Today is Memorial Day. It won’t be when you read this, but as I write it, it is indeed Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a day of remembrance of all the men and women who have lost their lives protecting our country, democracy, the American way of life and the freedoms and rights due to all peoples of the world. As a side note, Memorial Day is often confused with Veterans Day, which is a day of remembrance of those who have served in the armed forces (and have not necessarily died, as is the case with Memorial Day).
 
I was thinking about Memorial Day when I remembered that I had to write my weekly message. Of course, the two thoughts quickly merged and I thought about the vast range of ages that make up the membership of our Rotary club. My next thought, logically, was that due to this vast range of ages our membership would be remembering folks who were a part of their lives and who had died serving our country during many different wars.
 
While WWI is not a possibility beyond older family members, WWII, the Vietnam War, the Korean War, and so many other wars and conflicts are well within the realm of possibility for remembrance of school mates, siblings, best friends, and many other relationships with people who you may have been close to and/or fond of.
 
I hope that you all had a wonderful Memorial Day and if you have a special someone, or more than one someone, to remember on Memorial Day, I hope that you did. I hope that you were able to spend some time fondly thinking of them!
 
While I have no certain one person who died while serving our country and protecting us, I am greatly appreciative of, and thankful for, those who did. These men and women gave of themselves, in fact gave their very selves, to help ensure that we could continue to live a life of freedom and quality. In this light, you, and all Rotarians, are not that different. While the chances of death are much less, you all still give of your lives to help ensure that others can live lives of greater freedom and quality.  
 
Thank you,
Shaun