I was at the Air Force Academy to give our annual award to a graduating cadet. Katherine Brechbuhl who wants to fly C-17’s after flight school because her brother is already flying them for the Air Force. She was a well-chosen recipient.
Sitting in the 10 AM Catholic Church service at the beautiful and soaring chapel to give the award, I began to think about the people around me. Parents, friends and relatives of the graduates sitting there came from all-across the country. There was a Filipino family beaming with pride over their daughter’s patriotic and successful completion of her studies. Afterwards they pestered their soon to be Air Force lieutenant with multiple photo ops that she patiently endured. Her parents had probably dreamed as first generation immigrants of this American life back in the Philippines and continued in this hope raising their children in the US while they struggled to get by in their adopted homeland.
If you want to meet people who understand the value of the American experience, talk to a first-generation US citizen. They always go on and on, telling me what a great country we have. It always helps me to appreciate the US again. So often, I can take for granted the American Dream.
Seating in the second row was Katherine’s family not only the proud parents of the recipient of our award but also now the parent of their second C-17 jockey. This plane is 174 feet long with a 170 feet wingspan. Yet they were as humble as they come. No swagger. No thumping of their chests over their success in raising two outstanding children.
I saw other family members of graduates. Many of them seemingly from modest financial and social backgrounds yet proud to be related to the future leaders and pilots of the US Air Force.
As I sat there with these people in my thoughts, I realized that these people are what make America great. Godly, humble, patriotic families, each a link in the chain of our great history. Don’t get me wrong. I know that we have serious issues to work on as a nation. But underneath that striving to make this a better place, there is a bedrock of ideals, morals and freedom that is not known any place else in the world.
God bless America!