At Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, several hundred grateful Americans battled the heat and blistering sun to honor their family members and friends who paid the ultimate sacrifice in service to the nation on Memorial Day.
Many came armed with umbrellas. All said they came with grateful hearts.
Wiping away tears with a well-worn cotton handkerchief, veteran Salvador Campos said, "Freedom is not free, and so I’m just part of the team. That’s all."
Campos says that he attends the Memorial Day ceremony every year because remembering the fallen is an important job.
"I just feel bad because I’ve never been like this before. I used to be strong. I’m getting weak. It’s my age, I guess, and I don’t like to do that," Campos said when thinking about his comrades who went to Vietnam and did not come home.
Campos added that the San Antonio memorial always leaves him feeling grateful.
"People show up and they participate and they give thanks to the people that have lost their lives," Campos said.
"This day is special to probably all San Antonians, to reflect and honor the ones that came before us,” said Purple Heart recipient Peter Rosie.
Veteran Steve Zavala says that he knows many people buried at the cemetery, and he showed up on Monday to honor the memories of the people he thinks about every day.
"These people could best be described by the musical piece "Ode to the Common Man," because that's who we all are. We're just plain folk and we just believe in serving our nation, not ourselves," said Zavala, who noted that this year, more than many, is a time to think about the greater good of the country. "This is a time to set aside differences, and not be about self, but take a look at what these individuals sacrificed for us to be able to have harmony, not discord, as the focus. We're here to honor those specifically who died in defense of what our nation represents, the best of what our nation represents.”