Veterans Day Brunswick Stew 11-11-15 The room began filling up, mostly older people. I was at the end table so I could watch and leave easily when ready. A gentleman with a cane sat across from me. We didn't speak at first as we both were sat at an angle facing away from the table. As the room filled we turned our chairs inward. I smiled and said hello, he didn't hear me but he did smile. Several minutes went by and a lady from the desserts table approached him. They spoke briefly and he asked her if they had sugar there, she looked confused and said no they only have sweets. He told her someone bought him a cup of coffee and a couple packs of sugar, but he didn't realize it would be a quart of coffee. I told her I would get him some and I did go get him 4 more packs. He thanked me and pointed out a man and asked if I knew who he was and I told him I didn't. He told me he was the man that bought him the coffee. I responded, "I don't know anyone in the room except you." He asked if I was from out of town and of course I had to hang my head a bit as I told him I've lived here all my life, but I didn't know anyone. He smiled. I told him my name was Tina and he told me his first name. I didn't catch it, but neither of us were really speaking very loudly. We both go silent again for several minutes. The serving of the Brunswick Stew began and that's the reason for all the folks and fellowships today, Veterans Day. I asked the gentleman if he wanted some stew and he declined. I got my bowl and returned. It was too hot to eat right off so I asked him if he was in the Army or Marines. He said he was the Commander of the entire state of Mississippi in the Army and was also in the National Guard. He also said he worked at the courthouse for 16 1/2 years, but I didn't catch the part about what the job/title was...he was definitely soft spoken! Someone brought a bowl of stew for the gentleman and left. I folded a paper towel up for him, opened the cracker sleeve and put a few on another towel for him to reach, and asked if he wanted some water. He declined, but humbly said he would drink a Coke. I was already getting out of my seat to buy him one as he was rummaging his coat pocket for money and I shook my head no. I returned with a Coke and a cup of ice, opened the can and poured it up for him and set up the straw. The stew cooled slightly and he remarked there was an excessive amount of pepper as he blotted his nostrils and laughed. It was a good batch though and something I had been craving for some time. We went silent again, as random people talked to him, and you can tell they knew him well enough to not have to repeat his name, hence the reason I still don't know his first name. Well, yes I could have asked him to repeat it, but I'm not that kind of girl. I'm watching new faces enter the building and getting their red poppy flowers pinned to their shirt. I got there too early for a poppy myself, they hadn't set it up at the time. I got a chuckle from watching a 4' tall woman trying to pin a poppy onto the chest of a massive 6'+ tall man, he saw me laughing and that made him laugh. It's the small things like that moment that make me happy. Yet, there are simple moments that can make me sad within seconds. Here I am, sitting within the hallowed walls of an American Legion, its beautiful and sturdy hardwood floors with marked, scratched and gouged boards, walls covered in framed photos of Veterans and dozens of Veterans walking the floors today, wearing their head ornaments. I have across from me, a gentleman that has lived a life I can only imagine, as I didn't ask personal questions about his service or if he saw battle himself, and then to my other side at the adjacent table, I have another Veteran; one that was pushed in a wheelchair, by a nursemaid, up to that table feet from me. I helped move chairs so they could get to the table. During the quiet lulls of the conversation between the gentleman and myself, I would look at the man in the wheelchair and watch as the nursemaid spoon fed him and wiped his mouth. Yes, I got misty-eyed. It brought back flashes and memories of me, as a teen, spoon feeding my own Grandparents. I picked up the trash from our area and discarded it. I gathered my sunglasses and iPad and walked over to the gentleman, hugged his neck and told him I was honored to meet him and wished him a beautiful day. He said the same, but added 'be careful'. Respect. For those apposed to war, respect for a Veteran is not in their DNA, but respect for that Veteran as just a fellow human being should be. read more

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Allen Stacy Doose 6721 Ridgefield Drive Cincinnati, OH 45224 American Legion, Post 6 511 S. Tate St. Corinth, MS 38834 To those who serve other: I would be amiss if I didn't take the time to write you and thank you for your willingness to host a meal after the funeral of my great uncle Sgt. Julius (Junior) McKinney. Our family is so appreciative of your hospitality and service. The day that you so generously gave to us extended beyond what you were perhaps were expecting, as some of us hadn't seen each other in years. Your patience was above and beyond the call of duty, the call of your donation of time. Thank you from my family for your gracious Southern hospitality. Your Yankee Friend, Stacy Doose read more