I sat next to her at the luncheon at which we were both speaking. An unassuming person, one would never know that Cathy was a pioneer in our armed forces.
But then she got up to speak.
As I listened to her I was struck by her words. In her short talk, Cathy was able to get to the heart of the motivations, the qualities, and the challenges of being a veteran.
She acknowledged that being a veteran means many things and each individual veteran has his or her own experiences and memories. However, she said, “we all share an understanding of what it means to live for something greater than ourselves, a noble cause that shapes the future of our lives and our nation.”
Specifically, she said that “being a veteran means embodying honor and putting service before self.”
“When I took the oath,” she explained, “I vowed to defend the Constitution, to protect our freedoms and to serve with integrity.” “That promise is not just a phrase we recite, it’s a commitment we live by every day in service and beyond.”
Further: “It’s about doing what’s right, no matter the cost, and upholding a standard that we pass on to future generations. The honor of service is something that stays with us long after the uniforms come off. It’s about living as an example of loyalty, dedication, and pride in our country.”
Beyond these obligations, she said that being a veteran required courage.
She said: “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to face it. As veterans, we’ve all known moments of fear . . . fear for our lives, for our brothers and sisters in arms, for the uncertainty that lies ahead. But we carry on because we believe in the goodness of what we’re doing. Courage is what drives us to push forward when others might step back. A blank check to protect and serve without asking for recognition or reward. Courage is the heart of what we do, the reason we overcome hardship and the reason we never give up.”
Also essential, she said, is perseverance. She pointed out, “There’s no guarantee of success in the challenges we face” and every mission, deployment, and training exercise “requires a level of endurance that tests the mind, body, and spirit.”
Despite these challenges and hardships, she said, “We persevere because we believe in our country, even when the odds are against us, the journey is hard, and the outcome is uncertain.”
“To be a veteran,” she said, “is to understand that real strength is not just physical but mental and emotional, too.” “It’s the strength to keep moving forward, knowing that we’re part of something greater than ourselves.”
Finally, all of these elements—honor, courage, perseverance—stem “from a deep love of country–patriotism.”
She explained: “Veterans love their country not just as a place but as an idea. A promise of freedom, opportunity, and justice for all. We serve because we believe in that promise, we want to protect it, defend it, and pass it on. We don’t serve ourselves; we serve our families, our communities, and for every person who calls this nation home. This patriotism, this love of country is a devotion that drives us to sacrifice, to serve, and to uphold our nation’s highest ideals.”
“I am proud to have served,” she concluded, “and I am grateful to continue to serve in spirit.”
God bless Captain Cathy Cook and all our nation’s veterans as we honor them on Veterans Day.
Lance Izumi is senior director of the Center for Education at the Pacific Research Institute. He served as a captain in the California State Military Reserve from 1991 to 1996.
