"It's the Veteran that has given us our freedom". Those were the words that Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 516 Commander Doug Makosky stated during the Farmingdale Veterans Day ceremony held this past Saturday at the Village Green. This year like last year our veterans were joined by our local Cub Scouts to help acknowledge the service and sacrifice of our veterans. It's also a very emotional moment for me to meet our veterans and hear them tell their stories. I had the pleasure of going back to the VFW post and spending some time with these truly amazing people. I spoke with Command Sgt. Major Robert Bucaria, a career soldier who served from 1938 to 1981. Sgt. Major Bucaria fought at the Battle of the Bulge during WWII. It was probably one of the bloodiest battles that the American forces experienced during WWII with over 19,000 American soldiers losing their lives. It was fought in the dead of winter. The extreme cold was responsible for many casualties and deaths due to exposure. I spoke with other veterans and heard their tales. You can watch all the war movies you want and read all the books you can but you can't really appreciate what these veterans went through until you speak with them first hand. We all need to remember the sacrifices that our armed forces made and are still making today. We must never forget what price our freedom has. I think the closing statement made by Commander Makosky at the ceremony certainly says it all:

"It is the soldier, not the reporter,

Who has given us freedom of the press.

"It is the soldier, not the poet,

Who has given us freedom of speech.

"It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,

Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

"It is the soldier, who salutes the flag,

Who serves beneath the flag,

And whose coffin is draped by the flag,

Who allows the protester to burn the flag."

- Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, United States Marine Corps