In Short Supply

If you have read my writings (in other publications) for any length of time at all, you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am a patriot to the core. Webster defines a patriot as: “a person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors.” Because of my age, I’m no longer as well prepared to defend it against enemies … but my heart and mind are still the same. All this business of 4th of July, patriots, fireworks, parades, J.P. Sousa marches (Stars and Stripes, Semper Paratus, etc.), TV specials, and all the rest really got me to thinking this “4th of July season.” World War II vets have been a massive influence on my life. The men whom I idolized when I was a young boy were all WW II vets. If you’ve spent any amount of time around these folks at all, you know that Tom Brokaw nailed it on the head when he called the people of this era, The Greatest Generation. No doubt about it whatsoever. My dad’s and uncles’ generation were all WW II people. A male had to be (a) old, (b) a sitting elected official, (c) a farmer, (d) handicapped, or (e) a person in a special classification to be exempt from going to boot camp and being shipped off to either the European or Pacific theaters in World War II. And, oh yes, by golly, women were just as involved in this big war. Some served actively in the services, from administrative personnel to nurses to female aviators ferrying the big bombers across the sea to their duty stations (yes, some gals flew those behemoth B29s and everything smaller as well, but were not allowed to fly in combat). Other gals stepped up and worked in American factories to crank out production while their men were off fighting. We all know and love the lore behind “Rosie the Riveter.” And lastly, many of our faithful moms wrote letters daily to our dads as they served in some far flung corner of the world (moms didn’t know where they were .. just sent their letters to the APO address that millions of other gals did). 

For those young people who just might be reading this article (doubtful if there are very many), World War II was definitely a world war and the peace of the world definitely was on the line. These people were fighting for a real reason and it glued this country together for 50 years like nothing else in our history has. The events of 9-11 were traumatic, hard to comprehend, and inconceivable, but were not as significant to the entire world as what World War II was. Every Memorial Day, every Veterans’ Day, and every 4th of July, I think about these guys and gals. I think about their sacrifices. I think about how all gave some but some gave all. I think about how they wholeheartedly believed and followed the mantra of   DUTY  HONOR  COUNTRY.  I think about my young boyhood heroes of how they got dressed up in their uniforms and marched in the parades and how the local high school band played those patriotic marches … and how the chill bumps ran from the hair on my neck to my elbows when these folks marched by as the local band played one of the Sousa marches. I remember all of that as if it were yesterday. Psychology calls this “the formative years.” They sure were formative for me. When I would ride my trike, I pretended I was Ott Groninger, a local Navy pilot who served. I wanted to be Ott Groninger. Patriotism had been conceived in my blood. Funny to say such a thing isn’t it … but it sure as the world is the truth. These men and women who put it all on the line “over there” and came back and got jobs, raised families, put a Maytag in the laundry room and a new Chevrolet or Ford in the driveway were and forever will be my heroes. They never knew it, but they were part of the fabric that wove Tom Tucker into whom he grew to be. 

And now I come back, full circle, from where I started this epistle. Do you want to talk of commitment? There were SIXTEEN MILLION people deployed from the United States to serve in World War II. A staggering 408,000 of them “gave it all” for the freedoms which all of us enjoy to this day. Freedom as we know it was absolutely on the line … and 41 percent of one million troops gave their lives so that you and I could enjoy these freedoms. I think about that often, oh-so-often. I’ve heard (do not know but have heard several times) that World War II is not covered too much in history books any more. I can’t comment for you, but to me, the phrase, “what a travesty,” seems to be the correct parlance for this. I cannot comprehend what these people sacrificed and I cannot comprehend history books not covering it in depth. Nevertheless, the big war took a lot of lives from many other fighting countries as well.  

With all of this floating around the news and the television the past several weeks, I decided to look up some statistics. Out of the 16,000,000 troops which were deployed, 408,000 were killed. I mentioned that earlier.   So, to make the math simple, that means that 15,592,000 roughly came back to live out their lives here. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Statistical Division, 620,000 were alive in 2016. Today, mid 2018, the number is right at 500,000. Said another way, about 350 of these storied veterans are dying DAILY. These moribund statistics should be a “prodder” to you and me to go and spend some quality time with one or two of the remaining WW II vets that we might know in our community. You don’t have to be an eloquent conversationalist, but by just showing up, chatting a bit, and above all, thanking this hero for what he or she did during the big war would be enough. It is the very least that you and I can do for them insofar that we all know that their time is short. I sincerely urge you … go visit one of these folks. You will be the richer for having done so.

LinkedIn Publisher's Note: Tom Tucker is a Vietnam veteran who was honorably discharged. Five years ago, he retired as development director for the City of Goodlettsville. Prior to that, he was a senior executive for two international Fortune 200 corporations. His education includes earned B.S., M.B.A. and Ph.D. degrees. Tom is a three-decade pilot, and currently enjoys late 60s classic muscle cars and golf as his hobbies. He has been married to the love of his life, Janet, for 46 years.