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'True heroes': Jindal, others praise service of veterans at Pineville event
- Alexandria247 Insider
- November 13, 2009 at 08:52 AM
- By Bret H. McCormick • bmccormick@thetowntalk.com • November 12, 2009 PINEVILLE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal channeled the man many have compared him to during his speech at the Alexandria Veterans Affairs Medical Center's Veterans Day Program Wednesday. Jindal recalled a speech then-President Ronald Reagan made on Veterans Day in 1988 at the Vietnam War Memorial in which he thanked God for the "brave men and women" who fought for America's liberties, values and freedom. "We gather together again today to thank God for our veterans," Jindal said to a room of approximately 200 people, most of them veterans, at the VA Medical Center's auditorium. "Whether you served in the Army, the Marine Corps, the Navy, the Air Force or the Coast Guard, each of you answered the call of duty and asked for nothing in return. Indeed, all of you stepped forward to serve and to even lay down your lives for our great country." Michael Desselle, a native of Tioga now living in Bentley, was one of the many veterans in attendance at Wednesday's program. A 14-year veteran of the Navy who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, Desselle said he has a "family history of veterans." His father served during the Vietnam War, and Desselle had a cousin who died in that war. The father of three, who left for his final tour just 20 days after his oldest daughter was born, said receiving recognition for his service meant a lot to him. "It was kind of emotional actually. It brings back a lot (of memories). ... To see something like this put together is amazing," Desselle said of Wednesday's service. The Veterans Day Program at the VA Medical Center capped a day of activities, which began with a parade at 10 a.m. and was followed by a hot dog lunch on the complex's grounds. Barbara Watkins, director of the medical center, said Wednesday was a "family day" at the VA. "I saw young kids running and playing on the grass, people bringing their dogs, and grandparents," Watkins said. "We had a wonderful parade and then served hot dogs, hot dogs and hot dogs. It was a wonderful day." Lane Carson, the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs, spoke about some of the benefits the VA is working on, including a new veterans cemetery outside of Fort Polk that will open in 2011.
- Local Matters
- November 13, 2009 at 08:52 AM
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