Ron at Memorial Day 2019 ceremonies: “We have our freedoms today because so many were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice”

Ron commemorated Memorial Day 2019 at two services in southern Oregon by remembering how those who died defending our country protected the freedoms we all hold dear as Americans.

He said among those essential freedoms is the freedom of speech, which was especially on his mind coming off his own recent open-to-all townhalls in Roseburg, Coos Bay and Brookings.

“The reason we can have those meetings and enjoy our freedom is because Americans were willing to put themselves in harm’s way,” Ron said at services in Central Point at the Oregon Fallen War Heroes Memorial and at the Eagle Point National Cemetery.

“We have our freedoms today because so many were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice,” he said. “There’s a lesson this Memorial Day from Oregon for Washington, DC – it’s OK to disagree but let’s always agree to honor the heroes who put on the uniform to defend freedom.

“Those uniforms don’t come in different colors according to the party you belong to,” he said. “They come in one color – the American color that unites us.”

At the Oregon Fallen War Heroes Memorial at Don Jones Park in Central Point, Ron also honored the family of the late Oregon Secretary of State Dennis Richardson.

This year’s annual event at the memorial spearheaded by Richardson when he represented southern Oregon in the state House was the first since Richardson died in February 2019.

“A beautiful memorial like this doesn’t just happen by osmosis,” he said. “It comes about because a leader like Dennis stepped up.”