• Memorial Day 2016

A beautiful morning in Wildomar, with blue skies and perfect temps for the 2016 Memorial Day event. There were several hundred people in attendance.

A look at various flags representing the different branches of the military positioned well behind the stage.

It started with the flag raising as a bugler played, then the pledge of allegiance, an invocation, followed by an orchestral version of The Star Spangled Banner.

The Pledge of Allegiance led by Baptist Boys Battalion.

Next was a recitation of the exploits of General John Brown from the Civil War (interesting fellow - though he fought for the wrong side), followed with singing by a men's choir.

Men's Choir singing with a Fallen Soldier Battle Cross in front of the stage.

We heard a moving story by Tim Nichols entitled An Apology To World War II Veterans, about a young, mid-1970s soldier on leave in Vienna. An old man  approaching him, and calling him "noble" for the acts of American Soldiers during WWII.

(click this link to read the story)

I've been to this event twice now, and my favorite part is where the living veterans come to the front, many with great difficulty, and then tell a little about themselves.

In response to "How many enlisted before you got married?"

One man, Dave Lower, entered the  US Army Air Corps in February of 1942 (you can see him in the short video below). 

It was an inspiring day, and one where sunglasses came in handy... not so much to shield the eyes from the sun, but to keep others from seeing a person's watery eyes. 

If you were in attendance, and have a heartbeat, you were moved too.

There was a bit of audience participation, and one question was asked, "Do we have a wife that had a child while your husband was deployed overseas?"

Only one hand went up, and the woman's daughter had been born in November of 1947, which is just a few months after my mother —and a two weeks after my father, were born. Those kinds of things really bring it close to home.

Below is a video of a girl's choir singing "The Price of Freedom".

Mayor Pro-Tem Tim Walker and Mayor Bridgette Moore were in attendance and acknowledged from the podium. It was nice to see Tim out there, he's still on the DL as he heals from a recent surgery.

Mayor Pro-Tem Tim Walker and Mayor Bridgette Moore.

I happened to be sitting in the front row when a vet came up and was looking for a seat. I invited him to sit next to me and we chatted a bit. 

He was wearing a hat and shirt that indicated that he was a Vietnam Vet, though he jokingly told me he had fought in the Civil War, and he'd recently been hobbled by a surgery, but he still attended the ceremony. 

I didn't get his last name, but his name is Chris, and if I didn't properly thank him for his service, I'd like to do that now. ☺

Chris as he was telling the crowd about his service.

•        •        •

We do not what we ought,
What we ought not, we do,
And lean upon the thought
That Chance will bring us through.

— Empedocles, 490BC-430BC

Wildomar Rap wants to thank those that have defended the USA throughout our history, be they volunteers or conscripts.