In honor of veterans present and past

The photo that you see to your right is my maternal grandpa, Joe Ross. Sixty four years ago this week, he earned a Purple Heart in the most costly (in terms of casualties) battle the Marine Corps has ever faced, the battle of Iwo Jima. He didn't speak of the battle often, but when he did it was clear that it was important to him that the sacrifice of veterans such as himself were remembered. He was injured twice on Iwo Jima. The first time, he was injured on (If I remember correctly) his birthday (February 20) which was the second day of the five week battle. After recovering for a week, he returned to the island February 28th and was injured a second time (blast concussion) on March 12th. After that injury, he was evacuated from the island and sent to a military hospital in San Francisco. According to a newspaper article from his local newspaper at the time, when the battle was over all of his company was killed except the captain, a lieutenant and 16 men. This past week was both his birthday and the anniversary of the start of the battle, though he's been gone for just under 13 years I thought it was appropriate to remember him here. He is remembered in my home daily, as my son Joey is named in his honor. Thank you for taking the time to read about my grandpa, if you have the opportunity please take a moment to thank a living veteran for their sacrifice.