Sedgebrook residents honor veterans with ceremony
In a solemn and inspiring ceremony, Sedgebrook residents honored veterans on Veterans Day: those now living beside them at the Lincolnshire retirement community, those lost in the four wars during their lifetime, and all those who served in our military and their families.
Rabbi Brian Comrov, himself a Navy Reservist, said it best: "We must act when the dignity of the world is at stake. War, though horrific, is just that response. Imagine our world if Hitler had won WW2 … if we had allowed Korea and Vietnam to spread communism.
"Our military and their families fought for our freedom to unbiased information, the freedom to say what we want to say, believe what we want to believe and to do it with the diversity of those around us."
Following comments by Al Johnson, a reading of President Obama's Proclamation and review of the wartime statistics, a solemn and time-honored tribute to veterans, The Empty Table Ceremony, was conducted by Mary Ann Karac.
Set for six, the empty places represent Americans still missing from each of the five services - Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard - and civilians. This Honors Ceremony symbolizes that they are present in spirit.
Mary Anne read:
"The table is round, to show our everlasting concern for our missing men.
"The tablecloth is white, symbolizing the purity of their motives when answering the call to duty.
"The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and the loved ones and friends of these Americans who keep the faith, awaiting answers.
"The vase is tied with a red ribbon, a symbol of our continued determination to account for our missing.
"A slice of lemon on the bread plate is to remind us of the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land.
"A pinch of salt symbolizes the tears endured by those missing and their families who seek answers.
"The Bible represents the strength gained through faith to sustain those lost from our country, founded as one nation under God.
"The glass is inverted to symbolize their inability to share this mornings toast.
"The chairs are empty, they are missing."
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