Guest Column: The Lowe Down: Respecting the cost of freedom

By Pam Lowe

loved ones again and holding them to their breast. They should also be honored this weekend.

President John F. Kennedy said, “The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission.”

We owe our veterans who gave up their lives for our country more than a little respect. Some people may not know of their ancestors who may have given their lives or perhaps they don’t have relatives who lost their lives during a war. To these folks I suppose the holiday is nothing more than a chance to grill, swim, and relax during a three-day weekend. But Memorial Day should mean something to all of us because of the sacrifice made by these brave soldiers.

Let me share with you just a couple of our local families who have holes in their hearts over the loss and sacrifice of a loved one. People like Carolyn Miller, who lost her young husband, Edwin Cleo Harmon in the Vietnam War. Carolyn saw the Army car coming up her driveway and knew what it meant. She ran into the house to get her Daddy. They were told that Cleo was gone. After his death, she received a tape from Cleo in the mail and a fistful of letters in the days that followed. Carolyn shared that receiving the posthumous tape of Cleo was a blessing at the time. Then there’s Tammy Carr and her brothers, Bobby and Denny Cates. Tammy was almost five years old when her hero, her dad, Private First Class Norman G. Cates of Success was killed in the vicinity of Thu Bon on Go Noi Island near Liberty Bridge. Norman was in the 1st Marine Division, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, H Company. He was an Antitank Assaultman. He will always be daddy to Tammy and her brothers.

Lonnie Parker’s niece, Kathy Parker

Woodward has spent her life trying to keep her uncle’s memory alive and searching for men in his unit that might have information about him. In Lonnie’s five months in Vietnam, he wrote over 100 letters home. He turned 20 years old on January 1, 1967 in Vietnam. Every Christmas, even when she was suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, Lonnie’s mother would ask the family, “You know what’s next?” The answer was always, “Lonnie’s birthday.” There are stories like these for every fallen veteran. In 2015, PBS estimated that 1.5 million American men and women had been killed in all U.S. wars. That’s a lot of brave Americans and even more broken hearts.

In my hometown, there are 22 sections of the cemetery to walk and canvas in order to place the flags. It’s a dedicated and purposeful mission for our local veterans, most in their 70s and 80s with serviceconnected physical ailments, as they walk that cemetery row by row in order to commemorate every military grave with a U.S. flag.

So how does a community and a country repay a debt so precious? Its citizens must fight to maintain the very things our fallen fought to protect; democracy and freedom. This is important now, more than ever. And furthermore, we must ensure that younger generations learn about the sacrifice of all veterans, particularly those who gave their lives, and those of our military servicemen and women. The only worthy recompense is to make sure these heroes are never forgotten. Lest we forget. Wherever you may live, participate in local veteran memorial services, place the symbol of American freedom and democracy; Old Glory, on the graves of deceased veterans. Go to the wreath ceremonies and pay tribute. Reflect on what personal strength and bravery it must have taken to face death and the true cost for our freedom.

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