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Patriotic Military Ceremony The below Ceremony was used at a Veterans Day ceremony sponsored by The Footers Sports Pub in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on November 11,2003. The Uniform for the Ceremony was Service Dress Blue. The former Commanding Officer and Command Master Chief of The Fleet Technical Support Center, Atlantic; were the speakers for the event. Eight Sailors in a column conducted the Flag Passing Ceremony that ultimately passed a Flag to The Oldest Veteran present at the Community Awards Day Celebration. The Royal Canadian Pipe and Drum Corps played patriotic music for the event. The Flag was flown over the USS Constitution in Boston Harbor to support this event. Please feel free to use the format and content, or portions, of this Ceremony as you see fit for your own Ceremonies. Variations of this format are frequently used for Memorial Day, and other events and celebrations where a Patriotic Theme is desired. Ceremony VETERANS
DAY CELEBRATION FOOTERS 2003 1. START THE CEREMONY PIPE AND DRUM PARADE MARCHES IN
PLAYING MUSIC
PIPES AND DRUMS 2. OPENING: DETAIL "ATTENHUT"!
NATIONAL ANTHEM
CD
OPERATOR DETAIL "AT EASE"! 3. INTRODUCTIONS 4. MESSAGE FROM THE
PRESIDENT 5. THE JOINT CHIEFS 6. THE SECRETARY OF THE
NAVY 7. THE MARINE CORPS 8. THE COAST GUARD 9. THE AIR FORCE 10. THE ARMY 11. A READING OF THE
HISTORY OF WAR CASUALTIES
ED MORGAN STEVE DAVIDSON 12. VETERANS DAY
REMARKS 13. LISTING OF THOSE
BEING REMEMBERED PLAY
NAVY HYMN
CD OPERATOR 14.
FLAG PASSING CEREMONY: LEE
GREENWOOD: PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN
CD OPERATOR READ
OLD GLORY STEVE DAVIDSON 15. CLOSING
SCRIPT 1. TERRY BOBKA'S ROYAL CANADIAN PIPES AND DRUMS PLAY MEDLEY
2.
OPENING: DETAIL "ATTENHUT"! STEVE DAVIDSON
NATIONAL ANTHEM
CD OPERATOR
3.
INTRODUCTIONS ED MORGAN
GOOD
AFTERNOON AND WELCOME TO THIS 2003 VETERANS DAY CELEBRATION. TERRY
BOBKA’S ROYAL CANADIAN PIPES AND DRUMS, STEVE DAVIDSON, ALAN MICHAELIS, OUR
MULTI-SERVICE ALL VOLUNTEER FLAG DETAIL AND I ARE HONORED TO PRESENT YOU THIS
CEREMONY. READ
MESSAGES 4.
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT STEVE
DAVIDSON 5.
THE JOINT CHIEFS ED
MORGAN 6.
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY STEVE
DAVIDSON 7.
THE MARINE CORPS ED
MORGAN 8.
THE COAST GUARD STEVE
DAVIDSON 9.
THE AIR FORCE ED
MORGAN 10.
THE ARMY STEVE
DAVIDSON 11.
A READING OF THE HISTORY OF WAR ED
MORGAN HISTORY
OF WAR IN THE U.S. THIS
GREAT NATION OF OURS TODAY REPRESENTS THE SUM TOTAL OF ALL HUMAN INTERACTION
INVOLVING OUR INHABITANTS. THE
OPTIONS RESENTED TO US DAILY IN OUR LIVES ARE THE RESULT OF OUR OWN PERSONAL
DECISIONS AND THE DECISIONS MADE BY ALL WHO HAVE GONE BEFORE US. THE GOOD, THE
BAD, AND THE UGLY HAVE SHAPED OUR NATION OF TODAY. WAR
IS HONORABLE IN THAT MILITARY FORCES ENGAGE EACH OTHER WITH THE INDIVIDUALS IN
EACH FORCE RISKING THEIR OWN LIVES FOR THE CAUSE OF THEIR COUNTRY.
