Veterans Day perspective
Defending, spreading freedom motivateS troops, Army wife says
By DAVID LOWE Staff Writer

PHOTO BY DAVID LOWE Patrick Case, right, of Boy Scout Troop 26 from Lometa, plants the flag at Lampasas Middle School's Veterans Day ceremony as Brandon Kingsley of Lampasas' Troop 200 marches. The program included poems, patriotic songs and an address from Sheryl Holland, whose husband, Lt. Col. Daniel Holland, was killed in action in Iraq while serving as an Army veterinarian.

Sheryl Holland knows her husband, like all military veterans, served to protect his country. She also believes her husband's and other veterans' willingness to sacrifice came from their desire to spread the hope of freedom to other lands.

The widow of Lt. Col. Daniel Holland, an Army veterinarian killed in action in Iraq on May 18, 2006, Mrs. Holland addressed veterans, students, teachers and school staff at a Veterans Day program last Friday at Lampasas Middle School.

Holland's last letter home, which his wife read at the ceremony, illustrates veterans' commitment to America and its principles, said Mrs. Holland, a former Kempner resident.

"I did not come on this deployment to have fun or win awards," Holland wrote in a letter to his son, Garrett. "I came because I believe in what the United States stands for."

The desire to protect Americans and defend their country's liberties has motivated veterans through a variety of trials, Mrs. Holland said, from Japanese prisoner of-war camps in World War II to the current war against terrorism.

Warfare today encompasses much more than just battles themselves, she said. Her husband considered his humanitarian work, which included helping Iraqis start agricultural cooperatives and institute herd health programs, essential to victory in Iraq, said his widow.

"This is the way we'll win this war," Holland wrote in an email to his wife while in Iraq.

Mrs. Holland said her husband and his fellow soldiers believed helping Iraqis rebuild their country would soften antagonism toward the United States and help the Middle Eastern nation move toward a stable democracy.

Mrs. Holland often tells critics of the Iraq war that American forces aren't trying to completely change Iraqi culture or eliminate Islam.

"We're coming in there and trying to let them see if they want freedom," she said. "Do you think we Americans are the only ones who deserve freedom?"

Even as the military has adopted a more humanitarian focus, the former Lampasas County resident said her husband and fellow veterans consider the role of warrior their primary duty.

"Trust me, he also meant what he said about taking care of the Muslim extremists," Mrs. Holland said of her husband.

Americans need to keep the toll of the Iraq war in perspective, she added, as American forces have remained in Germany for more than 60 years after World War II.

While Holland mourned the loss of fellow soldiers, he often told his wife U.S. citizens and troops need the patience to wait for Iraqis to form a working de- mocracy. "You almost have to wait a generation to see a change," Mrs. Holland said.

While reflecting on her husband's service, Mrs. Holland mentioned her connections -- through her father in-law, brothers-in-law and sister-in-law -- to veterans of World War II, the Korean War and the Viet- nam War, as well as the ongoing conflict in Iraq.

The quest to defend and spread freedom has guided veterans in all of America's wars, and it continues to prompt soldiers to sacrifice today, Mrs. Holland said.

"There are still people who believe that strongly in our country and who want to defend it," she said.