Volunteers place 500 tokens on fallen heroes' graves for the Honor Project DFW
People across North Texas are remembering fallen soldiers this Memorial Day weekend. That included a group of veterans, military spouses, and volunteers in Dallas. The Fort Worth and Dallas chapters of the Travis Manion Foundation hosted the second annual Honor Project.
A somber mood filled the DFW National Cemetery on Saturday as the community gathered to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country's freedom.
"Pause and know that this week was bought with a heavy, heavy price," Clint Bruce said.
Clint Bruce played for the Baltimore Ravens and the New Orleans Saints. He left the NFL to become a Navy SEAL.
"For me, it was the bigger challenge, right? I was incredibly humbled to have an opportunity to play at the NFL, and it was really neat because I got to see the infancy of Ray Lewis and his career when I was at the Ravens," Bruce said.
The man with the large stature and even bigger heart gave back, speaking at the opening ceremony for the Honor Project.
"The Travis Manion Foundation exists to give veterans and their families opportunities to continue to serve their community, continue to pay tribute to those who served alongside them, and continue to invest in this is this proposition to call heroes to the front because our nation, unfortunately, is always going to need heroes," Bruce said.
Those who came out to the ceremony want the community to enjoy the Memorial Day weekend, but to also stop and understand the true meaning behind it.
"I think it's important that we pause and say thank you for all that they did in order for us to be here where we are today," Deanna Phillips said.
Deanna Phillips' husband, Lt. Col. Mike Phillips, served in the U.S. Air Force.
"Mike was on a short deployment to Korea and came home and within 48 hours was diagnosed with stage four cancer," Phillips said. "He died of the service-connected cancer."
The pain is still raw 15 years after his death at just 43 years old.
"That's very difficult, and especially when you're thrust to being a single caregiver of your daughter as well," Phillips said.
Phillips helped to organize the DFW project. Volunteers placed tokens on the graves of 500 fallen heroes.
"I just I think it's important that you teach your kids about the meaning of today and the meaning of this weekend," Phillips said. "With that, I would say take a moment, and tell a story, go online, watch a YouTube video, something, just to honor those that have given their lives for where we are today."
Click here for more information on the Travis Manion Foundation.
