September 08, 2011
MILTON, Ga. - Tammi Kimsey has thrown down the gauntlet and issued a challenge to the residents of Milton – fly your flag on Sept. 11.
Initially, Kimsey wanted her neighbors in the Avensong subdivision to take part. But that wasn't enough.
"After thinking about it more, I decided that I didn't want to just see Avensong accept this challenge, I wanted to see the entire city of Milton accept it," Kimsey said.
"Ten years ago, in the days after Sept. 11 happened, I remember how almost every home had their American flag flying proudly to show their patriotism and the solidarity our country had," said Kimsey. " I remember the feeling of pride I had seeing so many flags. And I want to honor the almost 3,000 who lost their lives on Sept. 11 in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania."
Now, 10 years later, Kimsey's son-in-law, Lt. Paul Christian Ritter, is serving overseas in the Navy, and his deployment has caused him to be largely absent for his newborn daughter's life.
"He has missed out on all of her 'firsts,'" Kimsey said. "The first time she rolled over, first time she started crawling, first tooth and she's very close to her first steps."
For all that time, his wife – Kimsey's daughter, Nicole, a Milton High School graduate -- has had to raise the child alone at their home in Washington state.
"I want to honor Christian's service to our country, and the service of the millions of men and women who voluntarily agree to put their lives and the lives of their families on hold, and are willing to go into harm's way in some of the most hostile environments, to keep a 9/11 from ever happening again," Kimsey said.
"On the anniversary of that horrible day, let's honor those that lost their lives, as well as all the military men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice, their lives, during the fight against al-Qaeda in both Iraq and Afghanistan so that we can all feel safe here in the U.S," she said. "Let's have every home fly their American flag with the same pride they did 10 years ago."
Labels: 9/11, 911, 911 command and control center, city of milton, City of MIlton Property Taxes, milton, Milton City, milton county, Milton Georgia
# posted by
Brian Vanderhoff @ 5:09 PM
