This place honors those who served and those now serving, and speaks in the voice of a veteran who went where others feared to go, did what others failed to do, asked nothing from those who gave nothing, and reluctantly accepted the thought of eternal loneliness should he fail. It recalls seeing the face of terror, feeling the stinging cold of fear, enjoying the sweet taste of a moment's love, and having cried, pained, hoped, and lived through times others would say were best forgotten. It affirms pride in having been a soldier, a marine, a sailor, or an airman, remembers POW - MIA as not forgotten, and defines a veteran as an ordinary yet extraordinary human being who offered some of life's most vital years in service to the country and sacrificed personal ambitions so that others would not have to sacrifice theirs.