We celebrate many holidays in our country. That in itself is a testimony to our respect for everything that is good about having the privilege to be a citizen of it.

Memorial Day, which we celebrate officially on Monday, as far as we are concerned is one of the two most important remembrances that we celebrate - the celebration of our Independence is the other.

Every one of us has had a family member, stretching back to the war of Independence to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, who has served our nation in the armed forces.

Some of those family members have given the ultimate sacrifice and died - many times in far away places - in order that we can have the freedom to celebrate our lives as we choose.

During the more than 230 years of our nation's existence, millions of men and women have given of their time to defend and protect us, and hundreds of thousands have died doing so.

Each one of those people deserve a special thank you. If you are reading this right now and you have a veteran with you, reach over and give them a big hug and be thankful that they are there with you.

In Newton County, since World War I up to our modern conflicts, 83 of our brothers and sisters, fathers and grandfathers have died insuring that you and I can enjoy our barbecues and family get-togethers this weekend.

We honor those brave souls and their families. Below you will find the names of each one of fallen from Newton County.

Thank you, brave souls and God Bless America.