Veterans Day 2015

PERCY:  Today is Veterans Day, a day the U.S. honors the veterans of our Armed Forces. 

BUDDY:  We want to share this video of the Homeless Veteran Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Song called I'm Not Home.

MERCI:  The reason we chose this song to represent our veterans today is because so many of them have returned home with PTSD.

CYNDI:  You might know someone who is struggling to cope with traumatic memories after military service. 

MICAH:  Many of us will never know what these men and women have faced in order to protect us.

RUSTY:  Because they have served, we have freedom to go about our lives.

MARCUS:  But we should not undervalue those have returned with PTSD.

SAM:  These veterans are our relatives, our friends, our neighbors ... and some of them are among the homeless.


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Moment of Remembrance

Memorial day is a Federal U.S. holiday what has been set aside as a day of remembrance for the men and women who have died in our Armed Forces.

In 2000 the National Moment of Remembrance was passed. We hope you will voluntarily, at 3 PM, stop for a moment of remembrance and respect for the fallen who served us or to listen to "Taps".

This year we would like to widen our tribute post to include those who served and survived but returned home with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) or TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury).

We have great respect for our military men and women, past and present.  The two men in this video have bad memories but a positive attitude.  The song on PTSD is "A Soldier's Memoir" by Joe Bachman. 


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Memorial Day Angel Flight

In the US, Memorial Day is a day we honor military men and women who died in service to their country.

A while back we did a post on Angel Flights, flights that bring soldiers killed in combat (heroes) home.

We'd like to post the shorter version instead of the remix today. (If you'd like to know how the song came about, check out our post USAF Angel Flights.)  This is a beautiful song and we feel it appropriate for Memorial Day.  Listening to it still gives us teary eyes and chills.

There's a dedication flashed onscreen to the "Red River 44."  If you'd like to know who this refers to -
"On September 17, 2008 seven soldiers from the 2-149th Aviation Task Force 34 were killed in a CH47 Chinook crash near Talil, Iraq."

This is for them.  And for all our military who have fallen in the line of duty.




If the video doesn't play, click here.

Happy Thanksgiving 2012

Okay, you don't have to remind us.  We know this is an old Dr Seuss Day graphic and tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  But we need to take our hats off in a bit, so we grabbed the first hat pic we found.  Hang in with us..

Monday we posted the musical video Angel Flight about the USAF pilots who fly their fallen brothers home.  It's a beautiful song.  And it even makes grown men teary.  Today Jan looked up Radney Foster, who co-wrote and performs it, on Facebook.  Then she looked up Darden Smith, the guy who had the original idea and asked Foster to help him with it.  There she found a link to something called Song Writing With Soldiers, a retreat for soldiers - young or old - to get together, talk about their experiences and write songs together.

“This isn’t about guys sitting around and singing songs,” said Anne Marie Dougherty, director of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “This is about suicide prevention and giving them hope and confidence to get on with their life.”  We hope you will visit SongWritingWithSoldiers and read about the program. 

Okay, now we need the hats -
We'd like to take our hats off to Darden Smith and all those associated / involved with this program. What a great way to help men and women.

And if you haven't watched the Angel Flight video yet, we hope you will.  Since we only learned of this beautiful song recently, we didn't realize it was written in 2009, and has been sung at at least a few "fallen soldier" funerals.

We're supposed to be thinking of things we're grateful for this week.  Actually every day, but especially as Thanksgiving approaches.  We know we have a lot to be thankful for - a roof over our heads, kibble in the bowls, toys for Sam to eat, etc.

And you know Jan has to be thankful for us.  She better be!  What would she do without us? 

We give her a reason to get up in the morning - walk us woofies and feed all us furries! 

We keep her limber bending over to pick up everything the kitties have dumped on the floor (for the umpteenth time). 

We keep her dancing.  (Stepping over yakked up hairballs.) 

And we keep her singing.  (Merci, stop piddling around and get your butt in here!  Rusty, don't you dare run out that door!  Percy, stop picking on Micah! Percy, you're supposed to pee IN the pan, not pee OVER it!. *Notice who gets picked on the most.*  Not very melodious but Jan can't carry a tune anyway.)

