GALAX, Va. – Every year in Galax, Senior Home Share holds a veteran’s breakfast to say thank you to our local veterans.
“It’s just that little bit of acknowledgment, I guess,” said Ben Pressley, an Airforce Vietnam veteran. “I never wanted any fanfare or anything like that, but it’s just a little thank you.”
Surrounded by veterans from all branches and multiple decades, folks there got to meet other local retired soldiers and hear some words of thanks from leaders.
At the event, there were awards of thanks given out as well.
I talked to Congressman Morgan Griffith about getting opportunities to say thank you like this and he said it’s important to show gratitude to their service.
“A lot of times they come home and they wonder if anybody remembers them and this assures them that yes, we do,” Griffith said.
I then talked to some of the veterans and they all had a different story of military service.
“I was an electrician,“ said Pressley. ”I was in Washington state for two years and then I went to Vietnam. I was over there for a year.”
“I was a pilot,” said John Fielder, a retired Navy pilot. “I started out in helicopters then I went to high performance jets. So, I went back and forth and then I ended up being a ferry pilot”
They said no matter what role they had in the military, there is a connection to each other like no other
“Even though you only talk to a few people, you still get that connection, you get kind of a special feeling,” said Pressley.
And while the thank yous are nice, the veterans said it was their duty.