For me the “Star-Spangled Banner” means perseverance under unspeakable odds. It means sacrifices that men and women of all walks of life, of all colors and all religions made so that future generations will live in a land of liberty and enjoy what the Constitution spells out by our Founding Fathers.

When I hear the “Star-Spangled Banner,” I am reminded of Staff Sgt. Richerson, an Army MP who lost his life in Somalia one day short of returning home on rotation in 1992. I am reminded of Staff Sgt. Bruce Horner, who was killed by a sniper’s bullet while serving in Iraq in 2007.

I am reminded of the men and women who sacrificed their lives, some coming home in body bags, many returning with missing limbs and many more forever living with conditions such as PTSD from their combat experiences.

I am proud to have had the honor to serve my country for

21 years. My husband, a decorated combat veteran, also served 23 years.

The Oath of Enlistment, which every person who enters military service in this great land takes, promises “to support the Constitution and laws of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” My oath has no expiration date.

That, my friends, is what the “Star-Spangled Banner” means to me!