THERE IS NO GREATER SACRIFICE FOR OUR COUNTRY AND OUR WAY OF LIFE THAN TO
RISK OUR LIVES FOR OUR COUNTRY AND THEN LOSE OUR LIFE. THERE
HAVE BEEN TWO WARS ON OUR OWN SOIL WHICH YOU COULD SAY WERE CIVIL WARS IN
NATURE; THE CIVIL WAR AND THE INDIAN WARS. THE INDIAN WARS RAGED FOR 400 YEARS
FROM ABOUT THE YEAR 1500 TO WOUNDED KNEE IN 1890. THESE WERE WARS CAUSED BY A
COLLISION OF TWO PHILOSOPHIES: CIVILIZATION WHICH BELIEVED IN INDIVIDUAL
OWNERSHIP OF THE LAND; AND THE NOMADIC LIFE WHERE NO ONE OWNED LAND INDIVIDUALLY
BUT TRIBES STAKED OUT TERRITORIES. CASUALTY FIGURES DO NOT EXIST TO ACCOUNT FOR
ALL OF THE SETTLERS AND INDIANS KILLED DURING THE 400 YEARS OF HOSTILITIES. OVER
300 TRIBES WERE IN THE AMERICAS IN THE 1400’S. CURRENTLY THERE ARE 8
RECOGNIZED TRIBES OF VIRGINIA: EASTERN
CHICKAHOMINY, CHICKAHOMINY, MATTAPONI, MONACAN, NANSEMOND, PAMUNKEY,
RAPPAHANNOCK AND UPPER MATTAPONI. ABOUT
275 YEARS INTO THE HOSTILITIES WITH THE NATIVE AMERICANS, SETTLERS FORMED THIS
NATION WITH A PROCLAMATION NAMED THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. LATER THE
CONSTITUTION AND THE BILL OF RIGHTS FOLLOWED. A QUOTE FROM THE DECLARATION
FOLLOWS: “WE
hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these
are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” THE
PREAMBLE TO THE CONSTITUTION READS: “We
The people of The United States, on order to form a more perfect Union,
establish Justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense,
promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of Liberty to Ourselves
and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for The United
States of America.” AND
NOW LET US BRIEFLY REVIEW THE MAJOR WARS WHICH HAVE TESTED OUR NATION’S
RESOLVE. Many
men and women have died defending this nation on the field of battle or "on
duty" under the colors of our Flag. Listed below are the casualties of war
through the years to illustrate the Significance of the sacrifice of many for
our country. These Statistics are humbling in the face of the significance of
their sacrifice. ED
MORGAN AND STEVE DAVIDSON *United
States War Casualties 1, 2
WAR
NUMBER SERVING WOUNDED
KILLED
Revolutionary War 220,000
6188
4435
War of 1812
286,730
4,505
2,260
Mexican War
78,718
4,152
1,733
Civil War (Both Sides)
3,213,363
354,805
191,963
Spanish American War
306,760
1,662
385
World War I
4,734,991
204,002
53,402
World War II
16,112,566
671,846
291,557
Korean Conflict
5,720,000
103,284
33,741
Vietnam Conflict
8,744,000
153,303
47,415 *The
above numbers have qualifying conditions associated with them. See references 1
and 2 below for details if needed. Credits: 12. VETERANS DAY REMARKS ED
MORGAN 12.
VETERANS DAY REMARKS ED MORGAN TODAY
I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU MY THOUGHTS ON VETERANS DAY AND THIS GREAT NATION
OF OURS. WE
READ THE VARIOUS PROCLAMATIONS, THE HISTORY OF WAR, AND LISTED THE CASUALTIES OF
THE GREAT WARS. WHAT IS IT THAT IS BEHIND ALL OF THIS? WHEN
I WAS YOUNGER, MY FRIENDS AND I TOOK OUR FREEDOM, OUR CITIZENSHIP AND OUR
PATRIOTISM FOR GRANTED. WE WERE LIVING IN A SMALL TOWN OF 13,000 UP IN
PENNSYLVANIA. THOSE OF US WHO WENT TO COLLEGE GOT A DRAFT DEFERRMENT UNTIL
GRADUATION WHILE THOSE OF US WHO DID NOT WERE DRAFTED. IT ALL SEEMED SO NATURAL
AND NONE OF US QUESTIONED OUR DUTY. 2
OF MY FRIENDS WERE KILLED IN VIETNAM ALMOST AS SOON AS THEY GOT OVER THERE AT
AGE 17. OTHERS DID MULTIPLE TOURS AND SURVIVED. WELL, I SAY SURVIVED, BUT FOR
SOME OF MY FRIENDS IT WAS NEVER THE SAME. THEY
RETURNED FROM THE VIETNAM WAR TO A NATION THAT SEEMED TO LOOK DOWN ON THEM.
