Plenty Fox

For me, these days are so closely related. Thursday is the official US observance of Veteran's Day, when we are supposed to remember and thank those men and women who have SELFLESSLY served this Country regardless what President is in the White House or the prevailing politics. God Bless all of you who have served. And, I cannot forget those whose whereabouts are not known...usually this is done at Memorial Day, but perhaps a few of my MIA buddies are still out there--one in particular, lost over Laos too many years ago... It is for him I've done 'The Empty Chair' ceremony at the memorial for. If anyone else out there wants to remember the POWs and MIAs, please check this out: http://www.geocities.com/jrs_286/pow.html.

WE WILL NEVER FORGET! :flag:

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Damme ape’semmai, "Andabichidaiboonee’ gimmadu’i.Wihyu memme hainjinee’ nahandu’i. Enne wizha sudei’ tsaangu mabizhiahkande," mai.

The Creator said, "A foreign race of white people will come, who will become your friends. You should treat them well."

The Creator sure had a strange sense of humor!

Kool Breeze

I wont be on tomorrow so I'm just sending a shout out to my boy 50 and his wife!

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Today I'm gonna try really hard to give a $hit about what you have to say.

NDNKIDZ

ditto .. and all the other veterns who keep watch for us daily 24/7..... :)

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"I don't mind coming to work,
> But that eight hour wait to go home is a BITE."

50cal

*sniffles* thanks....I'm sure Echo appreciates it very much, considering how much heartache we go thru when she has to leave everytime to a deployment or go out to sea for weeks on end........Thank you to everyone who has such greatful appreciative words for our military......It means more to us than anything else.......Just knowing that there are people at home who care for our Marines, soldiers, airmen and sailors, gives us the courage and will to fight on!!!! Semper Fi!!!!

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"Sweat dries, blood clots, bones heal. Suck it up. Be a Marine"

*Brown Eyed Gurl*

We will be going to our Cenotaph(sp?) here tomorrow.
Waaay back when iwas an ignorant brat, i never gave a shyt about it we were all like wahoo no school...now tht im adult(ish) i take this day very seriously...I just think about those poor men who didnt come home and a lot of them were really young.

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Sophie

Deepest respect and gratitude for all of our wo/men who have served in all branches of service. Prayers offered for safety, well-being, and strength for our soldiers at home and abroad, and the families who stand behind them. :flag:

Joe G

"No person among us desires any other reward for performing a brave and worthwhile action, but the consciousness of having served his nation"
Thayendanegea...(Joseph Brant)
Great words...from the past...and just as valid today....thanks to ALL Military and veterans...you're the BEST!
Colonah (former USN)

Plenty Fox

Good quote! Poor Thayendanegea took alot of s**t for fighting with the British but in the end he proved he was made of strong stuff, leading his people into Canada so they would survive. He's on the top 'o' my list!

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Damme ape’semmai, "Andabichidaiboonee’ gimmadu’i.Wihyu memme hainjinee’ nahandu’i. Enne wizha sudei’ tsaangu mabizhiahkande," mai.

The Creator said, "A foreign race of white people will come, who will become your friends. You should treat them well."

The Creator sure had a strange sense of humor!

middle of the sky

this is an article about my great uncle. im very proud of him and also all soldiers, Native and non-native, from the past and present. tomorrow im taking a friend's mom to the cenotaph out here. her husband was a native p.o.w. in hong kong.

"Tommy Prince, Canadian Hero

German soldiers on the front line near Anzio, Italy, thought little of the peasant farmer weeding his field near their emplacement. The field had been torn up by shelling, the crops all but gone. The soldiers watched disinterestedly as the farmer slowly worked his way along the field, stopping once to tie his shoelaces. Finally, the farmer stopped his work, shook his fist at the Germans and then the Allies, and returned slowly to the farmhouse.
The seemingly innocuous farmer was actually a highly-trained Canadian soldier, a marksman and an expert at tracking and making his way unseen around the enemy. His name was Thomas George (Tommy) Prince and he’d gained many of his skills growing up on the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation reserve, north of Winnipeg.

For Tommy, like most young men on Canadian reserves, World War II meant the chance for a job and three square meals a day. However, Aboriginals were routinely rejected, for health reasons but also because of their race. Tommy was turned down several times, despite more than meeting the requirements for recruitment. He persisted and was finally accepted on June 3, 1940. He was assigned to the 1st Field Park Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers. He accepted every challenge that came his way and excelled as a soldier.

