I was sent the following email this morning by Robert Thompson. I have listened to it myself and it IS a beautiful tribute. Get out the hankies...

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Veterans of WWII are now dying at a rate of about 2,000 per day. I encountered the following article in the Union-Tribune this morning, and checked out the referenced song (link in the article). It is a legitimate link, virus free, and an OUTSTANDING song in memory of our WWII veterans.

PLEASE, as a favor to me, take the time to read the article below and listen to the song at the following link. It may be the most valuable reading and listening you do in a long time.

NOTE: If the link in the article doesn't work, just go to www.beforeyougo.us. It will get you there.

Article************************

The elderly parking lot attendant wasn't in a good mood.

Neither was Sam Bierstock. It was around 1 a.m., and Bierstock, a Delray

Beach, Fla. , eye doctor, business consultant, corporate speaker and

musician, was bone tired after appearing at an event.

He pulled up in his car, and the parking attendant began to speak. "I

took two bullets for this country and look what I'm doing," he said

bitterly.

At first, Bierstock didn't know what to say to the World War II veteran.

But he rolled down his window and told the man, "Really, from the bottom

of my heart, I want to thank you."

Then the old soldier began to cry.

"That really got to me," Bierstock says.

Cut to today.

Bierstock, 58, and John Melnick, 54, of Pompano Beach - a member of

Bierstock's band, Dr. Sam and the Managed Care Band - have written a

song inspired by that old soldier in the airport parking lot. The

mournful "Before You Go" does more than salute those who fought in WWII.

It encourages people to go out of their way to thank the aging warriors

before they die.

"If we had lost that particular war, our whole way of life would have

been shot," says Bierstock, who plays harmonica. "Every ethnic minority

would be dead. And the soldiers are now dying at the rate of about 2,000

every day. I thought we needed to thank them."

The song is striking a chord. Within four days of Bierstock placing it

on the Web www.beforeyougo.us, the

song and accompanying photo essay have bounced around nine countries,

producing tears and heartfelt thanks from veterans, their sons and

daughters and grandchildren.

"It made me cry," wrote one veteran's son. Another sent an e-mail saying

that only after his father consumed several glasses of wine would he

discuss "the unspeakable horrors" he and other soldiers had witnessed in

places such as Anzio, Iwo Jima, Bataan and Omaha Beach. "I can never

thank them enough," the son wrote. "Thank you for thinking about them."

Bierstock and Melnick thought about shipping it off to a professional

singer, maybe a Lee Greenwood type, but because time was running out for

so many veterans, they decided it was best to release it quickly, for

free, on the Web. They've sent the song to Sen. John McCain and others

in Washington. Already they have been invited to perform it in Houston

for a Veterans Day tribute - this after just a few days on the Web. They

hope every veteran in America gets a chance to hear it.

Thank you John McAuliffe for your inspiring poem.

---

To All 87th Infantry Division Veterans on Veterans Day, 2005

THE BOYS OF THE GOLDEN ACORN

It was a "TIME FOR TRUMPETS"

And as they heeded the bugles call,

The boys of the EIGHTY-SEVENTH

stood "STRONG and STALWART" and tall.

87th Division

They were the GOLDEN ACORN men

Now dressed in battle array

Pressed into the snowy ARDENNES

To engage in the bloody fray.

345 Inf.

Their colors led them forward

in the battle of MOIRCY

'INVICTUS' was their byword

As the foe was soon to see.

346th Inf.

'ALWAYS AND EVERYWHERE FAITHFUL',

As they fought in the woods of TILLET

Always men so valiant

As they stormed the German Billet.

347th Inf.

They heard the call to DARE YOUR BEST

and fought the fight at BONNERUE

Now and again they stood the test

And proved that they were brave and true.

312 Med BN

They stood beside the fighting boys

to 'GIVE AID AND COMFORT' under fire

They brave the shell and shot and noise

in deep cold snow and muddy mire.

They were the boys of the GOLDEN ACORN

Men of Patton without fear

and they closed the BULGE and broke the horn

of the PANZER LEHR and 26th VOLKSGRENADIER.