But for some reason she's been sitting down in the dumps this week so we should close and go find her in case she's gotten lost again.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

USAF Angel Flights

Hey, remember us, Merci, Sam & Buddy?  The Funny Farmer Felines keep hogging the posts with their Mousebreath interviews and Jan keeps hogging the computer, so we don't get to post very often and we keep getting overlooked.  But we're still here.  Today we have something special for you.


Veterans Day was November 11 and we wish we had known about this musical video then, but we didn't and we like it so much, we're going to post it a week late.  Grab a box of tissues cause we doubt you'll make it through without tears.

This video begins with Radney Foster, Darden Smith and Darius Rucker giving a short explanation of why / how the song was written  For those who are not aware, the U.S. Air Force Angel Flights bring home our fallen military (heroes).  

Co-writers Foster & Smith are donating proceeds to a charity that provides assistance to military families of the fallen.


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Many thanks to all our veterans, including those who ride - as well as those who fly - the Angel Flights

We prepared this yesterday and don't have time to write a new post, so w apologize this teary video falls on the same day the cat blogging community lost the lovely Miss Huffle Mawson. It is doubly sad since her family is traveling out of the country. 

And the dog blogging community lost the adorable Princess Isis. Isis was Hansel's cousin.  Isis's' blog will be closing now. 

Thanks for Serving

Yesterday was Veterans Day but our town held it's annual observation ceremony at 11 a.m. this morning in a nearby park instead of at the courthouse.

This is Billy J. from the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), one of the many veterans present today.  He was the local VFW Commander for most of the years Jan was with the VFW Auxiliary.  He was a highly patriotic, high energy, keep the veterans in the public eye, go-getter type Commander.

There is always an impressive number of participants from the local high school.  This is the UL NJROTC lining up before the ceremony.

More NJROTC members, including the Color Guard, marching and carrying the flags. Those on the pavilion spoke in one capacity or another.

The UL High School Band.

Amazing Grace on the bagpipes.

And Taps concludes the ceremony (bugler is on far right).

A group shot of most of the veterans who attended today.  We owe each a debt of gratitude for their service.

Honoring Our Vets

We're a little late getting a post up today but we do want to do a quick one.  Today is a day when we honor our military veterans.  It's Veterans Day in the United States and Remembrance Day in the United Kingdom and Canada.

We salute all the veterans who have given so much for us to have the freedom to make this post.. 

This is Jan's favorite Veterans Day video, so we are posting it as thanks for her allowing us to use the computer first today.  (And we have to admit, we've grown fond of it too.)  If you've heard it before, it is worth listening to again.  GI Joe and Lillie written and performed by Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys.


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Memorial Day 2012

Today is Memorial Day in the United States.  We are posting a video titled "True Meaning of Memorial Day."  We offer it with no other comment, except to say thank you to all who gave everything and to all those they left behind.


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Veterans Day 2011

Today is Veterans Day in the US

It is also Armistice Day for our friends in the UK

And Remembrance Day for our friends in Canada

In the US, thousands visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier every year, but the Tomb is not a "tourist attraction."  The guards do not speak but the one in this video did. And we thank him for demanding proper respect for those who are buried there and those they represent.. 


If the video doesn't play, click here.

Those resting at the Plaza represent the missing and unknown service members for our military from four wars: World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War.. It's a place where friends, family and strangers can go to grieve or pay respect. A picnic or party atmosphere is disrespectful.  Take a moment and read a short history of the Tomb.

Visit the FAQ page of The Society of the Honor Guard,The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for interesting facts  --  not the mix of fact and fiction widely circulated in emails and posted on forums!

And when you see veterans selling poppies this weekend, we hope you will not only give a donation but thank them for their service to our country.

Retired Military Working Dogs

It might be the last minute, but we have just learned today is National Dog Day and there was a bit of heated discussion as to what to do for it since we were caught off guard.

We finally agreed on a video about retired Military Working Dogs. 13-year-old Bino, a Dutch-Sheppard, is "1 of 8 finalists to win this year's American Hero Dog Award."


