96-year-old World War II veteran Pete DuPré played the national anthem on a harmonica before the @USWNT match 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/TP3ggIF3z9
— ESPN (@espn) May 26, 2019
I miss you so much, Daddy. I wonder if you knew Pete!
PS The original Youtube was taken down in minutes because Apparently the Minnesota Vikings are claiming all ownership of his for playing at a football game. What sort of American assholery stops people from sharing this? We will see if this version stays up.
God Bless America. Stand beside us and guide us…
Also I deliberately tried to turn off comments and at least one snuck in and I didn’t want to delete their devotions to the vets.
I huge thank you to your father, my husband & every veteran who has bravely defended our freedom.
To Grandpa, three uncles and everyone who serves past and present, thank you!
Thank you from this vet!
Thank you for your service ❤️
Thank you to my brother. Who came back, but really never came back. #Vietnam
Crying. Thinking of my brother-in-law who also came back, but never came back…
He finally succumbed to the horrors of exposure to agent orange three years ago. Bless the veterans and those who serve, but fuck absolutely everyone who doesn’t make sure our vets are taken care of when they return home.
And the NFL should be ashamed for claiming all ownership to the video of Mr. DuPre playing the anthem!
Same with mine. I love you Billy! My father, who passed in April at 98 and a half, spent a lot of time back on his ship and Omaha Beach as the Parkinson’s progressed. Miss you Daddy and thank you for being who you were. My son, who currently serves, keep fighting that good fight Ben! My DIL and many good women friends of mine are vets. Especially Chief Shannon Kent, RIP you American badass. So please don’t give them stank eye when they park in vet reserved parking. Relatives, friends, colleagues who make those sacrifices along with their families and those who gave all. Thank you!
And my cousin who came back but never came back. I never knew him BEFORE. But, think about him a lot. The guys from Vietnam need special prayers from my family. They came back and people were horrible. They had already been through a horrible thing they didn’t want to do. It was horrible.
So beautiful!! God Bless Pete and all the other veterans. So incredibly sorry for your brother and the other Vietnam veterans. This would be a good time for people to watch Platoon, it really brings the horror of that war better than most war films do. You can practically smell the jungle. A Masterpiece.
Thank you to your dad and your cousins. My dad was also in Vietnam, and I have 20 year-old twins that are both serving abroad in the Navy. I really appreciate all the families of veterans too. As it was beyond hard to send my babies off, but I am so very proud of them! An undying reverence for all the people who have, are and will serve.
Corny saying. But freedom is not free. Thank you to my next door neighbor and his sons who are all military. You endure my roosters crowing, our uncut bushes with a smile. And you would go out and die for us. Thanks to your wife and daughter who, daily, love the family that could be in a war tomorrow.
My uncles, my aunts, my dad, my inlaws. My grandmas who cried and prayed while all their sons were at war (Busia had 6 at once!).
To every one of those uncommon, extraordinary people who protect my freedom to type silly crap online.
Thanks.
My Dad is also a 96 year old World War II Veteran, he served in the Army overseas. I miss him, I love him❣ Sending love to Chicago. It breaks my heart that the Only Veteran’s Day card 💌 he got was from me.
A huge THANK YOU to every single person who fought, served and for those who still fight for OUR freedom. And another huge THANK YOU to the families who lost fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, grandfathers and grandmothers. Thank you Dad for your service. I have your picture in your uniform in the dining room. He passed 3 years ago. Thank you to all who allow us our freedom to practice what religion we want, to eat what we want, to marry who we want, to wear what we want, to vote for who we want and to live in a country where – at least so far – we have the freedom to speak our minds without fear of retribution. And thank you TT for posting this today. We tend to forget how great this country is and how many people fought for it.
Do you have poppy day in America here in Britain we buy and wear our poppies with price as it raises money and let’s all ministry past and present now they supported and most shops schools and other places where people together have min silence on 11/11 at eleven I click it is a humbling experience
I’ve had the greatest honor and privilege caring for our Veterans from every war and conflict since WW1. When I was stationed at Letterman Army Medical center in the 80’s we still had our WW1 veterans, oh the stories. Recent years I’ve cared for Navajo Code talkers!
Thank you everyone for your service, family members who sacrifice to support their loved ones and thanks everyone here who recognizes Veterans today.
I always say, “kiss a Veteran today”, this works every single day of the year. 😚
To all our amazing Vets and their families, hugs, gratitude (that cannot be repaid), wonder (at your complete amazing hearts) and unending respect. Thank you for getting this beautiful tribute TT.
