Sunday,
December 5th:
The
Bears just won, so that’s good. But the
Pack just won and that’s bad.
Robin
and I are planning 9 hours of football today and we just reached the 1/3
point. I made a fire and she made
snacks. Holly and Kevin are getting
ready for Christmas.
I
took a moment to check the Gassen Mission status and
was pleased to find that it is confirmed
and that Jeff DeVries was appointed RC. I scrolled through the comments and noticed
that JDHOG has just posted:
It will be a great honor to RC this
mission. I have been contacted by the family. Greg and Barb are both old
friends of mine. Details will be posted as soon as they are known.
Greg it was great talking to you
this morning. We will be there for your family.
Farewell Jacob and Gods speed. Rest
in peace for now is your time to rest. Be at peace knowing that we will watch
over your family. Much like you watched over us.
Thank you Greg and
Barb for raising such an honorable son.
So
Greg and Barb and Jeff are not watching football today. I realize that I have it easy only because
Jake volunteered to shoulder the weight.
HOO-ahh, Jacob. Thank
you for inviting us, Mr. & Mrs. Gassen.
Monday,
December 6th:
Jacob
is back home.
Another noteworthy post:
I am the Beaver Dam Fire Chief and
PGR member. Anyone making the trip on two wheels and need a place to park the bike
overnight, we have room in the fire station. My number is 920-296-4610. It was
my honor to help escort this hero home today from the airport. Whatever it
takes!!!
“Burial
services will immediately follow at Randolph
Cemetery in Randolph, Wis.”
Thursday,
December 9th:
The
weather was cold and windy with snow expected.
I’ve
been the only bike before. Today that
distinction was owned by a new guy:
Bob
Reinke came to his first mission on his bike.
The
Honor Guard was working in shifts inside…
as
the Patriot Guard was greeted by Joe Adamson outside.
The
major took the hand of every flag-holder.
Don
Lechner is Commander, American Legion, Wisconsin, District 2 – which includes Beaver Dam.
He
too made a point of connecting with every PGRider.
Major
General Yves Fontaine, Commanding General, United States Army Sustainment
Command also came for Jacob and also honored every frozen member of the flagline.
I
took this photo just after a discussion of how much a beard helps the wearer to
keep warm. (Not much.)
I
think we got extra credit because it was so cold.
We
certainly appreciate everyone who spent time in the cold with us just to show
their appreciation.
But
we are doubly rewarded: Difficult
missions make their accomplishment more rewarding.
Our
Ride Captain’s 18-year-old son Joe has had a medical crisis that began last Spring. And yet he
found time and energy to honor the son of his old friends. Here Jeff is engaged by SFC Kjornes.
Of
all the many soldiers and others who moved along our flagline
acknowledging us each of us, SFC Kjornes spent the
most time with each individually.
Among
other things he told me, I learned that he was part of the team that recruited
Jacob.
From
Wikipedia:
In colonial times, the Thirteen
Colonies used a militia system for local defense. Colonial militia laws—and
after independence those of the United States and the various states—required
able-bodied males to enroll in the militia, to undergo a minimum of military
training, and to serve for limited periods of time in war or emergency. This
earliest form of conscription involved selective drafts of militiamen for
service in particular campaigns. Following this system in its essentials, the
Continental Congress in 1778 recommended that the states draft men from their
militias for one year's service in the Continental army; this first national
conscription was irregularly applied and failed to fill the Continental ranks.
We
overcame that and our revolution worked out.
A few years later, the first words of our Constitution would read:
We the People of the United States,
in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic
Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote
the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our
Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of
America.
The
fundamental role of our government is to provide for the common defence (sic) and, while conscription has always been a
feature of our nation, we have not had a draft since 1973. So we ask those few who are strong enough and
brave enough to step forward. The rest
of us have to hope those few will be enough.
We
don’t pay them much and their skills are generally not transferable to the
private sector. Once they are in they
are not allowed to quit and they must do whatever they are told. And it is no secret that we are talking about
the “armed” forces – we send them where only the armed can go. And sometimes a treacherous enemy shoots back
successfully.
So
why would anyone do it? Even those who
are strong enough and brave enough, why do they do it?
They
do it because they are honorable and they understand that honor requires them
to step forward precisely because
they are strong enough and brave enough.
Thank
God for those honorable few who understand.
Thank
God for recruiters like SFC Kjornes who help them to understand.
“Thank
you Greg and Barb for raising such an honorable son.”
And
thank you, Jacob.
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