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As we have for the past several years, the News & Record is honored to list those veterans who have passed on during 2008. Each veteran served his or her country bravely, and comments from loved ones tell of the dedication and patriotism of those who wore the uniform.

This is not a complete list of veterans who died during 2008, but this a list of names submitted by families and friends. I thank all who sent in the details on their loved one. All letters had two common threads: The families all said how much they miss the veteran and how proud the veteran was to have served his country.

We are losing a lot of good men and women, and that is inevitable. Nobody lives forever, and it happened after our Civil War, after World War I and now after World War II, Korea and Vietnam. It is our responsibility to ensure that these honored dead shall not have died in vain and that those who served their country are never forgotten.

Perhaps it was best said by President Ronald Reagan at Arlington National Cemetery, Nov. 11, 1985: "It is, in a way, an odd thing to honor those who died in defense of our country in wars far away. The imagination plays a trick.

"We see these soldiers in our mind as old and wise. We see them as something like founding fathers, grave and gray-haired.

"But most of them were boys when they died. They gave up two lives: the one they were living and the one they would have lived.

"When they died, they gave up their chance to be husbands and fathers and grandfathers. They gave up their chance to be revered old men. They gave up everything for their country, for us.

"All we can do is remember."

Amen, Mr. President. These words seem so appropriate for this column, in which we remember the veterans who were fortunate enough to live through the war (or wars) they fought for us, and who have died this past year. Each of them will be missed.

Deceased veterans '08

Best, William Albert: World War II, 78th Division, U.S. Army. ETO, Sergeant

Carter, John Keith: World War II, USAAF, ETO, POW, Major

Charles, Howard Clifton Jr.: World War II, U. S. Army Air Corps, Lt. Colonel

Cudworth, James W.: World War II, 8th Army Air Force, POW, 1st Lieutenant

Greeson, Albert Grady: World War II, U. S. Army, Invasion of Southern France, Pfc.

Hodgin, David Newlin: World War II, U. S. Army Air Force, ETO, Flt. Officer.

Lisenby, William Edmund "Doc": Korean War, Vietnam War, U.S. Marine Corps, Captain

McLean, Ernest C. Jr.: World War II , U. S. Army Infantry, ETO, Tech. Sergeant

Morris, Lewis S.: World War II, U. S. Navy, Pacific Theater, Saipan , Lt. Cmdr.

Phipps, Robert Edward: World War II, U.S. Marine Corps, Pacific Theater,Corp.

Pike, Allen: World War II, U. S. Army Air Force, ETO, 2nd Lieutenant

Rimmer, Roy Harvey Sr.: World War II, U.S. Army, ETO, Germany, S/Sgt

Robertson, Hunter Dewey: World War II, U. S. Navy, Atlantic and Pacific Theaters, Baker, 1st Class

Thomas, James Kenneth: World War II, U.S. Navy, Pacific Theater, Commander

White, Edward Lee: World War II, U. S. Navy, Pacific Theater, Chief Petty Officer

Wills, James Cecil: World War II , 15th U. S. Army Air Corps, ETO, Sergeant

Sandra Lumley wrote about Capt. William Lisenby, USMC, son of the late Mr. and Mrs. William E. Lisenby of Summit Avenue in Greensboro: "Capt. Lisenby proudly and honorably served two tours in Korea and three tours in Vietnam&ellipses;Doc was one of 'Chesty' Puller's (most decorated officer in the USMC) 1st snipers and would later become a POW for 16 months and eight days during his last tour in Vietnam." Lisenby was buried at Arlington with full military honors.

Ernest White, who is totally committed to all veterans in the Gibsonville area, wrote about his uncle, Edward Lee White, who joined the Navy in 1938, retired in 1958 as Chief Petty Officer and is "now on his last assignment to that aircraft carrier in the skies."

"Uncle Edd was aboard the USS Enterprise CV6 Aircraft Carrier Dec. 7, 1941. The carrier had been at dock in Pearl Harbor on weekends in the past. On this weekend it did not arrive because of weather and other delays and I believe in God's hands until the evening hours of that Sunday. The Enterprise (was) the most decorated ship in Navy History. Uncle Edd was aboard during nine of the battles that she served in," Ernest White wrote.

Melanie Carol Rimmer wrote with pride about her father, a combat veteran of the war in Europe: "My father did not talk about the war very much, but he always said that he was most proud of bringing ALL of his men back. He was buried with full military honors."

I know this list is incomplete and that more veterans than I have listed died this year. If any family member wants the name of his deceased veteran listed for 2008, send me the veteran's name; which war he or she was part of; branch of service; rank (private, seaman, lieutenant) and your name and phone number. Send this information by January 10, and I will include a supplemental list in a future column.

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I also want to remember the lone veteran who fought in World War I who is still with us. He is Frank Woodruff Buckles, 107 years old. In WWI, there were 4,743,826 who wore the uniform and fought the Central Powers, mainly Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

Buckles went overseas in 1917 and served in England and France. After the war, Buckles got a job with the American President Steamship Lines and, in a terrible accident of fate, was in Manila when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and America joined the Allies to fight World War II. The Japanese invaded the Philippines, and Buckles was interned by the Japanese along with about 2,000 other Americans. He spent more than three years in prison camps and was liberated by American troops in February, 1945. He lives in Charles Town, WVa.

Please send your war stories and observations to: Ned Harrison, News & Record, P. O. Box 20848, Greensboro, NC 27420. Send e-mail to: vetspeak@earthlink.net