John and his just desserts

65 years ago, a young kid from West Virginia returned home after 4 years of serving in the United States Navy. He and many others of his generation got a crash course in life, leaving home and being thousands of miles away while not knowing what his future looked like.

John Hunter, like so many others, came back after doing what was asked of them.  Once their feet touched American soil, they were told they would receive medals for all that they had done.  However, they wouldn’t be ready for another week or so, if they wanted to wait around.  Or, they could just go home.  Many took option “B”, including John.

It wasn’t until the past 40 days or so that we found out my dad had these medals coming.  Sister Terri grabbed the steering wheel and when she ran into some roadblocks (“Oh, no problem. He should have them in 18-24 months”) I appealed to the Facebook nation and had several people step up offering to help.  But before they could assist, my sister had a big breakthrough with someone connected to the military back in her neck of the woods.

The result–the day of my parents 60th anniversary, a FedEx package was delivered to their home, to add a crowning touch to the day’s celebration.  Talk about one proud 88-year-old American veteran.

Congratulations, Pop.  We were always proud of you, but somehow you made us up the pride another notch.

And thank you for your service.

Tim Hunter