The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by Jennifer Dance, The Quill Staff
There were 2,996 people that were killed on September 11, 2001. Right now in Iraq there are thousands of men and women avenging the death of each of those 2,996 people, to make certain that there is not another person added to that number.
Any one of us could have been there that day, caught in the rubble, vacationing in New York, or on an airplane, or someone you know could have been at the Pentagon.
We as individuals are who our service men and women are fighting for.
It is true, the world is a place populated by billions of people, but it is one person at a time that makes up that population.
We must not take for granted the men and women that are at war by thinking, "They are over there fighting for their country, or the world."
It is more personal than that. Each one in the service are fighting for EACH person that lost their life on September 11, and for EACH person that lives in the United States, as well as for each person that has been oppressed by the terrorists.
We end our country's Pledge of Allegiance with three words, "...justice for all." All is defined as "every one of." Every one of us is rewarded by the freedom we are allowed in this country and every one of us is being secured by our service men and women delivering "justice for all."
The following men are two servicemen from our county who we can be thankful for who are fighting for that justice for each of us:
Joshua Law, US Army
Joshua Law is the son of Steve and Dianna Law of Gladstone. In speaking with Josh's dad one could hear the joy and pride in his voice. He was so pleased to be talking about his son.
Josh Law graduated from Union where he played golf and basketball, in 1992. He went on to Western Illinois and graduated with a Special Education degree. He moved to Las Vegas after graduation to teach high school students with behavior disorders.
After September 11, 2001 Josh felt that there was something he needed to do for his country. Something even more than being a teacher, one of our country's most important positions. In April of 2002, Josh joined the United States Army. It was three weeks after he was married that he left for duty.
He was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia, graduated from boot camp and then sent to Fort Hood, Texas to wait for his call. He was sent to Iraq on March 22, 2004.
Josh's dad said, "Josh is very patriotic and wanted to do something. He had a nice home and a good thing going in Las Vegas, but felt he needed to go."
Joshua's great-grandfather, Chester Law, who farmed in Gladstone, fought in World War I, his grandfather, John Law in World War II and his father fought in Vietnam. Joshua had his golden birthday when he turned 30 in Iraq on July 30th. It was then he was promoted to Sergeant.
Kevin Anderson, Air Force
Kevin Anderson, a graduate of Southern High School, is the son of Tom and Virginia Anderson of Carman.
Kevin joined the Air Force in 1985 and served for 7 years. He moved back to Carman in 1998 and signed up for the Army Reserves on September 10, 2001, one day before the attack on our country. Didn't his mother's heart sink on that day..."yes, it did, especially knowing that he had just signed up the day before," Virginia said.
In January of 2002, Kevin was deployed to Cuba's Guantanamo Bay. Six months later he was sent to Fort Kimball, KY. He was home in Carman for one year and then went to Davenport, Iowa for the month of December 2003.
In January of 2004 he went to Fort McCoy in Wisconsin, in February he was sent to Kuwait and it was in March of this year that he went to Iraq. Kevin was luckily able to be at home for two weeks in July.
It was a privilege to talk with Kevin's mom and Josh's dad. They were both so eager to talk about their sons, so proud of what they are doing.
Without having done it, one can not imagine the bravery and the strength it takes to send a child off to a foreign country to fight a war. We so boldly salute the parents, as well as their precious children on this day of remembrance.