For Iraq War veteran Charles Jordan, thankfulness to veterans for their service to our country should not stop there, but also be extended veterans families as well.
"I want to thank the families of veterans for your support from one generation to the next and from age to age," he said. "Once again, we have come together to honor those who have given their lives because they know that there can be no freedom without the shedding of blood."
Jordan, who spoke at the 53rd Annual Memorial Day service Sunday hosted by East Memorial Gardens, said thanks is also owed to every American military service man and woman going all the way back to the nation's founding.
"We need to give thanks to all those who have served from this very day all the way back to of those who served this country for centuries dating back to antiquity," he said
From the time of the battles of Lexington and Concord through the Civil War, both World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam and up to today, Jordan said all who have answered the call to fight are more then worthy of thanks and remembrance.
"We remember all those who suffered as prisoners of war as well as all those who remain missing in action," he said. "We remember all those who never came back from battles like Guadalcanal, Normandy, Iwo Jima and Midway. We knew that during these very crucial battles our commitment to winning had to be better then that of our adversaries."
Jordan also thanked veterans of wars where some unfinished business may still persist-but nevertheless America made its point.
"Thanks to all those who served in Korea" he said. "You may have had lay down the life of a friend, but you let the enemy know that you would never lay down your freedom. As for the Vietnam veteran, you may have to remember that the end of a war may not always be a celebration of victory, but the point made by freedom against tyranny always remains clear. Finally, in this ever-changing world we live in today, we can't forget those who to this very day are still willing to stand for freedom."
More local Memorial Day services will be held today. The first service, hosted by the American Legion, will be at 11 a.m. at the Miller County Courthouse. It will last about 30 minutes.
The second service, which will immediately follow the first service, will consist of about a 15-minute Memorial Day Walk from the Miller County Courthouse to the Korea-Vietnam Memorial at North State Line Avenue and West Seventh Street. There, the Texarkana Area Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter #278 will host their 34th annual Memorial Day service on site.
The third and final service, hosted by Texarkana Funeral Home, will start at 1 p.m. at Hillcrest Memorial Cemetery on U.S. Highway 67 West. Everyone is encouraged to attend the service if they can and for those who can't, a National Memorial Service will be held at 3 p.m. local time all across the nation.