(I was going to post this first thing in the morning of June 6th, but had second thoughts and decided to jump the gun by a few hours.)

I love Sam Elliott and the characters he’s played over the years. His voice is mesmerizing. Listen to this clip as he reads the story of Sgt. Ray Lambert, a D-Day veteran.

 And then an interview by CBS News.

Followed by an AP interview from Omaha Beach from earlier today.

He might not think of himself as a hero, but Sgt. Ray Lambert is a hero in my book!

Please let me tell you about another soldier who is a hero to me. For the first 10 years of my military career, I was trained as a combat medic and eventually became an instructor of combat medics. I never had the opportunity to serve in combat, but worked with many who were wounded in combat.  As a 19 y/o Private First Class who was waiting for my training as an Advanced Clinical Specialist (91C) I was briefly assigned to an orthopedic ward at Valley Forge General Hospital. (No, George Washington was not there at the same time!) One of my first patients was an 18 y/o soldier who had stepped on a land mine in Viet Nam. He lost both legs, one arm, two fingers on his remaining hand, one eye and had lots of burns. The skin that wasn’t burned was used as donor sites for skin grafts for the areas that were burned. He was almost completely covered by bandages that needed changing every 4 hours and I was supposed to help him. Turns out, he only needed someone to gather and set up the equipment and he taught me the basics of sterile technique and changing dressings. I won’t mention his name here, but I’ll never forget him or his courage or his desire to live, either.

Please stop for a moment today to think of and honor the Sgt. Ray Lamberts of the world. His story is just one of millions surrounding D-Day, but is indicative of the sacrifices made that day and that continue today.