Have you thanked a veteran today?

Today is Veteran's Day. Even though it's a national holiday, it usually passes by without my hoopla or recognition. Sure, we may notice that there's no mail today and the banks are closed, but when was the last time you thought about what the men and woman who have served and are currently serving in our Armed Forces have done and are now doing for us?

When I was in high school, the combined choirs from the Granite School District sang each year in the Veteran's Day Concert at the University of Utah. It was always a fun performing the Battle Hymn of the Republic and wonderful arrangements of America the Beautiful. The military band pieces were fun, too.

The highlight of the concert was when the band would play a medley of the various branches of the military's themes and all past and current members of that branch were asked to stand and be recognized. And a lone trumpeter would play taps for those who didn't make it home.

I hope that this is still happening with the choirs so that students today can see and feel and understand what it means to have the freedoms we enjoy.

So, I would like to express my thanks to all military personnel, past and present. I know that the service you give is more valuable than any words of thanks I can give. But thank you. May God bless you and your families.