By 1942 Tommy was a Sergeant with the Canadian Parachute Battalion. He was posted to the 1st Canadian Special Service Battalion and was among a select group of Canadian soldiers sent to train with an American unit to form a specialized 1600-man assault team. They became the 1st Special Service Force (1st SSF), known to the enemy as the “Devil’s Brigade.” The name was adopted by Hollywood as the title of a 1968 portrayal of the elite unit. Tommy was portrayed as “Chief.”

The 1st SSF soon saw action. In Italy, Tommy volunteered to run a communications line 1400 m to an abandoned farmhouse less than 200 m from a German artillery emplacement. Tommy set up his observation post in the farmhouse and for three days reported on the activity in the German camp.

On February 8, 1944, shelling severed the wire. Tommy, disguised as a farmer, found and repaired the break in full view of the enemy, while pretending to tie his shoes. His courage resulted in the destruction of four German tanks that had been firing on Allied troops. He was awarded the Military Medal for “exceptional bravery in the field.”

Tommy continued to distinguish himself. In the summer of 1944, the 1st SSF entered Southern France. Tommy walked 70 km across rugged, mountainous terrain deep behind German lines near L’Escarene, going 72 hours without food or water, to locate an enemy bivouac area. He reported back to his unit and led the brigade to the encampment, resulting in the capture of over 1000 German soldiers. He earned the Silver Star, an American decoration for gallantry in action, as well as six service medals. Tommy was honorably discharged on June 15, 1945 and went home to Canada.

Tommy returned from fighting Nazi racism to a country that denied him the right to vote in federal elections and refused him the same benefits as other Canadian veterans. The business he’d entrusted to a friend failed in his absence. Facing unemployment and discrimination, Tommy re-enlisted and served with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. During two tours of duty in the Korean War he won the Korean, Canadian Volunteer Service and United Nations Service medals. He was wounded in the knee, and was honourably discharged on October 28, 1953.

Tommy Prince is known as Canada’s most-decorated Aboriginal war veteran. He was also a brave and remarkable man with an impish sense of humour, a man who beat his own demons, including alcoholism. Tommy had a strong sense of civic duty and a fierce pride in his people. He said “All my life I had wanted to do something to help my people recover their good name. I wanted to show they were as good as any white man.” He dedicated himself to attaining increased educational and economic opportunities for Aboriginal peoples.

Tommy died on November 25, 1977, at the age of 62. Laura Neilson Bonikowsky is the Associate Editor of The Canadian Encyclopedia.




The Canadian Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004 Historica Foundation of Canada "

Joe G

M.O.T.S: Awesome! I have heard of him before, and saw that movie as well. It is TOO sad that the gov't has done that to veterans WAY too often...when they get home...that just HAS to stop! who has more right to the good things than he/she who has fought for them?
thanks for posting,
C

tigger

thank you to all of the men and women that served in the military. you have all done a good thing and you make sure that we all are safe. i salute you.


keith (usn)

DANCINGEAGLE

This is still a very emotional time for me. I woke up this morning crying because of this day. I served in the Marine Corps from 1981-1992 and was in the first Gulf War. I'm thankful and proud of all of those that served and paved the way before me for our freedom, those that I served with, and those that are serving now.

To all of my Veteran family on p/w's.com and abroad, thank you for a job well done. I'm very proud of you all.

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Through the good times and bad times, always pray.

Plenty Fox

Dancing Eagle, I salute you! You are entitled to your tears, you earned them. You saw things and experienced things that none of us can even imagine. I know several vets from that war who are totally disabled, it is believed because of nerve/chemical gas, and they carry on as best they can. We are proud of you and all the others who have served. In a way I am ashamed that I've sat here in safety while others put themselves on the line so that I could enjoy the life I have today. God bless you...:2:

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Damme ape’semmai, "Andabichidaiboonee’ gimmadu’i.Wihyu memme hainjinee’ nahandu’i. Enne wizha sudei’ tsaangu mabizhiahkande," mai.

The Creator said, "A foreign race of white people will come, who will become your friends. You should treat them well."

The Creator sure had a strange sense of humor!