News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
While enjoying your day off, do not forget Memorial Day is more than picnics and barbecues.
Commander of the Cookeville Honors Guard Jim McAfee served in the Army for six years across America and Germany. McAfee has served over 1,600 funerals for veterans since joining the Honors Guard in 2011. McAfee said Memorial Day to him and most veterans is a time to give thanks for their fallen comrades.
“It’s a day that we set aside to remember what those men and women who have gone before us have sacrificed,” McAfee said. “All gave some, but some gave it all with their life.”
McAfee said men and women from the Revolutionary War to the war on terrorism fought for the freedom of this country. He asks people on Memorial Day to pause and remember the men and women who willingly served to provide and maintain our freedom.
“I am reminded of a cartoon that I have seen a number of times and it’s about a family going out to have an outing,” McAfee said. “The father is a veteran and the child asks the father what’s this all about while passing a veteran cemetery. The father told the son this is what it is all about. These men and women that gave their life and time to serve this county to have the freedoms we have today.”
McAfee grew up around Fort Campbell in Clarksville and comes from a long line of military servicemen. His father and uncle served in World War II. His brother served in the Vietnam War. McAfee said he even lost his best friend in the Vietnam War at 19 years old.
The Veterans Honor Guard of the Upper Cumberland honor veterans by rendering Military Funeral Honors to those who served. The are certified by the Department of Defense as an authorized provider.
