In this sermon, Hershel (Woody) Williams speaks about the importance of remembering and honoring the sacrifices made by those who have served in the military and their families. He shares the story of the mother with four sons in the military, emphasizing the difficulties faced by military families. The speaker then recounts the story of two old Marines who guide people to grave sites in a cemetery and their encounter with an old woman who has lost several family members, all Marines, who served in different wars. The woman's story highlights the significance of duty, honor, and sacrifice in the lives of military personnel and their families. Williams concludes by urging the audience to remember and honor those who have given their lives for freedom.

Thank you. Thank you very much. It sure is good to be here today. I accept that applause, not from me. I accept that applause for all of those Marines who never got to come home.

So let's give them another applause. Applause Many of us in this room had never been there before, but everyone who goes into the military gets into a combat situation or any other kind of a hazardous situation, what they are really saying to all America and to all the world. You may take my life, but you cannot take my freedom. You know, one of the people, or groups of people, that we seldom give credit to, and credit to, and I don't know why. This mother had four sons in the military.

She had no idea where they were, and for the most part they couldn't tell her. They couldn't write home and say, Mom, we just landed at an aisle and so and so. They couldn't do that. They couldn't write home to Mom and tell her anything about what they were doing because everything was a secret. My mom had three of us on active duty at the same time, two in Europe and I was in the Pacific.

She had no idea where we were. She could barely read and write. No way could we tell her, Mom, we're okay. We're on an island That is not being bombed. As far as Mom was concerned Pearl Harbor is where the war started.

That's where the war was. That's all she knew. Let me close with the story of two old Marines that had the duty one day of guiding people to grave sites in a cemetery. Maybe some of you have had that duty. And one of them was writing and said, I just wanted the day to be over and get home.

It was 1655. Now for you guys, don't know what time that is. Five minutes to quitting time. Then we can close the gates and go home. It was a hot August day.

Their uniform had been hot. The crease was long gone. They saw a car pull in the drive, an old 69 or 70 Cadillac. It looked almost new, but as it pulled into the parking lot, the parking space, this guy said, I thought, oh no. An old woman got out very slowly.

He said, first I thought she was partially paralyzed. She had a cane, but she had a whole arm full of roses. He said, four or five bunches, the best I could tell. Well, I couldn't help myself and I thought, and it came unwanted, and I felt terrible later. She's going to spend an hour and my left hip is killing me.

I'm ready to get out of here and go home and get my supper. But I volunteered to assist anyone coming to the cemetery, so I had to do it. My buddy Kevin, he'd already gone to the gate, ready to lock it. And if I could just hurry this old biddy alone, I can get out of here and go to supper." We can imagine that thought. My hip made gritty noises as I went the first two steps toward her, and the pain went all the way up.

I must have made a real military sight. A middle-aged man with a pot gut. We don't have any, do we? Thank you. And a limp in his get-along, you know, walking like a West Virginian.

But that's because we have hills and you can only go around one way. You can start the other way, the lag won't reach so you can't go. But he said I stopped in front of her halfway up the walk and she looked at me with that old woman's squint. Have you ever done that, that old woman's squint? Squint your eyes at somebody?

You ever do that? Uh-huh, uh-huh, yes, she just did it. Yeah. She looked at him again and said, oh, a veteran I see. Where were you stationed?

He said, Vietnam, ma'am. Infantry, 70, or not 68 to 71. And she looked a little closer and said, oh, wounded in action I see. Well done. Sorry to keep you, but I'll be as quick as I can." He said, I lied a little bigger.

I said, no hurry, ma'am. She smiled at me and she said, son, I am an 85-year-old woman and I can tell a lie a long ways off." You never could fool mother because you're married. You never could fool mother. So she said, let's get this done. It might be the very last time that I will ever be able to do this.

She said, my name is Joanne Weismerman and I got a few Marines that I would like to see one more time. Yes, ma'am, at your service, ma'am. So she headed toward the World War I section, stopping at a stone. She took one of the bunches of flowers out of my arm, laid it on top of the stone. And she murmured something, but I couldn't understand what she said.

The name on the stone was Donald X Davidson, USMC, France, 1918. She turned and made straight to the World War II section. Stopping the stone, I saw a tear start trickling down her cheek. She put a bunch of stone, a bunch of flowers on that stone too. The name was Steven X.

Davidson, USMC 1943. She went up a row of ways and laid another bunch on a stone that said, Stanley J. Weiserman, USMC 1944. She paused for a second and then said, Two more, son, and we'll be done. Said, I almost didn't say anything, but I just couldn't help it.

I said, yes, ma'am, you take your time. But she looked a little confused because she said, where is the Vietnam section? I'm holding those roses and I said, that way ma'am, down that way. So she chuckled a little bit and said, son, me and old age ain't too friendly anymore. But she headed down the walk that I'd pointed and she stopped at a couple of stones before she found the one that she wanted and then she placed a bunch of flowers on the stone of Larry Weiserman, USMC, 1968.

And the last one on Darrell Weiserman, USMC, 1970. She stood there and murmured a few words, and I still couldn't make out what she said. And then she said, okay, son, I'm finished. Take me back to my car. Yes, ma'am, but may I ask a question?

Were all of those your kinfolk? She paused, said yes. Donald was my father. Stephen was my uncle. Stanley was my husband.

Larry and Daryl were our sons. All killed in action, all Marines. She stopped. Whether she was finished or not, I couldn't really tell. But then she made her way slowly to the car.

He said, I double-timed the best I could to where Kevin was standing at the gate. And I told Kevin, get on the other gate. Quickly. I have something I've got to do. And he started to say something, but he could tell by my looks.

He better not say anything. So she made her way around the rotunda, headed toward the gate, and I said, Kevin, you stand at attention at that gate, and I'll stand at attention at this one, and follow my lead. I made it across the drive to the other gate, and when that old Cadillac come puttering up the straightaway around the hedges toward the gate, I called in my best gunnery sergeant voice, ATTACK HARD! I had to hand it to Kevin. He never blinked an eye.

Full military attention, and a salute that would have made his drill instructor very, very happy. She drove through the gate with a send-off that was absolutely long past due for the service that she had rendered to America, causing her to really understand and know what duty, honor, and sacrifice really means. He said, I can't be sure, but I certainly do believe that I saw a salute return from that old Cadillac as it went out of sight. God bless you.