Happy Memorial Day
May 26th, 2008 at 02:51pm Boru
Congressional Candidate Tom Rooney gave the Memorial Address at this weekend’s Memorial Day Parade of Flags at Fernhill Memorial Gardens and Mausoleum in Stuart, Florida. He was accompanied by his 6 year old son, Tommy Rooney, Jr. Tom and his wife Tara are both U.S. Army vets having served on Active Duty from 2000-2004.
“Army Master SGT Davy Weever, Barnesville, GA, Marine CPL William Cooper, Europa, Mississippi Navy Lt. Jeffrey Ammon, Oren, UT, Army 1st LT Jeffrey Deprimo, Pittston, PA. Published in the newspaper in recent days of those who died in Iraq or Afghanistan. Every day since the war began, I have made it a practice to read the names and where they are from. Even though I served 4 and a half years on active duty in the Army and taught 2 years at West Point and made the acquaintance of hundreds of soldiers, I thank God I have yet to come across a name I personally knew. But even though I haven’t met any of those who gave their lives wearing our uniforms, fighting under our flag, I do know them.
The Army had a slogan not too long ago which read ‘An Army of One.’ It’s true, we are one. Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airmen - we will always share an indescribable common bond. And we are here to remember those brothers and sisters who did not come home - to remember those who gave their lives so others could return to the America worth fighting for and worth dying for. And the reason they fight and some die is not only for a way of life but for each other and each of you here today. You are the America they gave their lives for. They gave their lives so we could survive.
Originally called Decoration Day after the Civil War so families could decorate the graves of their dead service members, Memorial Day today is a day we remember all those who fought and died in all our wars and conflicts. We all remember in our own way. Today, I remember my Uncle Tom, a U.S. Marine who died on Guam in World War II. Tom was the younger brother of my grandfather, Art Rooney, who went onto football prominence in Western Pennsylvania. But it was Tom who my father named me after - an 18 year old kid who I would never meet, who died almost 30 years before I was born. But I will always carry his name.
Now I want to introduce you to my son Tommy Rooney, age 6. We all remember in our own way. On this and every Memorial Day, we remember you Uncle Tom. I know you are with God. And I know you are with us today. For all of you and your lost sons and brothers and daughters, and for all your Private Tommy Rooney’s, I wish you all a HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!”
Entry Filed under: Uncategorized
