A Time To Give Back

By Darrell Smith

Military service members and First Responders both give us the gift of time.

Our military service members give up personal time to protect our nation, and each, and everyone of us. When they are deployed to a crisis situation for long periods, they are giving up their regular job, their family life and their local activities in the community. This is time away that may never be recaptured, and it is indeed a sacrifice. They give up time with loved ones and give that ‘time’ to us by protecting our nation and our freedoms.

Emergency service members, police, fire, and EMTs, may still have time with their families as they serve, but when they go into action, they may be adding ‘time’ to our lives, by keeping us safe from harm so we may live longer and better.

With this in mind, think of a way that you can ‘give back’ to improve their lives as they have given us time to be more safe and secure. Here are a few suggestions:

* Support a veteran-owned business by making a purchase of a service or product
* Hire and train a veteran
* Give to a veteran’s or First Responder’s organization with time or funding
* Offer a discount to any veteran or First Responder that shows their service ID
* Teach your children about the meaning of the sacrifice s these people make, and how it secures our future
* Send a letter to a local head of police, fire or emergency services to thank all their personnel
* Offer to help with transportation or yard work for a local veteran or First Responder or their family
* Fly our nation’s flag to share the pride in all it represents

There are many ways we can show appreciation for the gift of time our military and emergency service members give to us every day. Let’s all show our thanks during the month of November and consider going above and beyond a simple ‘thank you for your service’, but if that is all you have time to do, then it will be just fine.