Mark Fluet, the owner and CEO of FESHOPWORLD has launched his campaign to help support veterans. He has been a 10 year veteran of the armed forces and wishes to make it known that these vipers that pull out the stops to destroy our country will no longer be able to.

“It is with great disappointment that I see so many so-called non-profit organizations not live up to their need in the time when our country needs them the most.” This statement brought owner Mark Fluet through the doors to make his company sell military collectibles and he will donate straight to the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign wars. This way it is directly to the veteran’s organization itself.

Mark Fluet is determined to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the economy is truly up to us in the private sector and not the big bankers, or politicians, or any other rich entity. FESHOPWORLD started its campaign by emailing VFW and American Legion Officers making them aware of his campaign that will be never ending.

“FESHOPWORLD is doing its part to make our economy better, Now it is up to every person here in the United states to help this cause we are not taking donations we are asking you to patronize and buy our products we will do the donations.” Mark Fluet said with pure confidence.

Mark Fluet has outdone himself this time. Now the FESHOPWORLD owner and CEO are truly designing one of kind products for military and veteran supporters. FESHOPWORLD has gone Global and is directing worldwide traffic. This campaign is sure to make d a difference but that’s not all.

Mark Fluet is planning to take part of his own earnings and put them into physical store outlets where he will hire veterans that cannot find work. This is phase two of his strategic Economy fix plan.

He is asking for the entire support of the United States. Buy the products download the e-books, buy the games let’s all do our part and help our country get back on track.

This topic is very special to me; I come from a military family. My father, both of my grandfathers, and one of my great-grandfathers were career military officers. One of my grandfathers fought in the Vietnam War.  My great grandfather was serving in Hawaii when Pearl Harbor was bombed and he remained in the Pacific region throughout World War II.

Our military personnel deserve to be honored during and after their service. They serve our country, leave their families, travel to faraway places and know that they may never return. They risk their lives every day to make sure that the people of the United States and the people of the world remain safe. They do this not for money or recognition, but for love of country, love of freedom and a sense of duty and honor.

Many people take for granted what the members of our military do for us. They don’t fully appreciate or understand the sacrifice that the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines have made and make every day.  Often people only think of the military on certain days such as Memorial Day or Veteran’s Day, but this is wrong.  All our military heroes deserve to be honored every minute of every day for their sacrifices but even that would not be enough. Since we cannot have an adequate number of memorials or hold parades every minute, how should we honor our heroes? 

We can honor our military heroes by visiting military hospitals or visiting their homes to see if they need anything. If there is a military family whose mother or father is at war, you could see if they need help since there is only one parent at home. When we see veterans we can do small acts of kindness towards them such as thanking them for their service and shaking their hand.  We need to let them know we appreciate their sacrifices. We can also wear yellow ribbons as a symbol to remember our troops. Most of all, we can respect the American flag. The flag represents our country which is what these men and women fought so hard to protect and keep safe.  By respecting the flag we are respecting and honoring our military heroes.

 I believe the right time to honor our military heroes is always. 

Moina Michael in 1915 was inspired by the poem, “In Flanders Fields,” to write her own poem:

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

It was Mona’s original idea to wear the red poppy to honor those that died serving our country though times of war. Several countries picked up this idea to sell artificial poppies to fund orphans and widows of war. This tradition is still carried out in the U.S. by the VFW. Disabled vets make the artificial poppies through their  “Buddy” Poppy program.

Over the years, many of us have lost sight of the true meaning of Memorial Day. We have been blessed that we are not in constant battle to protect our great country. The events of 9/11 struck home. We have five centuries of fallen patriots to honor for the lives we have today.

The “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed in Dec 2000 to re-educate and remind Americans what the true meaning of Memorial Day is. At 3 pm in your area, all Americans are asked to stop whatever they are doing and take a moment of silence or listen to Taps out of respect and honor in remembrance.

This Memorial Day remember and honor those Massachusetts heroes (or your state) we have lost in Iraq by visiting the Vets Friends pages.

Resource:

• http://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html
• http://www.vetfriends.com/memorial/mem_alphab.cfm?war_id=17&page_id=1&states_id=23

If you want to help elderly or ailing veterans in VA (Veterans Affairs) hospitals but don’t really want to see them in the state they are in, you can donate supplies to the hospital.  Little toiletries like hotel soaps are really appreciated.  You can also donate books and games.

Support Buddy Poppy Drives

A Buddy Poppy is a little silk flower that veterans receiving VA care make for a little income.  Around Memorial Day, you will see a lot of drives where you can receive a Buddy Poppy in exchange for a donation that benefits veterans. Don’t know what to do with your Buddy Poppy?  You can wear it on your lapel, put it in a bouquet of flowers, use it in gift wrapping, and more!