WITNESSING THE RAW DESTRUCTION OF COMRADES IN ARMS WOUNDED EVERYONE INSIDE AND
RETURNING TO AN UNTHANKFUL NATION HARDENED MOST. WE
HAD ALL HEARD THE STORIES OF GREATNESS FROM WORLD WARS I AND II, AND THIS
DIDN’T FEEL SO GREAT. THE VIETNAM WAR NEVER QUITE ATTAINED THE STATURE OF A
GREAT WAR BUT LET ME TELL YOU WHAT I BELIEVE. OVER
THE YEARS I HAVE TALKED TO VETERANS OF WORLD WAR I AND ON. IT IS ALWAYS THE
SAME; THE BEST LAYED PLANS CHANGE SECOND BY SECOND AND EACH DOES WHAT APPEARS TO
BE BEST TO WIN AND SURVIVE TO FIGHT AGAIN. THERE IS CLARITY AND BRAVERY AND
CONFUSION AND FEAR ALL MIXED TOGETHER. THERE IS ALWAYS LOSS OF FRIENDS. WHEN A
MAN OR A WOMAN PLACES THEIR LIFE ON THE LINE IN BATTLE IT IS HEROIC WHETHER DONE
IN WAR, A POLICE ACTION, IN BURNING TOWERS STRUCK BY TERRORIST AIRPLANES OR ON A
SHIP STRUCK BY AN EXPLOSION FROM A SMALL BOAT IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THERE
IS HONOR IN THE ULTIMATE RISK AND SACRIFICE WHEN ANYONE LAYS THEIR LIFE ON THE
LINE FOR WHAT THAY BELIEVE IN NO MATTER WHAT THEIR AGE OR EXPERIENCE. OVER
THE YEARS I HAVE LEARNED THAT EACH OF US PERSONALIZES OUR BELIEFS AND THEN ACTS
ON THOSE BELIEFS. AS WE GET OLDER OUR EXPERIENCE ALLOWS US TO PLACE MORE
PERSPECTIVE ON OUR VIEWS. DECISIONS TO GO TO WAR ARE MADE BY MEN AND WOMEN TOO
OLD TO GO TO WAR; WHILE THOSE WHO FIGHT ARE OFTEN TOO YOUNG TO KNOW WHY.
REGARDLESS I MUST TELL YOU THAT ALTHOUGH THIS NATION IS NOT PERFECT IT MAY BE
ONE OF THE LAST HOPES FOR MANKIND. WE
CAN SEE THE NATIONS ON THE NEWS EACH DAY WHO KILL THEIR CITIZENS FOR CRITICIZING
THEIR GOVERNMENT OR TORTURE MEN AND WOMEN WHO TRY TO DEVELOP AS INDIVIDUALS.
NATIONS WHOSE CITIZENS NUMBER IN THE 100’S OF MILLIONS AND THE BILLIONS; DO
NOT RESPECT THEIR CITIZENS. OUR
NATION WAS FOUNDED ON THE FOLLOWING: "We
hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these
are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." WE
STILL HAVE A WAYS TO GO, TO MAKE THIS A PERFECT REALITY, BUT WE ARE ON THE ROAD
THERE. EACH OF US HAS A SPECIAL RESPONSIBILITY TO PRESERVE WHAT WE HAVE. THOMAS
JEFFERSON ONCE SAID: "If
a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects
what never was and never will be."
OUR
TASK IS TO KNOW OUR HISTORY AND KNOW WHY WE ARE HERE AND WHAT IT HAS TAKEN AND
WILL TAKE TO KEEP THIS NATION FREE. SO
TODAY I REMEMBER THOSE WHO BELIEVED IN THIS GREAT NATION AND RISKED IT ALL SO
THAT TODAY WE COULD CHOOSE TO SAY OR DO MOST ANYTHING WE PLEASE AND ALLOW MEN
AND WOMEN TO BECOME THE BEST THEY EACH CAN BE. THANK
YOU TO VETERANS PAST. THANK YOU TO OUR MEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM TODAY. GOD
BLESS EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU. GOD
BLESS AMERICA! 13.
