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2021 Memorial Day thread - Honoring The (Sports) Men who Served
1951WheatiesPremium
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Thank you to all the veterans on CU!
Here’s a few cards of guys who protected freedom and their fellow citizens - even those they didn’t agree with.
HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY, CU FORUMS
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What a great generation the likes we will never see again. You can also add Mays to the list and I believe Hank Greenberg, Feller, DiMaggio, Musial, Jackie.... Teddy Ballgame - what could have been. Two stints and lost 4.5 years in his prime. Retired #4 on the all time Hr list and would have had 650+ if he had not missed those years plus the all time RBI leader. Thank you to all the brave men and women who have served and sacrificed for our country!
More Recent: Pat Tillman
Rizzuto even served in Navy
Two more for the weekend to thank them all...
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
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Dee Fondy was in his senior year at high school when he entered military service with the Army on April 8, 1943. He trained as a radio technician at Camp Cooke, California, and was at Camp Polk, Louisiana, before serving with the artillery in Europe, landing at Utah Beach, Normandy, in September 1944. Fondy fought in five major battles and was awarded a Purple Heart for shrapnel wounds in his right foot.
Great thread, Wheaties!
Thank you to all who have served or currently serving. My family and myself greatly appreciate you.
"I'd walk through Hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball"
Charlie Hustle
Willie Mays - who would have had 700 home runs had he not served early in his MLB career.
Jackie Robinson - was an officer!
Not to nitpick and not that you can't recognize former service members anytime you feel like it, but this is more what Veteran's Day is for. Memorial Day is for guys like Tillman, who never came back, dying while serving. Simply pointing this out for those who don't know this as there are still plenty of folks who don't know the difference, while not implying in any way that the OP is one.
In memory of all who lost loved ones and a thank you to all who have served this great county!
Not directly sports, but some of them could have ended being sports heroes,,, too.
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A native of Brooklyn, New York, Omar "Turk" Lown was signed as an amateur free agent by the Brooklyn Dodgers and entered their farm system in 1942. He attended and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School. His baseball career was interrupted by World War II, serving in the US Army as an infantryman seeing action in the Battle of the Bulge and receiving the Purple Heart. Following his military service, he returned to minor league baseball with the Dodgers from 1946–50. In November 1950, he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the Rule 5 draft making his major league debut on April 24, 1951.
Ted Williams: Fighter pilot and flight instructor in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. Comes home, wins American League pennant, MVP, Triple Crown. Goes back into the military in 1952 and 1953 during the Korean War. Comes home, wins batting titles. Remarkable.
God bless every veteran. We are the luckiest people on the planet because of the sacrifice of these folks then and now.
A little different, but still along these lines in this postcard advertising a 1907 Decoration Day lacrosse game between Hobart and the Rochester Lacrosse Club. Memorial Day was known as Decoration Day from 1868-1970.
Sorry everyone; not a sport's card.
A very fitting description for today:
ETA: Thank you to everyone that has served!
I'm - obviously - not a "sports" category.
I was drafted right out of high school; served from Jun '66 to Jul '97.
Started as enlisted - later on OCS commissioned Infantry and later a professional.
I served in Vietnam and Desert Storm.
I'm proud to have served our country and salute those who have served and especially those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
And here's where it started for me - on the bus, headed to basic training at Fort Dix, NJ, June 1966.
Hi Stone,
Your service is to millions of us who did not serve, considered something to look up. I thank you personally for all.
Today is Memorial Day though, not Veterans Day. Memorial Day is for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Please respect that, verse the current VP similar ignorance of it.
Please respect the actual fallen Gods.
My apologies to all who didn’t like the way I combined cards and Memorial Day.
You are all correct that today is a day of remembrance for those fallen soldiers and we should most certainly honor their sacrifice.
My college RA - Brian McPhillips - did ROTC and after college, was killed in action in Afghanistan around 2002-03.
A great kid.
Rest In Peace, Brian.
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/987963/1951-wheaties-premium-photos-set-registry#latest
Totally agree with your "memorial" reference.
The main thing I do on this day is reflect. We lost a lot of really good men and I'll carry that forever.
My reference and memory as stated is a kind of "context" to my "salute to those" reference. I "can" carry two thoughts in my head at the same time and would never mean any disrespect to the core spirit of this day.
It's the survivors who can provide context to this experience and I can share how hard it is - early on - to shed the guilt of getting to "come home."
It's the greatest holiday.