PRAIRIE GROVE -- When Richard "Sam" Sansom took the oath of office to join the U.S. Navy as a 19-year-old teenager, he said he realized he was no longer exercising his freeedoms but had taken a new step to defend his freedom.
Commander Sansom, U.S. Navy retired, said he stood in line early in the morning, on Nov. 1, 1965, lined up with 100 other guys, scared and very tired.
"In walked this Army man and I would have followed him anywhere," Sansom recalled. "He was so impressive."
The young men were told to raise their hands to take the oath. An oath, Sansom explained, is a "solemn formal calling upon God to witness the truth of what you're going to say."
Sansom raised his hand, along with the others that morning in Birmingham, Ala., and repeated the oath: "I do solemnly swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Freedom began for him that morning with an oath, Sansom said.
For the next 30 years, he defended the freedom of all Americans.
"On that day, I learned what freedom meant to me as a veteran," said Sansom, one of the guest speakers for the Veterans Day Assembly presented by Prairie Grove Middle School.
The morning opened with a flag-raising ceremony and then veterans were served breakfast in the middle school cafeteria. The program started around 9 a.m. in the school's gymnasium.
Many groups participated in the assembly, including the middle school choir, band, Student Council and Boy Scout Troop #94.
When people thank him for serving the country, Sansom said he takes that to heart and to him, they are thanking him that they live in America and are able to exercise the freedoms people in America can enjoy.
Sergeant First Class Donald V. Dormer with the U.S. Army is station commander for the Fort Smith Recruiting Station, and he spoke in two roles Friday morning. He spoke as a veteran and also spoke as a parent of two children in Prairie Grove School District.
Veterans Day belongs to all who have served, regardless of the branch they served, Dormer said.
He has served 17 years with the infantry and as a military police officer and now with the recruiting office. He thanked veterans sitting before him for their service.
"Your sacrifice and your patriotism paved the way for today's soldiers," Dormer said.
Dorman also spoke briefly on the sacrifices made by spouses and children of soldiers who serve the country. His wife, a U.S. Navy veteran, made it possible for him to continue serving with unconditional love and his children had to make changes they didn't fully understand.
"They are my heroes," Dorman added.
Colonel Frank Long, retired U.S. Air Force, was the first guest speaker for the morning and he set the stage for Veterans Day, giving students a history lesson about events leading up to World War I.
Long told them how the American flag came into being and then shared the story behind the composing of The Star Spangled Banner."
"What a blessing it is to live in a country like we live in and what a blessing it is to be invited to a ceremony like this. Thank you very much," Long said.
General News on 11/15/2017