their spotlight to further political agenda while either bad mouthing our armed forces or completely ignoring them all together. It seems that every time I turn around I'm hearing about one of them disparaging our troops or veterans and I can't help but wonder why? Sure I understand that being an American means that they have the freedom to do and say as they please. What if we (as a country) allow that to go too far though? We will always (I pray) have our freedoms to do and say what we choose, but the second we start forgetting who is defending those rights we are losing sight of the bigger picture. 

Our country was founded on some very strong beliefs. Beliefs that ran deeper than just the paper the words were penned to. One of the most integral parts of our freedoms is having a strong force to defend us. On September 11, 2001 we found out just how easily our country can be blindsided. Not everyone loves our country, we have enemies, enemies who wish to do us harm, enemies who take so many – too many – of our brave troops away. At the end of the day all of the money, material objects and luxuries will mean nothing if our country is left helpless. Our Armed Forces guard us every second of every day. Not a moment passes where they do not have our backs. They are on guard, always watching, always protecting, always defending. Without them, where would we truly be? I challenge those big Hollywood hitters who haven't stood behind our troops recently to make a few changes in their life and remember just who is guarding their 6.

With all that being said, I would like to share with you a story of someone who gave so much of herself and received little in return. 

Some who knew her say that Martha Raye endured less comfort and more danger than any other Vietnam entertainer. The most unforgivable oversight of all was that none of her shows were taped. I was unaware of her credentials until someone sent me a very touching email. If you search more information on Martha, you will find many memoirs that tell of her selfless acts on behalf of our brave troops. In fact President Lyndon Johnson awarded her a green beret and the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Special Forces as a thank you for her extraordinary efforts.  Martha was also a nurse and used the skills she had to tend to wounded during the Vietnam War. It is said that several times at the Army Field Hospital in Pleiku, she would cover a surgical shift, giving a nurse a well-deserved break. 

 

Of note, Martha Ray is the only woman buried in the Special Forces cemetery at Ft. Bragg. Martha died on October 19, 1994, but as a civilian, as an American and as a woman I offer her my utmost gratitude and respect for all that she did for those in harm’s way.

Operation Honor Them

On June 30, 2010 I began my mission to Honor Them. When I reached my first anniversary (Please see that blog post from June 2011 HERE) in Honoring Them I felt like I had accomplished a great deal and was proud to be in the company of so many fine patriots. Little did I know that last year was merely a drop in the bucket for all I'd accomplish in the following year. Over the course of the past twelve months both my facebook and twitter pages as well as my mission has grown by leaps and bounds. As I write this, I am just below 25,000 Likes on facebook, and quickly approaching 7,000 followers on twitter. On a daily basis I receive countless messages and emails from military families, service members and veterans who support my cause and are glad to take part. This makes me very proud and honored to be a part of a community that holds such immense patriotism and love for those who give so much of themselves on our behalf.

This year in celebration of my 2 year anniversary I wanted to hold a month long event to reach out to my fellow patriots. There are many ways that one can Honor Them, but all too often we get caught up in the daily distractions of life. With little financial obligation or time spent we can all do our part. Even the smallest gestures can have a lasting impact and show our troops and veterans just how much they mean to us. 

Below is a calendar of this month's planned events. Please feel free to share it and it's information with many. While I'm offering up these ideas, these are things we can do year round. Whether you pick one, two, a dozen or all of them, even participating is a step in the right direction. Also, during this month I will be making posts relating specific topics all day on each separate day of the week. Look for the schedule below the calendar.

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Military Families	Navy	Air Force	Coast Guard	Marine Corps	Army	Wounded

Please join me for the entire month of June to take part in Operation Honor Them. If you're on twitter look for #OpHonorThem and #OperationHonorThem. And join me on facebook too!

Thank you to: Forged Clothing, Soldiers Angels, DS&S Tactical, Boot Campaign, That Others May Live Foundation, Kill Cliff, Lt. Michael Murphy Scholarship Foundation, Navy SEAL Academy

Salutes to Forged Clothing

In 2007 two former United States Navy SEALs founded ForgedClothing. Their company founded and fueled by the values of Brotherhood, Respect and Freedom as well as their belief in making products in the USA. Since Forged’s inception, they have operated with the utmost professionalism and integrity. They take great pride in being involved with their customers and giving them a top of the line product which has meaning behind it. While that in itself is unique to a company in this day and age, there is another reason behind my post. 

