Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

Veterans Day

Happy Veterans Day To All Who Have Served

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George W. Tuthill, Army, Union, 1861-1865. My great-great-grandfather.

I come from a long line of warriors. On this Veteran’s Day, I would like to thank all who have

John Tuthill, Army, World War I. My Grandfather.

served in the United States military. Past and present.

All who have served in the National Guard, Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard and all working military animals. I also salute those in the Merchant Marine who have endured hardship and sacrifice to support us on the seas.

With the United States population estimated at 329,064,917 million, there are approximately 23,234,000 living veterans, of those 16,962,000 being war veterans.

That works out to roughly seven percent of the entire United States population, of which five percent are war veterans. Numbers change daily with worldwide conflicts and deployments.

On this Veteran’s Day, I’ve decided to share photos of my family citizen soldiers who have taken the oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”

When you raise your right hand and take that oath, it is a solemn occasion. Three times I’ve felt the weight and responsibility of that oath settle on my shoulders.

To those serving on active duty and in the reserves today, I salute you, thank you, and look forward to welcoming you into the veteran family when your duties have come to an end.

For those of us who are veterans, we celebrate this day given to us by the service of those who have gone before us.

Betty Cook, Marines, World War II. My Mom.
James Cook, Army-Air Corps, World War II. My Dad.

Men and women of each generation step up to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Hats off to all who have dug deep and sacrificed to protect our freedoms.

I am here because of their legacies.

Happy Veterans Day!

Rod Tuthill, Marines, served during Korean War. My Uncle.

 

Gordon Hubbard, Army, served during the Vietnam War in Berlin. My brother-in-law.

A Veterans Day Reminder

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ARCTIC OCEAN – (From left) Carl Felten, U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Annabelle Gagnon, Merchant Marine Academy Cadet Taylor Crisci, Luc Rainville and Jeremy Wilkinson pull a buoy across the Arctic ice Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018, about 350 miles northeast of Barrow, Alaska. The buoy was deployed in the Arctic and contains a series of sensors to measure wind speed and direction, air temperature, barometric pressure and other measurements to study stratified ocean dynamics. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy (WAGB-20) is underway in the Arctic with about 100 crew members and 30 scientists to deploy sensors, buoys and semi-autonomous submarines to study how environmental factors affect the water below the ice surface for the Office of Naval Research. The Healy, which is homeported in Seattle, is one of two ice breakers in U.S. service and is the only military ship dedicated to conducting research in the Arctic. (NyxoLyno Cangemi/U.S. Coast Guard)

Election Day. Brought to you by the good women, men and military animals of our armed forces, Coast Guard, National Guard, veterans and their families. The first time I voted was by military absentee ballot on a pool table at Fort Carson. Colorado. My Lieutenant had to observe to make sure I complied with the then rules for voting out of state. The Recreation Room seemed the logical place.

For the past twenty years Oregon has had vote-by-mail and I highly recommend it to all the other states. Except Washington and Colorado, they have it too. No online, no clunky machines, mail with a stamp or drop off and a complete vintage paper trail.

This year I even got to track my ballot through the mail using www.ballotscout.org by way of my ballot address bar code. Simple. Effective. Private. And nobody messes with United States Postal Service employees; a lot of veterans work there too.

For those of you who might think twice about getting to a polling place stateside if you need to, don’t. Do it. Vote. The men, women and military animals in these photos are working hard right now around the world to make sure we all keep our right to vote. Use it or lose it.

It’s not like you’re a Marine hiking in Iceland!

Happy Veterans Day on Sunday to all who have served. Thank you for your service to your country.

 

Members of Team Andersen load water purification equipment onto a 36th Airlift Squadron C-130J Super Hercules to be delivered to Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Oct. 28, 2018, at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. Service members from Joint Region Marianas and Indo-Pacific Command are providing Department of Defense support to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’ civil and local officials as part of the FEMA-supported Typhoon Yutu recovery efforts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Donald Hudson)
Candidates participating for the Expert Field Medical Badge disassemble and reassemble an M4 rifle as quickly as possible during the standardization phase of EFMB testing on Fort Bragg, N.C., Oct. 30, 2018. The first week of testing introduces the candidates to all the tasks that they’ll be expected to complete to earn the coveted badge. The EFMB was established to showcase and recognize medical Soldiers for their exceptional skill level and competence in the medical field. The testing consists of a written exam, land navigation, three separate combat testing lanes and concludes with a 12-mile ruck march. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Liem Huynh / 22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)
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NORWEGIAN SEA (Oct. 27, 2018) An F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Sunliners of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 81 is prepared for launch aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) in support of Exercise Trident Juncture 18. With more than 50,000 participants from 31 allied partners, Trident Juncture 18 is taking place in Norway and the surrounding areas of the North Atlantic and the Baltic Sea, including Iceland and the airspace of Finland and Sweden. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Thomas Gooley/Released)
U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Angela Cardone, a military working dog handler with Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, conducts training at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Oct. 19, 2018. Military working dog handlers are military police who are trained to employ a military working dog to conduct searches in open areas, buildings and vehicles. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Seth Rosenberg)
U.S. Marines with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit hike to a cold-weather training site inland, Iceland, Oct. 19, 2018, during Exercise Trident Juncture 18. Trident Juncture training in Iceland promotes key elements of preparing Marines to conduct follow-on training in Norway in the later part of the exercise. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Menelik Collins/Released)

Happy Veterans Day

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by Kimberly A. Cook

On Veterans Day eve I want to send out Veterans Day wishes to all our military vets, two and four-legged. Thank you for your service and your dedication to our country.