Visit VA Hospitals

You can look up VA hospitals online to find the one nearest to you.  Just visit with some of the veterans and talk with them a little.  They will be extremely happy to see a new, smiling face.

Make Christmas, Valentine Cards, Best Wishes or Welcome Home Cards

People like to know they are thought of, and a card is a perfect way to let troops overseas or veterans in the community know that you care.  You can make simple cards with construction paper and markers–the homemade ones are the one most appreciated anyway.

Offer Rides to Appointments

Ask a veteran you know if they or someone else they know needs rides to their appointments.  You will find there is a big need.  You can also call your local VA office to see what is availabe for you to do.

Another meaning of poppies from Greco-Roman influence is the promise of resurrection after death. For their culture, the bright colors of poppies (especially red) signify life after death. In many cultures, vibrant red means life and white means death. In most western cultures exactly the opposite is true. A white wedding dress for instance, is common but in part of the east and Asia it signifys death and funerary.

Lest We Forget…

Image Source

The remembrance flower of the 53 member states of the Commonwealth of Nations is the papaver rhoeas, also called the red flowered Corn Poppy. This is a weed common throughout parts of Europe. Notably, this common wild flowering perennial is found in Belgium in a place called Flanders Field and was made immortal by the writings of the Canadian surgeon and soldier John McCrae in his poem “In Flanders Fields,” May 3rd, 1915.

Lt. Col. John McCrae had witnessed his friend Lieutenant Alexis Helmer die and the poem he wrote about Flanders Fields gives meaningful tribute to his and other soldier’s deaths during the war. In the poem the poet describes the poppies blowing in the windy field of crosses that marked the place where they were buried. This popular tribute is how the poppy became the symbol of sacrifice for those who fell in war campaigns, battle of World War I and later, in all other wars inclusive.

Remembrance poppies, artificial flowers made from paper or plastic, are sold in many countries during the weeks before Remembrance Day which falls on November 11th. The Remembrance Day observation is for honoring the living veterans of war.

 In the United States the paper poppies are sold prior to Memorial Day, the last Monday in the month of May. The flower as used here are to commemorate the veterans of various wars including the Korean and Vietnam Conflicts as well as both World Wars.

An interesting fact about the Canadian version of commemorative poppy (plastic flower base with black center affixed to the wearer with a common bent pin, shown above) was that in 1980 the Royal Canadian Legion formed a committee to decide changes of design and/or colors of the commemorative token. The traditional black center of the red flower was voted to be changed to green to denote the green grassy fields of France, where the Allies landed. However, this change to a green center in the poppy proved to be quite unpopular with the membership. The green felt had already been purchased in large quantity and was used in Remembrance poppies until the material was exhausted. The popular black center design was by commission reinstated back in the design by decree in 1986 but it was not until the green felt material was exhausted in the year 2002 did the popular black center returned. At this time again, persons not familiar with the change in the 1980s to return to traditional colors  caused some mild debate but the black centers were reinstated and continue in use today.

I vaguely remember the green centers of the Remembrance Day poppies here in Canada but am quite accustomed to the sight of the black centers of Remembrance Poppies and would protest any change of design should it ever be proposed again.

Image via Wikipedia

Restful sleep and honor for the fallen soldiers. Their sacrifices shall never be forgotten. Like the ideals of the soldiers who fought for their nation and its ideals, the Remembrance Poppy shall endure just as the poppies of Flanders Field.

Read more about the life and times of the Canadian soldier, surgeon, teacher and poet Lieutenant Colonial John McCrae here at the Veterans Affairs Canada web site.

First of all, many people help our overseas troops. When a citizen helps the troops, he or she is helping protect our country. Imagine a woman sending a care package to our soldiers. The soldiers open the box to find movies, popcorn, and candy. Isn’t that a great thing to imagine? Back in America, children are decorating beautiful cards to send to the dispatched troops. The teacher smiles as she sees a card with the words, “Please come home soon!” written on the front. She packs up the cards with a tear in her eye and feels good all day. Once the soldiers get the cards, they have hope because they know people really care. See what just a few children did to make so many people happy? At the very same time, an old man sends a donation out of his small paycheck to the armed forces. All of these citizens make America a great place.

Furthermore, volunteers help our towns stay safe and clean. As a volunteer fire crew rushes to put out a fire in a burning building, one fireman sees a group of people standing by an upper window. He bravely climbs through the building to rescue the family. Thanks to him, the family escapes with nothing but a few minor burns. Sadly, in 2002, 74% of all firefighter deaths were of volunteer firefighters. The next day, town held a Cleanup Day. Hundreds of volunteers showed up to clean the parks, public buildings, and streets of garbage and litter. As you can see, America benefits from volunteers.

Our citizens’ actions are what make America such a great place. If we all do small things as citizens, our actions will help our communities immensely.