Memorial Day is a difficult time for the military caregivers Hidden Heroes supports. Many will spend this weekend honoring and remembering those who were lost, while also doing their best to support their Veteran, who may be struggling to process their grief on this day.
A VA employee’s emotional tribute to “Uncle Lefty,” who fought across Europe and later pitched for the Brooklyn Dodgers. “We had a job to do and we did it. I’m proud of what we did. I’d do it again.”
The Vietnam War was the nation’s longest and costliest conflict of the Cold War. Over 8.7 million Americans served in the Armed Forces during the Vietnam era from 1964 to 1973 (1). More than 3.4 million deployed to Southeast Asia (1) and approximately 2.7 million of those served in the Republic of Vietnam (2). On this Memorial Day 2021, VA honors their service and recommits itself to supporting all Veterans of the Vietnam era, their families and their caregivers.
This week’s Borne the Battle features Army Veteran Gavin McIlvenna, who discusses his military career, the selection process of becoming and walking as a tomb guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, his mentors, how he found the Society of the Honor Guard, crazy guard stories, and the process of disinterring a Veteran at the tomb.
Harriet Daniel served with the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) in WWII. She was a teletype operator in Italy from 1943 to 1945. For her wedding, her roommate sewed her wedding dress from a parachute.
