Veterans Day 2



Ann in her army uniform



Yesterday (Veterans Day) my wife was honored for her service in the Army National Guard.

She served in the Guard for three years. Two were in the Arkansas Guard and one in the Texas Guard's 49th Armored Division.

She was 34 years old when she enlisted with an Army officer husband and two children. Fortunately her mother was with us when my wife went off to basic training at Ft. McCellan, Alabama. The experience was an adventure for all of us. I used to tease the kids that the mother "wore combat boots", which was a small slur back in the 1970s.

My wife was among thirty or so other women who had served in the military going back to World War II and up to the present conflicts. They were honored by a resolution of the Missouri State Legislature. The event, sponsored by the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, helped the community remember that veterans were not only the "boys over there" but the "girls" also.