LISTING OF THOSE BEING REMEMBERED ED MORGAN STEVE DAVIDSON
PLAY NAVY HYMN CHIEF BAEZ AND
NOW WE WOULD LIKE TO ESPECIALLY REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING VETERANS BOTH LIVING AND
DEAD: OPERATION
IRAQI FREEDOM HAS CLAIMED 394 AMERICANS, 52 BRITISH AND 1 POLISH SERVICEMAN. SEE
THE BOOK ON THE TABLE FOR A LISTING AS OF 7 NOV. 11
FROM VIRGINIA (ED & STEVE ALTERNATE): PFC.
STEVEN ACOSTA SGT.
MAJOR JAMES D. BLANKENBECLER SGT.
MICHAEL E. DOOLEY SPECIALIST
DARRYL T. DENT 1ST
LT. JOSHUA C. HURLEY 2ND
LT. JEFFREY J. KAYLOR SGT.
MICHAEL V. LALUSH S.
SGT. DONALD C. MAY JR. LANCE
CPL. DAVID ADWARD CAPT.
JOHN R. TEAL MAJOR
WILLIAM R. WATKINS III STEVE
DAVIDSON AND ED MORGAN ALTERNATE READING THE CARDS 14.
FLAG PASSING CEREMONY: AND
NOW WE WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE OLDEST
VETERAN PRESENT FOR THIS CEREMONY TO PLEASE COME FORWARD. FROM THE CARDS
PRESENTED AT SIGN-IN WE BELIEVE IT
IS_______________________________________________
PLEASE COME FORWARD. WE WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT YOU WITH A FLAG TO COMMEMORATE THIS OCCASION.
STATION THE FLAG DETAIL STEVE DAVIDSON
SENIOR
VETERAN, ED MORGAN, FLAG PASSING DETAIL LEE
GREENWOOD: PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN
READ
OLD GLORY STEVE DAVIDSON Old Glory I am the flag of the United States of America.
My name is Old Glory. I fly atop of the world’s tallest buildings.
I stand watch in America’s Halls of Justice. I fly majestically over great institutions of
learning. I stand guard with the greatest military power
in the world. Look up and see me. I stand for Peace – Honor – Truth and
Justice. I stand for Freedom. I am confident – I am arrogant. I am proud. When I am flown with my fellow banners my head
is a little higher. My colors a little truer. I bow to no one. I am recognized all over the world. I am worshipped – I am saluted – I am
respected. I am revered – I am loved, and I am feared. I have fought every
battle of every war for more than 200 years: Gettysburg, Shiloh, Appomattox, San
Juan Hill, the trenches of France, the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome, the beaches
of Normandy, the deserts of Africa, the cane fields of the Philippines, the rice
paddies and jungles of Guam, Okinawa, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Guadalcanal, New
Britain, Peleliu, and many more islands and a score of places long forgotten by
all but those who were with me. I was there. I led soldiers – I followed them. I watched
over them. They loved me. I was on a small hill on Iwo Jima. I was dirty, battle-worn
and tired, but my soldiers cheered me, and I was proud. I have been soiled, burned, torn and trampled
on the streets of countries I have helped set free. It does not hurt, for I am invincible. I have been soiled,
burned, torn and trampled on the streets of my own country, and when it is by
those with whom I have served in battle, it hurts. But I shall overcome – for I am strong.
I have slipped the bonds
of earth and stand watch over the uncharted new frontiers of space from my
vantage point on the moon. I have been a silent
witness to all of America’s finest hours. But my finest hour comes when
I am torn into strips to be used for bandages for my wounded comrades on the
field of battle, when I fly at half mast to honor my soldiers, and when I lie in
the trembling arms of a grieving mother at the graveside of her fallen son. I am proud. My name is Old Glory. Dear God, long may I wave. Howard Schnauber
WWII Vet
STEVE
DAVIDSON 15.
CLOSING TERRY BOBKA PRESENTATIONS
PIPES
AND DRUMS
TERRY BOBKA WE
HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS CEREMONY. HAVE A GREAT DAY!
(Please feel free to copy this and pass it on.)
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