Thursday, May 2, 2013

How to honor this Memorial Day



 “It ain’t dying I’m talking about, it’s living."
-Captain Augustus "Gus" McRae


Memorial Day is the American national holiday to remember the sacrifices of those who have died in all wars while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.

We should all take time to think on the lives lost in all American wars, to teach the lessons of sacrifice to our children and to honor the families who shared in the sacrifice.

But, alas, we can't truly say thanks as we'd like.  Those who have sacrificed it all aren't physically here anymore.  They are at Fiddler's Green.

What we can do is take care of their battle buddies.  We can support the living who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice.

It is easy to forget that there are still American military men and women fighting, being wounded and dying in Afghanistan. 

It might be hard to understand, but there are folks preparing to deploy again to Afghanistan.  The war with no apparent end.  Somewhere this Memorial Day, a young soldier is preparing for war.  Perhaps for the first time.

Once those brave souls get to Afghanistan, how much attention will they receive from America for their voluntary service?  How appreciated will they feel?  How detached from civilian America will they be?

The Peter Burks Unsung Hero Fund was created to allow civilian America to show their love, support and appreciation to troops in war zones. http://unsungherofund.org/  The organization has shipped over 11 tons of care packages to American military units in Iraq and Afghanistan since its inception in 2008.

The Peter Burks Country Store is about to redeploy with 5000 soldiers to a scary, hostile, lonely place in the world.  http://burkslaw.blogspot.com/2010/05/store-that-love-built.html  We are now gathering supplies to stock the store and will be shipping downrange this summer.

This Memorial Day, consider  making a donation to the fund to support the folks that wear the Cloth of the Nation.

Here is the wish list as supplied by the folks wearing the boots that will soon be on the ground:

-Beef jerky, Slim Jims, Jack Links
-Spicy, salty shelf stable snacks:  Cheetos, Doritos, pistachios, sunflower seeds, trail mix, mixed nuts
-Candy that won't melt at 110 degrees:  Hard candy, Gummi bears, chewing gum, Starburst, Redvines
-Powdered drink packets to flavor canteen water:  Gatorade, Crystal Light
-Xbox games, controllers, consoles
-CDs and DVDs of current music, movies TV shows
-White socks
-Thank you notes, especially from kids
- Shelf stable snacks (pistachios, sunflower seeds, spicy chips, chewing gum, etc.)
-Healthy snacks:  Clif Bars, Powerbars, dried fruits
-Small bottles of hand sanitizer
-Baby wipes (often as close to a shower as one might get on a given day)
-Microwavable popcorn

In the Dallas area, you can drop your donations at any of the following locations between now and June 15:

Blinc
7201 Bishop Road, E-12
Plano, TX 75024
 
Animal Crackers
1900 Preston Road, Suite 260
Plano, TX 75093
 
Heart's Desire
4760 Preston Rd
Frisco, TX 75034

Support Your Troops Resale
221 W. Parker Road, Suite 560 (Next to Bavarian Grill)
Plano, TX 75023

The Guitar Sanctuary
6851 Virginia Pkwy #101  McKinney, TX 75071

First Community Bank
1755 N. Collins Blvd.  (Behind Richardson Medical Center)
Richardson, TX 75080

First Community Bank
7995 LBJ Freeway (at Coit Road, NW corner)
Dallas, TX 75231

Brookshire's
675 Sunset Blvd.
Celina, TX 75009

If you are in Southern California, you can drop off donations at:

Manhattan Beach Middle School
 1501 N Redondo Ave 
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
 
If you are outside these areas, you can ship donations to:
 
Unsung Hero Fund
 c/o Support Your Troops Resale
221 W. Parker Road, Suite 560
Plano, TX 75023

If you want to make a cash donation, you can do it via PayPal on the website:   http://unsungherofund.org/contribute/

If you want to mail a check, you can send it to:

Peter Burks Unsung Hero Fund
Texas Star Bank
P.O. Box 1600
Celina, Texas 75009

This could be a great project for school kids.

This could be a great project for your book club.

This could be a great project for your family.

This could be a great project for your fraternity, sorority, organization, or business.

This could be a great project for you.

Thanks for reading this far.

For all that many of you have done, thank you.

For all that are serving, Godspeed and come home soon.

God Bless America.  And especially, Father, protect those who sacrifice for our freedom.