Their battle cry to DARE YOUR BEST

was a challange not forsaken

They proved that they withstood the test

The prize was 'OUR OBJECTIVE TAKEN".

John McAuliffe

M-347

ON PBS this weekend look for this article http://www.tmnews.com/articles/2005/10/16/...news/news48.txt

4th Brigade inherits name, legacy of historical 506th

Newest unit will be known as 'Currahee Brigade'

By CHANTAL ESCOTO

The Leaf-Chronicle

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Chantal Escoto/The Leaf-Chronicle

First Battalion soldiers climb down the "Tough One" rope ladder during the Currahee Mile run at the 4th Brigade air assault obstacle course Wednesday. The exercise is a new tradition for the newly formed brigade. Fourth Brigade will be known as the Currahee Brigade, with its 1st and 2nd battalions gaining the 506th Infantry Regiment affiliation. Currahee was the hill where Easy Company of "Band of Brothers" fame trained.

The soldiers from 1st Battalion, 4th Brigade, try their luck with the "Weaver." The exercise blends teamwork and physical exercise to ready them for Iraq.

The 101st Airborne Division's newest brigade now has a legacy with its first and second battalions taking on the 506th Infantry Regiment's name and history.

During World War II, the 506th included the storied Easy Company, depicted in the HBO series "Band of Brothers."

The affiliation took effect July 1, according to officials, although it has not been formally announced and details are being worked out. The 4th Brigade will be known as the "Currahee" brigade, in honor of the hill the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment trained on before jumping into Normandy on June 6, 1944.

"It's a huge motivator," said 1st battalion Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Catterton. "What the (506th affiliation) will do is tie this unit to the honor and tradition of that unit. There's a history with this unit. It will allow us to bring in the old with the new."

The 101st is expected to deploy again for a year to Iraq within the next few months.

To celebrate the new affiliation after coming back from a two-week vacation, 800 soldiers with the 1st battalion took to the air assault course with a competitive fervor for the Currahee Mile.

The Currahee Mile is a tradition that the 101st hopes will keep soldiers mentally and physically prepared for any mission because of the unknowns of a different course each time.

"This is our second one. We do it upon return from block leave," said battalion commander Lt. Col. Ronald Clark of the rigorous physical training. "It's a team competition, and it keeps the soldiers' minds right while they're on leave because they know they'll be coming back to this."

After the soldiers finished the obstacle course and helped each other through the various stations, they were covered in sweat and sand.

Some even sported their own "red badges" of bloody knees and elbows from the low crawl under barbed wire and falling from the wooden equipment.

Spc. John Miller, 22, took his training as seriously as any combat mission and did well on the timed event. His biggest challenge was high rope climb called the "Tough One."

"It's not that hard, but it just takes the most amount of time," Miller said, indicating the time is secondary behind the team. "You never leave a man behind. You never want to leave a soldier in combat so we don't want to leave them here."

For 2nd Lt. Deatae Allen, 23, it's about leading by example and being in the front.

"It helps motivate them and build teamwork," Allen said. "The key thing I was focusing on is staying together as a team, conquering the obstacles and finishing as a team.

"For me as a leader, I look to complete it as a platoon."

http://www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs..../507070304/1002

Marion,

You said that you would like to know a little more about me. Well there is not much to tell. I am a service technician for a local Coca-Cola bottling works, and also am a Baptist Minister. I pastor a small church here in our town. I joined the U.S. Army Reserves when I turned 18. That would have been Aug. 1987. My M.O.S. was 52 Delta 1 (Power Generation Equipment Repair) I was supposed to be in the 844th Engineers Co. A. heavy vehical detachment. My basic was at Fort Dix N.J. In Jan./Feb. 1988. Then on to Ft. Belvoir Va. for A.I.T. But Pres. Bush made cuts in the military, and a prior illness relieved me from duty. I missed the 1st Gulf War by a little. I spend countless hours on my computer researching, trying to find out about my grandfathers military service. I have re-conected my dad with some of his buddies from Viet-Nam. They all got together this summer for a reunion. well that's a little bit about me. I really appreciate what you have done with this site. I hope that one day i would be able to do this for my grandfather.

Thank You,

Larry