If the video doesn't play, click here.

We are very glad our retired MWDs are being homed now instead of euthanized.  They deserve it!

Memorial Day 2011

In memory of those who have died in service to their country.

Arlington, sung by Trace Adkins.


If the video doesn't play, click here.

We are not back. With Blogger acting up, this is a good time to be on break. We just want to honor those who gave their lives for our country.

And we are asking, if you can help these folks in any way, please do so. They applied to become a non profit in Brazil and they have been trying to find funding but they are losing their home and all the 17 rescued dogs. Who will take the rescues in and give them a good home? Most likely they will end up killed.

These folks lost their business in the January 2011 flood when whole villages in Brazil were wiped out with mudslides and flooding. Their home was spared because they were on higher ground and instead of just worrying about themselves, they donated their time to helping the rescued sick, injured and suddenly homeless animals in other villages.

Please donate a few dollars, if you can. And pass this on. These folks have worked hard and done without to save dogs no one else cares about. The Sunday post is titled "last Days." Don't let this be their last days!

Dogs in Brazil

JFF and Wyatt and Storm

Merci

I'm glad it's my turn today since we don't have any negative news to report.  We're all just planning to take it easy and enjoy the day. 

We were pleasantly surprised to find Jan's video of jff picking the winner of our recent giveaway posted on  Funny Pet Video Blog.  We're glad it's filed under funny and not under flop.  But then the stars were so photogenic and downright cute.  Who could resist our furry faces?

Now Jan's editing is another story.  She didn't notice until after it was posted that her text page with the winner's name had disappeared when the video was finished.  If you remember, you couldn't read the wet strip of paper clearly because someone - with the initial J - shook the entry slips in a container of chicken and rice to tempt Sam to pick a winner.  We really need to send her back to the dollar store to buy a new pair of reading glasses.


We have a Wyatt and Storm video update. The resort where they are currently staying is looking for a foster family for the two labs while many are still looking for their military owner.  We sure hope they find a foster family and the owner of the dogs.



You can read the story and here.

Wyatt and Storm

We seriously believe this "friend" deserves a swift kick in the pants by a hulking human. He would rather let the dogs his friend serving in Iraq entrusted to his care be killed than to divulge the name of his "friend" so he can be notified his dogs are safe and where they are. What a scumbag, a word we keep hearing on police shows. A definition of scumbag, by the way, is: A person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible.

Arizona - Despite being entrusted with the dogs' lives by a man off serving his country, the friend chose to turn the 2 dogs over to the Pinal County Animal Care and Control, rather than finding the dogs a guaranteed safe haven.

Boulder Falls Pet Resort wants to see the dogs reunited with their true owner and is currently housing them for free until every effort has been made to make that reunion possible. The rescue volunteers desperately want to contact the deployed soldier to let him know that his dogs are safe, and that they will be held until his return, but they have no way to contact him.

Yellow labs, Wyatt and Storm

The dogs are approximately 2-4 years of age, one male, and one female. One dog is named Wyatt and the other is named Storm.  If anyone has information about the person that owns Wyatt and Storm, they are asked to contact Rhonda Wagner Kuehn at Helping Orphaned Hounds at 406-697-5975..
 
You can read the rest of the story, "Soldier's dogs surrendered to AZ shelter - public help needed to facilitate a reunion" here.

We hope someone recognizes the dogs so their owner can be notified. What a horrible thing to happen while he is overseas and unable to do anything to rescue his dogs, possibly not even knowing they were dumped at a high kill shelter.  Or if he was notified the dogs were dumped at the shelter, he has no idea that strangers care and have rescued his dogs for him.  We send lots of purrs and tail wags that Wyatt and Storm will be safe and waiting for their owner to return for them.

Freedom's Not Free

Today is Memorial Day in the United States and we did a Memorial Day post yesterday.  However, we like the music of The Rivoli Revue and they just sent us a link to their latest video, which  they both wrote and performed.  As anyone who has ever lost a loved one in war can attest, freedom is not free!  So we're going to post their video. We know you will like it because the words are so true.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

And Debbie Lee, a Gold Star mom, has a website, America's Mighty Warriors, which she founded after the death of her son Marc Alan Lee, the first Navy Seal killed in Iraq.  We encourage you to visit the site and look around.

