Celebrate The Patriots

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Rollie

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Happy 4th to all and especially our founding patriots and veterans , past and present.

Hoo rah .



Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56
men who signed the Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,
and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;
another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or
hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their
fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and
large plantation owners; men of means, well-educated,
but they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if
they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and
trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by
the British Navy. He sold his home and
properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British
that he was forced to move his family almost
constantly. He served in the Congress without pay,
and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions
were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall,
Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and
Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson,Jr., noted that
the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson
home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General
George Washington to open fire. The home was
destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.
The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was
dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free! We thank these early patriots, as well as those patriots now fighting to KEEP our freedom!

:clapping::clapping::clapping::clapping::clapping::clapping::clapping::clapping:
 
So few have any concept of what it meant to sacrifice EVERYTHING for the sake of being free men. I have to wonder if, in today's United States, there arre still men and women who would have so much love in their hearts for their Country, and the Freedoms which are so much taken for granted by so many, that they would be willing to make such sacrifices, if it came down to it.

Would I even be able to make such a sacrifice?

I pray every day that I would be able to do so, as well as others in this land. Twenty-three years ago, I stood before a full Colonel, and I raised my right hand, and I pleged these words:

"I, Justin P. Emery, do solemnly swear, to support and defend the Constitution of the United States from all tyrannies, foreign and domestic, and uphold allegiance to the same. And to obey all lawful orders from the President, and those lawfully appointed above me. So help me, God."

The last part, which is in bold text, makes it a LIFETIME oath, and not just for the four years I served active duty. And being a Vow before God, it is one I CANNOT go back on.

If it ever came down to it, and I believe the Founding Fathers believed it might, I would have to stand up, and be prepared to make those same sacrifices. Can I do it? Who is to say, but by God, whom I swore my Oath to, I HAVE to.

Let us take a moment to pray. A prayer of thankgiving, for all those who have sacrificed so much, that we shall be Free men and women. Let us say a prayer asking for strength and guidance also, so that, if it does become necessary, we shall be able to do what is needed, no matter the cost.

With this, I leave you with one of my all time favorite speeches from the greatest President this Nation ever knew, and one of my all time favorite songs.

And thank you, my Brothers-and-Sisters-in-Arms, for standing before me, with me, and after, to Serve this Nation.

Corporal Justin P. Emery, USMC (1991-1995)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt8y18YFH70

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q65KZIqay4E
 
Thank you for educating us about what happened to many of the sighers. Our wars of independence and our Civil war were a great toll on our country. I'll give pause while BBQ'ing and sipping a Crown and consider the sacriface of these brave men of the past and the many wounded warriers of the present.

Lew
 
Thanks for the reminder of our history, lot of sacrifices for what they believed in. I think our society could use a dose of this reality now, a lot of greed, corruption and too much self centeredness pervades our country now.
 
Thank you for putting the 56 great men on the front of my mind. Could we all do it again? I think if we all had two we would do our best even give up everything. But im not sure how strong we would be without our military. Im not happy about the turn our country has taken in the last 20 years but we have stayed on top and free as free could be today so all in all i give thanks to the 56 men and our military. I hope everyone can take a moment today to see and feel our freedom as i have done. It feels good Rollie Thank you...............Mike
 
As a Vietnam vet, I am so happy to see the moral support our young men and women in uniform receive today, so unlike, well, you know.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, ALL !!
 
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