Since those of us who have served in the military are a smaller and smaller percentage of the United States population, veteran stories may not reach all our citizens.

For veterans struggling with the return from war, deployments and even sexual assault, know you are loved and hugged by your fellow veterans. Reach out and get help. We’re all still in the buddy system.

Whether you prefer Veterans Day ceremonies or choose to spend the day in reflection and quiet, know you have served our country with true citizenship in action.

Thank you. Enjoy your day.

 

 

Veterans Day Thank You

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by Kimberly A. Cook                 (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

To all who have served in the military, thank you. For all who continue to deal with the challenges of war and service, you are loved and not forgotten. To our future veterans serving today, we look forward to welcoming you when your tours of service end.

Happy Veterans Day to all who have earned it through service to our country. Including our military animals who served and therapy dogs who support our veterans after service.

 

 

Happy Veterans Day U.S. Warriors

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by Kimberly A Cook                (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

Tomorrow is Veterans Day and I wanted to say thank you to all my fellow veterans for their service. It’s nice to be remembered on a national holiday, but we are veterans every day. For veterans who return with medical and mental health issues, each day is another fight for them and their families and friends.

We don’t ask for parades and big ceremonies; we serve because we love our country and we took an oath to defend the United States against all enemies. Veterans have been hurt and injured during war, peace and in training. Saying thank you is enough, but for wounded and disabled warriors do what you can to help them throughout the year, especially supporting their family caregivers.

Serving changes us all. Even the four-legged vets. Thanks for remembering.

https://youtu.be/w1gde9Q0U7k

Happy Veterans Day To All Who Have, Are Now And Will Serve

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by Kimberly A. Cook                         (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Happy Veterans Day! To all my warrior sisters and brothers who have served in the Army, Navy, National Guard, Marines, Coast Guard, Air Force and Merchant Marine, active duty and reserve, thank you for your service. While we are veterans everyday, it is nice the nation sets aside one day to say thank you.

Our fabulous pink (me) and purple (Karen) fleece outfits before the 5K walk. Notice my first ever bib race number!
Our fabulous pink (me) and purple (Karen) fleece outfits before the 5K walk. Notice my first ever bib race number!

In honor of this day, I decided to do something I had never done before. This past Saturday I entered the first ever Veterans 5K Run/Walk at Camp Withycombe in Clackamas, Oregon.

My power walker sister Karen agreed to go with me and we were registered and off. The Nov. 8 race was 3.1 miles on the Camp Withycombe grounds with luckily a flat as a pancake course.

We got there at 8:30 a.m., got our race numbers and swag then hit the course after the kids. For some reason there were more walkers than runners, but works for me. We got to walk by the display tanks, through the motor pool, a fun time was had by all. They even had a fabulous drummer halfway through the course to help us keep a beat.

Coming attractions: Re-opening August 2015.
Coming attractions: Re-opening August 2015.

Now we did stop and take our pictures with the tanks. Since $10 of each entry fee went to the Oregon Military Museum slated to reopen in August, 2015, you know I was happy to support the tanks and their museum.

Once you’ve served in an Army mechanized division, you always love the tanks. It was a fun event and now we have to plan for next year. Maybe I can reduce my time by a minute or two.

 

A girl and her tank,,,, a true love story.
A girl and her tank….. a true love story.

I’m not a runner, with old joints and big boobs it’s just not a good thing for me to do. But walking is for me! Think I am going to frame my race number, we never got those when we did the PT tests in the Army or Air Force Reserve.

I also earned the coveted dog tag by completing the course – jewelry! My friends will faint when they’ve learned I competed in an organized athletic event. I’m not known for group games and competitions ever since surviving combat volleyball in the Army.

I’m lucky to have today off from the day job, so I’m going to meet with family for a Veterans Day lunch to honor my Marine Mom, my Army brother-in-law Gordon and my sister Karen for putting up with all of us. We will also have in our hearts my Army Air Corps Dad, my Marine Uncle Rod, my Army Grandpa John, and my brother-in-law’s Army brother David for their past service. We’re a joint service family!

Thank you to all who have served, those currently serving and those who support us. Today is your day!

Karen gets her own tank too! Best sister ever!
Karen gets her own tank too. Best sister ever!