Some may not know this, but Forged Clothing donates a percentage of every sale to several military affiliated non-profit organizations to help wounded veterans and their families. They also have created some specific tribute shirts to honor their fallen brothers, and 100% of the profits from those shirts are donated to the Navy Special Warfare Foundation. This is all in addition to being involved with fundraisers for the families of friends who have made the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. 

While these reasons alone would be enough for Honor Them to stand behind a company such as Forged, there are so many more. Besides their efforts to give back on various levels, they also have supported my message and mission with Honor Them since the beginning. In doing so, Honor Them and Forged will be partnering up on a special project which also gives back while allowing you to show your patriotism and support of our troops and veterans. 

Also, be on the lookout for some exciting changes. In the next month Forged Clothing will be launching their new website which will include new tribute shirts and new merchandise which will benefit the customer as well as various charities.

On behalf on everyone who join me in Honoring Them, I say Bravo Zulu to Forged Clothing for never forgetting that All Gave Some, Some Gave All. 

U.S. Army memorial knife for Wardak, Afghanistan, Extortion 17

In honor of the 5 crewmen lost from the 158th Aviation Regiment and the 135th Aviation Regiment, U.S. Army National Guard aboard Extortion 17, Wardak, Afghanistan, 8/6/11, DS&S Tactical is offering for auction a very special knife.... This CQBT-B Advanced Combat Knife - a M390 Super Steel blade has now been coated with Diamond-Like Carbon (DLC) - the toughest, most advanced coating available for knife blades. The knife is being auctioned off with 100% of the proceeds to benefit the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

DIRECT LINK TO THE AUCTION:
CLICK HERE

 

The production of this blade was made possible by Donny Bassett and the Society for the Preservation of Military History as well as the work of Re-New Sharpening and the assistance of Waterjet Cutting Inc. of Albuquerque. The next-generation coating was applied by Ion Bond and the engraving was done by KaMo Engravers of Albuquerque. The concept for this blade came from a discussion with Ssgt Manny Alvarez, U.S. Army.

☆ Honor Them's 1st Birthday ☆

I started my mission, quest or duty to Honor Them on twitter on June 30, 2010.  Now, admittedly it took me awhile to find my voice. I followed maybe 100 - 200 people when I first began.  I would get online and tweet a quote or a piece of news in hopes that someone out there saw it and felt as strongly about it as I did.  Truthfully though, I wasn't really sure what I was doing. I knew that I wanted to Honor Them but i just didn't have all of my proverbial ducks in a row on how to go about doing it.

Months went by and I just didn't feel like I was accomplishing anything. Finally 2011 hit and I guess you could say something hit me.  I'll be honest and tell you that I'm not sure why I hadn't though of it before. It seemed so clear to me when I finally had thought of it.  With the casualty numbers rising in the middle east I decided that someone needed to remember the ones who have given their life for a war that had gone on for nearly 10 years.  With every announcement of a new troop being taken from us I felt as though the faces, names and memories of those fallen were becoming a distant memory.  And while the war in itself is horrible, I felt that was an even greater tragedy. 

I don't remember what day I started tweeting the names of the fallen, but I do remember that I told myself on that day I would never miss a day of honoring them and their sacrifice.  Sadly, I will admit there have been 2 days with circumstances beyond my control that I was unable to do so.  It was with great regret that I wasn't able to fulfill my promise to both those troops and myself.  I was sure to include those that were missed on the following day, but I feel strongly that each one of our selfless heroes that pays such a high price deserves that one day of remembrance for them and their fellow brothers and sisters.

