“Really, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you.”  Dr. Sam Bierstock

How have you shown your appreciation to returning war veterans?

And for all of this we are very grateful to you.  (Acts 24:3; NLT)

Our great friend, Janet Kennon, sent us the following story.  If you’ll remember “Tribute to a Lasting Marriage” that Sharon wrote on the occasion of her Mom and Dad’s 62nd wedding anniversary (DG 3/10/08), then you’ll remember that her Father is a WWII veteran.  He doesn’t talk about it much, but we’ve both seen him start to cry when he does reminisce.  Most of us can’t begin to imagine the pain.  That makes this story special to us…we wanted to share it with you.

The elderly parking lot attendant wasn’t in a good mood!

Neither was Sam Bierstock. It was around 1 a.m., and Bierstock, a Delray Beach, FL, eye doctor, business consultant, corporate speaker, and musician, was bone tired after appearing at an event.

He pulled up in his car, and the parking attendant began to speak, “I took two bullets for this country and look what I’m doing,” he said bitterly.

At first, Bierstock didn’t know what to say to the World War II veteran. But he rolled down his window and told the man, “Really, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you.”

Then the old soldier began to cry.

“That really got to me,” Bierstock says.

Cut to today.

Bierstock, 58, and John Melnick, 54, of Pompano Beach–a member of Bierstock’s band, Dr. Sam and the Managed Care Band–have written a song inspired by that old soldier in the airport parking lot. The mournful “Before You Go” does more than salute those who fought in WWII. It encourages people to go out of their way to thank the aging warriors before they die.

“If we had lost that particular war, our whole way of life would have been shot,” says Bierstock, who plays harmonica. “The WW II soldiers are now dying at the rate of about 2,000 every day. I thought we needed to thank them.”

The song is striking a chord. Within four days of Bierstock placing it on the Web, the song and accompanying photo essay have bounced around nine countries, producing tears and heartfelt thanks from veterans, their sons and daughters and grandchildren.

“It made me cry,” wrote one veteran’s son. Another sent an e-mail saying that only after his father consumed several glasses of wine would he discuss “the unspeakable horrors” he and other soldiers had witnessed in places such as Anzio, Iwo Jima, Bataan, and Omaha Beach. “I can never thank them enough,” the son wrote. “Thank you for thinking about them.”

Bierstock and Melnick thought about shipping it off to a professional singer, maybe a Lee Greenwood type, but because time was running out for so many veterans, they decided it was best to release it quickly, for free, on the Web. They’ve sent the song to Sen. John McCain and others in Washington. Already they have been invited to perform it in Houston for a Veterans Day tribute–this after just a few days on the Web. They hope every veteran in America gets a chance to hear it.

GOD BLESS every EVERY veteran…and THANK you to those of you veterans who may receive this !

CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO HEAR THE SONG AND SEE THE PICTURES:

Prayer Power
Lord, we thank You for the brave men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.  Bless them in unimaginable and uncommon ways through the rest of their days among us.  We thank You for the privilege and blessing of having them with us for the last many years.

Link of the Day
Before You Go

Bonus Link
Music with a Message

Blessings to you as you reach out to a WWII vet this week and let them know how much you appreciate what they did–and maybe even forward this tribute on to them.