A giant thank you to all that have served to keep the rest of us safe. Something MUST be done to take better care of our veterans at home. I have a 98 year old grandfather who is a WWII Veteran. We are lucky to have supplemental insurance to care for him because the VA hospital is a sad joke. I have the privilege of taking him out to dinner on this Veteran’s Day. He is my hero in so many ways. ❤️
God Bless America, the land of the free, and home of the brave. 🇺🇸
Thank you everyone. I spent 20 years in the Army and retired 5 years ago!!
Thank you!
I can’t find any info about the MN Vikings having copyrights to this gentleman playing his harmonica. So I say try again! Thank you to all veterans for their service!!
Saw that when I watched the game, but had no idea he was 96! Amazing!
Thank you to my dad and my youngest daughter’s BF who also served! ❤️
I remember the lovely letters I used to receive from soldiers in Vietnam thanking me for the parcels I sent addressed to “Any Soldier, Vietnam.” They made me cry. I especially remember the one that arrived one Christmas Eve as I was frantically trying to prepare for our family’s celebration & not knowing how I was going to make everything happen that needed to be done. I stopped what I was doing & thought how ridiculous I was & spent the rest of the day in appreciation for what was being done for my family by all those who didn’t know us. I didn’t know until half a century later that one of those men in SE Asia would eventually become my beloved Fly Boy, who spent 14 tours over there defending us. He was wounded 3 times & still suffers mightily from the effects of Agent Orange. At the time he served I was married to a vet who served during the Korean Conflict (War), who has now been buried in a Veteran’s Cemetery since 2011. I am immensely proud of them both, & of my 2nd great-granddaughter, now a senior in high school, who is leader of her Navy Jr. ROTC group, & planning on a military career. Veteran’s Day is special in this family. For those who wish to honor those who serve our country, Soldier’s Angels is a wonderful group that allows you to “adopt” military members & send parcel overseas. You can specify sex, & there is always a waiting list of those waiting to be adopted. When I lived closer to the great-grandkids I involved them, as young as 3, in the shopping & they really enjoyed being volunteers. I also sent hundreds & hundreds of homemade greeting cards through that organizations to chaplains to distribute to soldiers to keep in touch with their families. I’ve also used them to distribute homemade red, white & blue quilts for the wounded for their trip back to Germany for treatment. I always added a small pocket with a tiny teddy bear. Small efforts make a really big different for the recipients, & I guarantee you, for the giver. Bless them all–
Bless you for bringing them some comfort and kindness.
Thank you. Bless you. That inspires me to do something to help.
What is a good address to send a care package to someone serving in the military?? Every year I think about it but then never do.
Adopt a Soldier…
Go to the DOD, they have numerous recommendations….great idea by the way!
Liz P, back during Vietnam you could just address a single box to “Any Soldier,” but that isn’t possible now. I was a Charter Member of Soldier’s Angels, which is a nonprofit that has a lot of different ways to match match volunteers with programs. They have a website if you do not have a family or friend contact. My grandson-in-law & step grandson were both deployed in Iraq, so we sent individual parcels & cards to them, in addition to the various adopted military members. The women soldiers are in particular need of personal items. The homemade cards were also highly valued. I used my computer to generate a lot of multi-racial images to make cute baby, wedding, birthday, etc. cards for the chaplains to distribute. I left the insides blank for personal messages, & enclosed the cards with envelopes in glassine enclosures to protect the individual cards. I got some lovely thank-you letters from some of the chaplains. Stuff like that makes good individual or group projects. Don’t forget that there are soldiers all over the world, not just in war zones that can use contacts from home. Also remember that when you help them, you also help yourself as much or more–
You are the most interesting person I know. So much so, I wonder if you are real. Real or not, thanks for finding us.
TT, you are one of the most interesting people I have never met, & you know how to find me, darlin’–
Thank you!!
I need a book, BOOKS of essays or a year by year with references to long term relationships and outcomes! I honestly see a series of approximately 12 books at minimum. You have a healthy wealth of living knowledge. I am very serious when I say you should write books. I would read every page, my page turning finger is already pre licking.
I want a travel book with every complication, then the work arounds to those silver linings! I want a crafting/cooking book. I want to hear all about the secret to healthy loving relationships with husbands who you have cherished and obviously have cherished you!
You have gifts in stories to share. I so respect you MizGrandma and thank you for everything you’ve done over the years supporting our armed services. YOU are a shining example of what needs to be protected and you obviously care that everyone is protected and respected too, period.
