Ceremony honors and remembers military veterans
Courtesy Photo | Central Michigan University Events Calendar
“A veteran is someone who at one point in their lives wrote a blank check made payable to the United States of America, for an amount up to and including their life,” said Dr. Earnest Bedford.
Bedford's speech was a portion of a ceremony honoring military veterans Nov. 9 in Plachta Auditorium. The event was one of various Veteran's Month events happening on campus during the month of November.
Dr. Bedford worked as the Supervisory Marine Special Agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), finishing his career as the officer in charge of Criminal Investigation Division at Camp Lejeune. The event also featured words from Lt. Col. David S. Kelley, retired Chief Warrant Officer 4 Jeremy Whitmore and Central Michigan University President Dr. Robert O. Davies.
“(CMU) has a long history of military connections. We do everything we can to make student veterans know they belong here,” event coordinator Duane Kleinhart said.
CMU’s Reserve Officer Training Corps program dates back to 1951. Currently the program has 690 active duty servicemen, 280 of which report on CMU’s campus.
Bedford considered their decision to join the military heroic.
“(Heroes are) ordinary men and women who, when presented with an opportunity, make the conscious choice to perform selfless, sometimes extraordinary feats that consequently impact the lives of others," he said.
Bedford comes from a long line of military servicemen, a history he emphasized while reflecting on the wars fought over the course of American history to defend the freedoms US citizens have.
“I left the service with more respect for the armed forces,” said veteran attendee Karen Johnson “Before I was there I didn’t realize how much you have to sacrifice.”
Johnson served two years in the United States Army air defense artillery unit.
“Each one of has an innate ability to become a silent hero," Bedford said. “Regardless of whatever differences we may have, or viewpoints we may hold, we are all Americans -- heroes in waiting.”
