NEW YORK, May 27, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- It
all changed for Chelle and Taylor
Pokorney on March 23, 2003.
That is the day Chelle's beloved gentle giant of a husband Fred, a
Marines Marine, and father to 2-year-old Taylor was killed along
with other brave servicemembers in Al Nasiriyah, Iraq. Chelle was now faced with
continuing on in life without her true love and her best friend. So
many stories have surfaced from this horrible story filled with
loss sadness and great fear. Fred was 6'6'', and, on the day he
died he ran into machine gun fire to save two young Marines' lives.
Recently I was witness to those two Marines meeting with Chelle to
tell her how brave, loving, caring and heroic her Fred was to both
of them and others. Fifteen years later, Chelle and Taylor live in
Oregon proudly and live life to
the fullest, while honoring Fred and his memory, along with the
memories of all those who have given the ultimate sacrifice in
service to our nation, and for our freedoms we hold so dear. Her
father Fred would be so proud as Taylor begins college this
fall.
This Memorial Day I asked my dear friends Wayne Newton and Mark
Wahlberg to join me in writing this where we call for two
important things. Wayne and Mark have taken time from their busy
lives to go to Iraq and
Afghanistan respectively to visit
with and thank our troops. They go to bases here at home to say
thank you for the service of our brave men and women who volunteer
to give of themselves serving the USA. I salute Mark and Wayne and other
celebrities who care enough to make these important trips, which
help raise awareness and hopefully affect policy and fundraising
for the unmet needs facing our military and veteran's
population.
This Memorial Day we call upon our fellow Americans to consider
two things on this day: to take a few moments of silence with loved
ones to honor, remember, and pay tribute to those who have died
giving their life for our nation. And, secondly, to find a way to
do something positive and meaningful in support of and for our
servicemembers and veterans. The first can simply be a moment of
silence, lighting a candle and honoring Fred and his family or
another family you might know that has made the ultimate sacrifice.
The second would be to consider volunteering for or making a
contribution to one of the great organizations out there and
getting more involved. We recommend the Intrepid Fallen Heroes
Fund, The Fisher House, the Wounded Warrior Project, the DAV, the
USO or the American Legion. Doing both of these acts of kindness
and humility will put the adage "saying thank you isn't enough"
into proper context. We need to do more for our Veterans and we
applaud you for considering both of these important
constructs.
We want to encourage President Trump, Secretary of Defense
Mattis and Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob
Wilkie and our Congress to continue to do all they can to
support our troops.
We say a most heartfelt thank you to our nation's fallen heroes
and their treasured families today. We owe them our eternal
gratitude love and respect. Thank you and God Bless the Unites
States of America.
Bill White is CEO of
Constellations Group NYC and a national advocate for Military and
Veteran families. Mark Wahlberg is a
famed actor, producer, businessman and father of four. Wayne Newton is a celebrated entertainer,
businessman and patriot.
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wayne-newton-mark-wahlberg-bill-white-remember-their-sacrifice-this-memorial-day-300655362.html
SOURCE Bill White