Marines that mesmerized me
by Jim
I was the emcee during a question and answer session after a screening of the new war documentary The Hornet’s Nest at Oakley’s corporate headquarters last month. Audience members were able to talk with four young men who served as Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Mike Boettcher was on the panel, too. Mike is a member of the Easter Seals’ board of directors, and he’s the incredible man who embedded himself in Afghanistan to make the film.
There were hundreds of us in the audience, and all of us in the auditorium were mesmerized by the four Marines on the panel. We’d just seen graphic firefight scenes in The Hornet’s Nest, but listening to the Marines on the panel describe the intensity and the unbelievable circumstances they’d been in, in their own words, made it even more real.
Reflecting on what they’d said made me think about how much more we need to do to help the brave young men and women who have served. I hope we all understand how important this is. As a nation, we have an obligation to the men and women who have served and the families who have sacrificed so much. As an organization, Easter Seals is responding, and we will continue to do even more.