Veteran Statement

Vietnam Veterans is not what we are but it is
who we are. Vietnam did not end in the 70's
but goes on still today. Vietnam was not just
a war, not just a place where blood was shed
and lives lost. Vietnam is a place where deep
friendships were made, characters assembled,
and lives changed forever.
Vietnam Vet is not a title, it is a statement.

That statement is: We went, we fought, suffered
and yet endured to see another day, another way
of life. The Vietnam Vet has come full circle,
finding old buddies; healing minds and hearts with
that phrase we never heard, "Welcome Home."
We have people who thank us on Veterans Day,
wishing their best to us and saying prayers for us.
The Vietnam Vet has earned his place in society,
paid in full. Yet we are, by our own standards,
indebted to our brothers, those who gave their lives,
their blood or their minds. We stand proud for who
we are and what we have done in life. Let us, upon
whose shoulders it bears, become the source of
healing for our own brothers and sister's.

"Rick Bartholomew"