Memorial Day - Honoring The Fallen

A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE
Monday, May 25, 2015, is Memorial Day - that day we set apart to remember those men and women who gave their lives in the service of our country as members of the Armed Forces of the United States of America.

NOT A TIME FOR CELEBRATION
This weekend millions of Americans will use this long holiday weekend to trek to some distant place for the beginning-of-summer vacation.  Unfortunately, most will "celebrate" this holiday without ever giving a thought to what it actually means.  This is not a day to celebrate, but a day to remember and honor those who served and gave their all.  This image is of the Florence American Military Cemetery just south of Florence, Italy, the burial site of more than 4,400 American soldiers who lost their lives in World War II near this location.  My wife and I visited that hallowed place and were very moved by the pristine condition and the respectful presentation honoring those brave men.

ONE MORE TIME...
Each year I've written about this day, hoping you will stop sometime next Monday and pause to reflect about the significance of this day of remembrance.  Last year I wrote this, HERE. 

TAKE A LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS
To help you remember what this date is all about, please take a look at this chart, extracted from THIS SITE.  As you scroll down through those entries, take a few minutes to let those numbers sink in.  (Click on the image to enlarge, if necessary)

PUTTING A FACE ON THE DAY

To help you understand what this actually means, let's get personal for a moment.  One of those 58,209 names listed under the Vietnam War is Sergeant Eddie Chervony, father of Costa Mesa City Employee Jeanette Chervony.  You can read about the bravery of Sergeant Chervony HERE.  He was one of the young men who bravely fought in that very unpopular war and gave the ultimate sacrifice in the service of his country.

PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN
So, as you pause now to contemplate this holiday, here's a little help from Lee Greenwood.

Officer Jon Smith Honored

WELCOME BACK, JON...
Yesterday afternoon Costa Mesa Police Officer Jon Smith was honored by his compatriots in arms for his safe return from a year-long deployment with the United States Army Reserve in Afghanistan.

GAZSI AND CHERVONY
Chief Tom Gazsi stood in front of a massed crowd of city staffers - police, fire and others - and made a brief presentation on the lawn in front of Police Headquarters.  Then Community Services Specialist Jeanette Chervony, who had spear-headed the effort to send Smith "care packages" throughout his deployment, removed the yellow ribbon that wrapped a large ficus tree in front of the building, awaiting Smith's safe arrival home.

LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGE
Local media covered the event and Brad Long of CMTV was present to capture it for future viewing.

FLAG PRESENTATION
Later, during the city council meeting, Smith presented a flag that had flown over Afghanistan to Mayor Jim Righeimer.

THANKS FROM A GRATEFUL COMMUNITY
Congratulations and thanks to Officer Smith for his service to this country and to his community.

Officer Jon Smith "Welcome Home" Ceremony

MORE GOOD NEWS
On the heels of the news that SRO Jess Gilman is returning to Costa Mesa on Monday, there is more good "returning officer" news tonight.

OFFICER JON SMITH TO BE WELCOMED HOME
In a press release today the Costa Mesa Police Department announced a "yellow ribbon-cutting" ceremony at 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, January 8, 2013 at which Officer Jon Smith will be officially welcomed home from his recent year-long tour of military duty in Afghanistan, during which he was involved in assessing the capabilities of schools, hospitals and police departments.  The event will take place in front of the Police Headquarters at 99 Fair Drive.

CHIEF GAZSI TO HOST
Police Chief Tom Gazsi will host the event and will be joined by Community Service Specialist Jeanette Chervony who was instrumental in providing Smith strong support by gathering, organizing and shipping special care packages to him while he served abroad.