Last Saturday evening there were over 400 people gathered downtown at the Lynchburg Grand Hotel for the Honored Gala Event hosted by Andre Whitehead recognizing the movers and shakers in the community. I nominated Lynchburg Area Veterans Council President Tom Current for this year’s “Military Service Award,” which includes that person’s work in the community after military service.

Yesterday was our 1,133 consecutive Friday “Support our Troops Rally” and over these 21 years and 8 months I have been blessed to meet so many great veterans/leaders in our community who in there own way do so much to improve the lives of others and help the less fortunate. I think we should form our own “Monument Terrace Honor’s Committee” and we could recognized a veteran/patriot every month for that award as I see so many good deeds done by so many in our area, which reminds me of this quote by John Wesley.

“Do all the good you can. In all the ways you can In all the places you can. At all the time you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.”

Andre Whitehead and I go back a long ways when he wanted to interview me and one of the “peaceniks” at Monument Terrace in early 2002 after our weekly rally was started on November 30, 2001. I showed up for the interview in front of the WWI Dough Boy, but no one else did. So, Andre interviewed me on why we gathered to Support our Troops every Friday. I remember one statement I made was “Veterans have resolve” (strong determination to do something). I wonder if Andre still has that interview on tape? I think we have proved that point.

Andre finally convinced me after 3 years of asking to be the first “Military” inductee in 2016. Other inductees from our weekly group include Gary Witt, Dennis Janiak, Buck Krantz, Sam Mosley and Mike Brady. As I said, we have great leaders among us.

Steve Bozeman