Commentary
All across America, families of service members—those fortunate their family member returned home and those whose family member tragically did not—will leave a place setting at their holiday table for those who never came home.
For many, it is a solemn reminder of sacrifice and loss, but for many more, the empty place setting also sparks great memories and, ultimately, great stories.
The ultimate fear among soldiers who went off to fight for their country, explains retired Army Capt. Tyler Merritt, is that their sacrifice and service will be forgotten as time fades or dismissed as society’s attitudes turn on the reason they were sent into battle….