Since I started honoring our fallen on a daily basis it woke me up I guess you could say. In some ways you might even say it inspired me.  When I post those names everyday, I'm seeing their faces, their ages, where they're from, etc.  Each one of them has their own story.  These weren't just faces on a television screen that you happened to glance at while flipping channels.  These were people.  These were men and women who went to fight a war in a strange land.  We live in The United States of America.  That in itself is a huge blessing, but they left all that behind and sacrificed so much of themselves in the process.  Now I've heard people say things like, "Well they joined" or "They knew what they were signing up for" and similar comments to that effect.  And I say to those people, yes, they did!  They did join!  We are not under a draft.  They joined proudly to defend this great nation. Yet our Military accounts for only 1% of our population.  Only 1% of Americans have stepped up to defend their country.  That is a very telling statistic.  Now of course we have veterans who have served and ones that who would like to serve but maybe cannot due to a medical disability or perhaps another situation that may disqualify them, however that wouldn't make that percentage jump that much.

I talk about this all the time, but we are so very fortunate to live in this amazing country.  Our forefathers had inventive and courageous ideas about what they wanted not just for themselves but for their children, their grandchildren, and for the rest of this country.  They were some very brave and smart men.  They took those beliefs and dreams and forged the most important document that any American will ever know.

There is not a day that goes by that I am not thankful for being fortunate and blessed enough to be born in such an amazing place.  And I'm sure most of America would agree with me on that.  What I fear the most though, is that we're forgetting the very people who defend this nation which we all hold so dear.  I've said it before in my posts and I'll say it again.  This country would be nothing without our military.  Our politicians and government are not protecting our liberties and freedoms, our troops are!  I will be the first to admit I do not have what it takes to fight a war, but I have the heart of a lion and I will fight on the homefront.  I will fight for our troops and veterans.  I will support them and stand by them and give them reassurance, making sure they know just how much their sacrifice means. 

I have heard many ask me why I do what I do.  "Why dedicate your time, Amanda?"  "What was the catalyst to make you so driven to support our troops and veterans?"  Honestly, I could give you all a million different answers, but its hard to put into words what you feel so deep inside your soul.  Some people are born warriors, some aren't, but I guess I was born to be a tenacious fire under everyone's behind in hopes that everyone starts to Honor Them and their sacrifice. One person can show their support, shake a hand or smile and say thank you, but it takes an entire nation to show our military that we mean it. 

So, with all that being said I am asking for a birthday present from each of you.  And since it's my 1st birthday, which is a special one, I ask you all to please participate.  Now, before you all rush out to the nearest store to buy me a gift maybe you should hear what I'm asking for.  I'm kind of picky.  :) 

Starting today, 6/21/2011 and for the next 10 days I would like you all to find your own way to Honor Them and leave me a comment here on the blog (If you wish the comment may be left anonymous, all I ask is for participation) telling me what you did.  Thats all.  I don't want anything for myself.  I just want our troops and veterans to know how much we love them and how much we all are so thankful for their service and sacrifice. Now, I may have joked about being picky, but really I'm not.  There is no minimum requirement, no maximum limits.  Here are just a few things you can do to say thank you:

• You can say thank you by shaking a hand.
• Take a box of donuts to your local VFW. 
• Take a $5 or $10 gift card to your local recruiters office.
• Call your local VA Hospital. They are always in need of donations (items you may have in your home but no longer need) and/or volunteers.
• Adopt a troop.  There are countless organizations to do that, including Homefront Hugs.
• Make a donation to organizations which help the families of the fallen. That Others May Live is one that is always in need of help. (no amount is too small)
• Make a donation to Wounded Warrior Project.  These troops come home facing new obstacles. (no amount is too small)
• Make a donation to programs assisting troops and veterans with PTSD and TBI. Operation PTSD is one of many organizations which could use your support (no amount is too small)
• If you're at the diner and see a veteran or troop, buy their meal.

The list of how many ways you can thank our troops and veterans could go on and on, because truthfully there are just so many ways you can say thank you and Honor Them for their service to our country and to us. Some of these things will cost you nothing, some may cost you a few dollars, the important thing is finding something that you can do.  Find something that is within your ability.  This birthday wish of mine is not about breaking your bank account or causing you stress, its about giving back to an amazing organization, our U.S. Armed Forces so that they know despite everything they've been through they have a whole country of a different kind of warrior standing behind them.

Thank you all.  God bless you.  God bless America.  And God bless our United States Armed Forces!  ~ Amanda :)