Dear members,
 
I am so grateful that our focus of this month’s Bridge is dedicated to our military. I was raised to have a great appreciation for those men and women that served in the past and continue to serve to protect our freedom and our liberties. My grandfather served in WWII on a transport ship shuttling supplies back and forth from the U.S. to Europe, and his brother served in the Normandy invasion. I remember so many stories that they would tell us about extreme conditions, moments of terror and devastating loss, and yet they would say that they would do it all over again.
 
Following them were four of my uncles that served, and now three of my cousins. The stories are different now, but just as significant. The wars of today are in many ways much more difficult because the enemies, the methods of attack, and the warfare is very advanced, hidden, technical and devastating.
 
Nevertheless, we have thousands of men and women that courageously volunteer to fight for our honor. They put their lives on the line and risk not coming back to their families, all for us. We are so blessed to not only live in a country with dedicated people like these, but we have the good fortune of having so many of these brave souls here in our community. My husband and I have taught our children (ages 5 and 8) that whenever they see someone in uniform to thank them for their service, because we know that we are able to be together as a family because they are making the sacrifice that often takes them away from theirs.
 
I want to thank you, too – if you are a soldier that is serving or has served for us, thank you. If you are a company that support our military like our Honor Star program, thank you. If you are a non-profit whose mission is to aid the soldiers, service members and their families, thank you. Finally, if you are citizen that isn’t afraid to stand alongside our military and support them, thank you.
 
Please enjoy this edition of The Bridge, and I encourage you to come out and join us as we celebrate our military and continue to support them throughout the year.
 
Sincerely,
 
Shannon Full
President/CEO