Dear Veterans,

In honor of Memorial Day being this week, I wanted to say thank you to all the service men and women who put their lives on the line for our country.

Thank you for being willing to leave your families and friends to go and fight the growing enemies overseas.

Thank you for being brave enough to fight and risk your life daily for those of us here at home.

Thank you for being willing to sign up for a second or third tour after getting home safely from the first one.

Thank you for everything you do daily that we, as a nation, sometimes never know about.

I want to say thank you to the ones that I know personally, like my cousins, who went overseas and fought for our freedom. I remember when one of them came home from a two-year tour in the Middle East and he did not tell some family members he was coming home. I remember running to him and jumping into his arms, so happy that he was home. I remember going to his homecoming celebration and taking a picture with him in uniform. I was so proud to say I had a cousin in the Army. I remember hearing about how he was in the same unit as someone from my church at the time and had found out about his name being on the prayer list. He told me that he was thankful and touched that I would put him on the prayer list.

I know that I was only a cousin of a serviceman and that there are children, spouses, brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers of servicemen that are affected by their absence more than I ever was, and I want to say thank you to them as well. Thank you for allowing your loved ones to fight for a cause they believe in. Thank you for being willing to release them into the world of war, not knowing if they will be home safely. Thank you for giving the people of America brave men and women who will protect them, without knowing them.

I also want to thank those who never came home. Thank you for laying your life down for your country and those in it. Thank you for fighting for your beliefs and your convictions. Thank you for bravely protecting the Land of the Free for future citizens to be free and be able to live the American Dream. Thank you to the heroes of World War I and World War II who fought so that those on the other side of the world would be safe. Thank you to those who fought in Korea so that the Koreans might be free. Thank you to those who fought in Vietnam so that they might be free. Thank you to those who fought in the Middle East so that America might be safe from terrorists, and so that the terrorist threat would not expand. Thank you to those who are fighting ISIS now so that we can be safe once again.

Thank you to all the service men and women who are willing to put their lives on the line daily, so that America can be America.

Thank you,

A Proud American Citizen