Monday, November 8, 2010

Pre-Veterans Day

Veterans Day is this Thursday, Nov. 11. Regardless of your political leanings, this is a day to acknowledge the contributions and sacrifices of the men and women who wear or have worn the uniform of our military.

This year why not personalize that acknowledgment?

If you live near a VA hospital, drop in for a visit. Just a short 30 minutes or so would mean the world to the people there.

Not near a VA hospital? Participate in programs like Take a Vet to School Day (links here and here) or Thank a Veteran at Work. (Helpful note - if you're not a teacher you can contact your child's teacher and provide them the information about Take a Vet to School Day. Even better - volunteer to help with that day's class!)

Other ideas include donating time and/or money to organizations like the VFW, USO, or DAV.
There are numerous other veteran-oriented organizations and charities out there. I'm not going to list them all, or recommend one over another, but one that I regularly donate to is AdoptaPlatoon.

Some relatively new ones that look promising include Cooking With the Troops , Pin Ups for Vets , and Operation Fight the Post Holiday Blues.

If you see a service member in uniform or anything that makes you think they were one (a VFW hat, for example, or a military pin or tattoo) walk up to them and thank them for their service. A hardy handshake is almost never turned away.

Neither is a cold beer...

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