Giving Thanks to Heroes 2013

During the month of October, Marie Callender’s of San Juan Capistrano (www.mariecallenders.com) will offer the community an opportunity to purchase special priced gift cards ($ 8.79 each) for military families to redeem towards a holiday pie this Thanksgiving.  The cards will be distributed to the families by Homefront America, a San Juan Capistrano military outreach and support organization.

If you want to take it a step further, you can also sponsor a turkey certificate for an additional $10.  The organization is looking to serve more than 200 military families this Thanksgiving with groceries, turkey certificates and pies.  For more information about the Giving Thanks to Heroes program, visit www.homefrontamerica.org.

Although I recently lost my job, I still have plenty to be thankful for – family, friends, health, and the knowledge there are brave men and women who will put themselves in harm’s way to protect us.  When I was a kid, my father traveled a lot, but it was never for months at a time.  My biggest worry was “is he going to bring me any postcards back from Omaha or Kansas City,” not “he going to be injured or killed.”  He might have missed an occasional game or concert, but not a whole sports season or school year such as many of the children of military families face today. Are you familiar with the phrase as American as apple pie?  Despite all the uncertainties of the future with a government shut down and Obamacare, I think we are lucky to be living in the greatest country in the world.  What better way to thank those who protect her with an apple (or pumpkin, cherry, etc.) pie?  A pie and/or a turkey certificate would be a sweet and delicious way to show military families how thankful we are for their sacrifices!