It should go without saying that our service members and veterans are deserving of the highest esteem and respect.
Unfortunately, many elderly veterans are abandoned and neglected after serving their nation with honour and frequently making tremendous sacrifices.
There is also a group of people with living relatives who refuse to take responsibility for them.
If anybody deserves a proper burial, it’s the brave men and women who gave their lives for their nation.
I love reading tales like this: they inspire and teach us all something.
Officials at the Florida National Cemetery have announced that they welcome services for people in addition to the quarterly ceremony they conduct for unclaimed and low-income veterans.
In the 1950s, Robert Krause was a member of the Marine Corps. No one claimed his body when he passed away since he had no known relatives.
I’ve heard it said that a soldier dies twice: first on the battlefield and again when people cease remembering his name, as expressed by Nick Morales, a veteran of both the Marines and the Army.
“Whatever it takes to avoid the second possibility, count me in.”
Nick and his fellow volunteer motorcyclists arrived at the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital to transport Robert’s body to the Florida National Cemetery.
The bikers are proud to participate in the event, saying that no soldier deserves to be buried without support from their community.
“Vets supporting vets” is our mantra,” Nick Morales stated.
We will not allow any veteran to be buried without a companion.
A common thread binds us all together, and that is the service we have rendered to our nation. And that link remains strong, no matter what we accomplish in life.
With a motorbike escort, Robert was given the proper farewell. They all came together to proclaim his name with enthusiasm.
Taps were played to honour his discharge from the military.
For those who have fallen, Taps is not only for Mr. Krause. And as Morales put it, “it’s ingrained in us.”