Memorial Day 2010

This song, "Memorial Day" was written by Tony Mullins to honor America's fallen heroes on Memorial Day.  It's sung by Cary Rutledge.  Tony sent us a link to a new version of the video filmed at Deerlake, Montana, but, although the scenery is beautiful, the most important part of the video is missing -- those we are paying tribute to. So we are going to use the old video, the one that includes them.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

For the first time in eight or so years, Jan was unable to help the Veterans of Foreign Wars distribute Buddy Poppies on Friday and Saturday.  She says she's tired of being tired and sick!  So if you'll excuse us, we're going to go distribute lots and lots of fur around the house to remind her she's not useless.  And maybe we'd better leave the dustmop where she'll trip over it since she's probably forgotten where she put it.  It's hard when your human gets old and starts leaving her memory in odd places.  Sigh. We hate to think what she'd do without us.

GASP

Too many military personnel have been forced to give up their pets when they are deployed, many of them ending up at a shelter because a home can not be found in time. There is a site called Guardian Angels for Soldier's Pet (we shortened it to GASP) where a soldier and a foster home might connect. These men and women love their pets as much as we do. Perhaps you can help too. There are other ways to help besides fostering. Support our military, veterans and their pets.

Wreaths Across America

Since the Christmas season has officially opened, we decided to post a seasonal video. We have posted on this subject in past years but this is the 2009 updated version of the Wreaths Across America tradition. We think you will enjoy the story.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

GI Joe

We are on a roll here! For those of you who saw this as our post yesterday, well, what can we say -- we forgot we already had a post scheduled and rushed to get one done at the very last minute. The we snoozed. So if you did read this but missed After the Rescue about a few successful rescues and happy endings, we hope you will go read that one as today's post.

When we discovered we had published this on the wrong day, we unpublished it. (Is unpublished a word?) We corrected it. But dang-nab it, we forgot to auto post it! So yesterday we were early and today we're late. But we are finally publishing it on the correct day.

Jan likes the Oak Ridge Boys and we've learned to tolerate them. Okay, we like them too. So we stole -- um, borrowed this link from Jan's email.

This is an older song, but when you watch this once, you'll likely want to listen again. It's a good song and has special meaning.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

Veteran's Day 2009

We wanted something appropriate as a tribute to our military, past and present, for Veteran's Day. We think this song, "America My Home," performed by Ricky David Tripp one month after 9-11 fits the bill.

We stand behind our military. And we salute them. (A little hard for dogs and cats, but, hey, if Percy can type, we can salute.)

We are especially pleased as we read of those serving overseas whose hearts reach out to help rescue unwanted dogs and cats.



If the video will not play for you, click here.

The Nowzad Dogs

Pen Farthing lives in Scotland but he has spent time in Afghanistan with the Royal Marines. And while there, he fell into rescuing dogs. There are certainly enough dogs in Afghanistan in need of rescue, but those that found Pen were among the lucky ones. And not only did he help them while he was there, he spent months "plotting" with his wife by phone to save them, rather than just abandon them when he left.

We highly recommend Pen's book, One Dog at a Time, Saving the Strays of Helmand. It took us from teary-eyed to laughing to teary again. Any serviceman in a no-pets-allowed situation who can turn his love of animals into a rescue operation for multiple dogs under impossible conditions deserves not only credit but support. His wife Lisa has been involved from the beginning. She was instrumental in making the long distance calls to search for someplace safe for the dogs, if Pen could manage to find them transport.

We found a news video of Pen visiting Nowzad while he was still in quarantine in the UK. We think you'll enjoy hearing some of the story from Pen himself. And then stop by Nowzad Dogs's website.

Nowzad Dogs is a registered charity and donations are welcomed.

And don't forget to vote for Merci again today. Thank you. http://www.cutestdogcompetition.com/vote.cfm?h=194291465301F78C17ECD3F5BA4AB250