Letter to the editor:Jamestown knows how to mark Memorial Day

I remember growing up in Jamestown when the city used the slogan: “Jamestown has it!” This was to remind shoppers of the Jamestown area that the city merchants have what they need.

During Memorial Day I observed with pride the community and The Jamestown Sun as they paid tribute and honored the fallen combat veterans. The old slogan gave new meaning to me on Memorial Day. Without a doubt, “Jamestown has it!”

On behalf of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1326 of Bismarck, the largest in the state and among the top 20 in the world, I thank you for preserving the true meaning and bringing back the “memorial” in Memorial Day. As we say in the VFW, “Soldiers never die until they are forgotten. We shall never forget.”

In prelude beginning this Thursday the state VFW Convention begins. Your combat veterans of North Dakota will be converging on streets and businesses of Jamestown.

The veterans will meet to fulfill the VFW mission: taking care of veterans and their families. Their ranks include combat veterans of World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf Wars, Bosnia, Afghanistan and other conflicts. Not by chance, but knowingly, their lives were put on the line fighting for us, our children and our children’s children. This bond is shared throughout the generations of the warriors within the VFW.

When you see the old-fashioned military service caps with pins, remember, it is they who fought side by side with our fallen on the battlefield. Imagine what memories they have of war.

The VFW is not a social club. Rather, it is an organization dedicated to the preservation of our way of life motivated by the memories of fallen comrades who did not return alive.

This weekend we share with you the spirit of reverence and respect for the fallen as their brothers on the battlefield.

Chris Ebertz

Bismarck

(Ebertz is commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1326)

Tags: memorial day, opinion, letters