TT? Goes for you too, write books…they’re in there, we’ll all read them.
Thank you, Kipper, for your kind words. Over the past 3/4 century + I have left a trail of words, everything from fiction to scientific papers to financial advice magazine articles to a travel blog, etc., but these days–other than my musings here–most of my written stuff is limited to anti-fascist political comments on FB for my long-suffering friends & classmates. The thing is, if you’ve had supportive grandmothers & a bit of a quest for adventure & you live long enough, you are bound to have stories of your own to tell. Keep your friends for decades (but toss the toxics, including family) & renew those from long ago (another reason FB is so handy). Make yourself a Bucket List (mine started when I was 11 & I wanted to fly in an airplane), keep adding to it & realize that a good one is never ending. Go back to the great places like Iceland & the Anne Frank House & the super yarn shop around the corner from it, & don’t forget to read Darwin (who had a great mind & equally great sense of humor) in advance when you finally make it to the Galapagos Islands. Let yourself be amazed & cry when you visit the Normandy Beaches & see children play in bunkers where teen soldiers once died, & the nearby American Cemetery, & take a chance when the opportunity presents to live in a ger (yurt) in Outer Mongolia, even though it isn’t on your list or in your budget. Travel light & on a tight budget & stay in hostels to meet people very young & old. Buy patches (& yarn for me) as your souvenirs for memories. I made a tote with a zipper top from a pair of my late Rocket Man’s jeans & added patches from my travels as I went, so he was always with me. The real lesson, Kipper, is not to leave a legacy from which others can live vicariously, but one which will inspire them to create their own adventurous lives & relationships.
Thank to my Daddy, who I recently lost, a WWII veteran who would have been 99 this year. I love and miss you every single day. You taught me to love this great country and to always love myself. ❤️❤️❤️ And to all veteran who have or are serving! Thank you for my freedom 💙❤️
Beautiful.
Thank you to my dad, PFC James Logue (Korea) and my grandpa Chief Petty Officer Ralph Smith (WWI, WWII, Navy lifer) and bless all of my Vietnam Boys, friends and lovers who told me nightmare stories mixed with some funny ones. And an extra ♥️ to MizGrandma and FlyBoy and Kipper for the things you do to bring a bit of home to our troops.
My grandfathers, my Father, my step Father, my brother, my son and so many generations before my Grandfathers have all been military. My family has served this country every generation since arriving to the US. I am beyond proud of them all. My generation’s children has not started having children yet, and may not but if they do perhaps that generation will serve like their Fathers before them. I still have my son’s military photo in my office though it’s been a while since he was in.
After 9/11 happened my son quit his job and college. He went to the local base every day until they removed the barriers and he signed up for 6 years even though we had no idea of the world we had been plunged into after those attacks. As a Mother of a young man in military, I cried frequently during the War on Terror. My tears were born of fear, pride, happiness and mostly the uncertainty he was in the middle of. He is out now and never speaks of it, my Fathers and Grandfathers would never speak about their wars either.
My brother has, he was in Vietnam and will discuss with me. I think my Fathers and son have not because no one wanted to scare me or to really know what they went through. My brother on the other hand has discussed some things. His stories start out with hey Sis, he isn’t worried about frightening me or worrying me I suppose.
McCarly TX, those of us in military families understand two things: (1) soldiers are forever changed by their service, no matter how short or long; (2) we all grieve in different ways. My step-grandson, who got his master’s after his tours as a Recon Officer in the Middle East & marrying his former Apache helicopter wife & having a baby, has returned to school for he PhD in Psych because he’s lost NINE service buddies to suicide. Fly Boy, who has shared horrendous tales of his service with me & has lost a brother, a wife, a son & a daughter, as well as recently a college student grandson, has only cried when discussing the loss of his dogs, some gone many years. The scars remain deep, & we need to remember, because they cannot forget.
A huge thank you to all the Vets! I was talking to my oldest niece who has decided to join the military just unsure what branch, I told her we need the Coast Guard and the family will have been or be currently in every branch. She’s looking into it. My husband and ex father in law are marines. My brother, both grand fathers , my son’s sister and my best friend were Navy. My ex bro in law and my Dad is/were Army. My nephew is Air Force. We are devoted crew to defending this country and our freedoms.
I think that is something very near and dear and shows pride still for my man.
Being acknowledged and thanked for his service.
Out of respect to him, I read him the comment and asked “am I accurate?”
He said “yes” , (no more, no less)