Up & Coming Weekly

August 21, 2018

Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.

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4 UCW AUGUST 22-28, 2018 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM BILL BOWMAN, Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COMMENTS? BILL@upandcomingweekly.com. 910-484-6200. PUBLISHER'S PEN STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman Bill@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/ EDITOR Stephanie Crider editor@upandcomingweekly.com OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Paulette Naylor accounting@upandcomingweekly.com ASSISTANT EDITOR Leslie Pyo leslie@upandcomingweekly.com SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR Earl Vaughan Jr. EarlUCWSports@gmail.com REPORTER Jeff Thompson news@upandcomingweekly.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Elizabeth Long art@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS D.G. Martin, Pitt Dickey, Margaret Dickson, John Hood, Jim Jones, Shanessa Fenner, Jason Brady, Lauren Vanderveen, Matthew Skipper, Shane Wilson SALES ADMINISTRATOR/ DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Laurel Handforth laurel@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING/SALES Linda McAlister Brown linda@upandcomingweekly.com ––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan St. P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: (910) 484-6200 FAX: (910) 484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a "Quality of Life" publication with local features, news and information on what's happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly wel- comes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publication consideration, but assumes no responsibility for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per person. ©2018 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. Various ads with art graphics designed with elements from: vecteezy.com and freepik.com. I have no idea why any red-blooded American patriot in their right mind is still supporting the National Football League and its organization of ungrateful clowns who choose to disrespect our nation by raising a fist or taking a knee when the national anthem is played. What are they thinking? Or, are they thinking at all? is kind of behavior is just unaccept- able. For the life of me, I cannot imagine why the NFL owners are allowing this practice to continue. I also have no idea why anyone is still going to NFL games, purchasing its merchandise or even watch- ing the games on TV. Let the organization perish, as far as I'm concerned. Honestly, is winning a football game so important that team owners are will- ing to allow the players they hire – their employees – to dictate such disgusting and disappointing behavior? Who's in control? e owners or the players? ere is a time and place for everything. e football field is no place for political or other protests. Disrespecting our country in public to make a personal statement about police brutality, Black Lives Matter or anything else should be unacceptable and should not be toler- ated. Nor should it be negotiated. is past weekend, I attended the Sand- hills Purple Heart Dinner at the Crown Expo Center. It was a great event, and I couldn't help but think how appropri- ate it would be if NFL players like Colin Kaepernick were there to witness up-close and personal the Purple Heart recipients who were recognized as the real heroes of defending American freedom. ey would have seen and heard of the sacrifices these men and women of our armed forces made to secure our nation's freedom and to protect their rights to make millions of dollars playing the game of football in the land of the brave and free. Unfortunately, what the football players would not have seen are the thousands who have died and the loved ones of those who are missing in action because of their choice to serve our country so we, as U.S. citizens, can enjoy the amenities of Ameri- can freedom. I would like the NFL play- ers to see the bravery and pride of these heroes who attended the Purple Heart Dinner, the trembling lips and tears of the Gold Star mothers whose lasting honor- able memory of their sons, husbands and daughters is that they died in defense of our nation. ese were touching moments, and I couldn't help but think that this is the type of event NFL owners should insist their team members attend. Maybe then the players would realize the error of their ways and how misdirected their intentions are. Until then, I'm taking a knee to the NFL and its management, and I hope Budweiser and other major sponsors do the same. If the NFL cannot control its players, then neither of them deserve my time, money or loyalty. Kudos to the Sandhills Purple Heart Association, the local businesses and or- ganizations, and the hundreds of volun- teers who hosted this year's Purple Heart Dinner. It was a massive undertaking, and it was very well done. It was dignified and respectful. I can still see the glimmer of the swords held high and proud by the young South View ROTC cadets as the real Ameri- can heroes passed through the arch when they heard their names. e food, songs, drums, bag pipes, and the precise cadence of the honor guards with their swords paid high honors to our special guests. It was an evening of patriotism, recognition and honor that ended with dual bugles solemn- ly playing taps and paying homage to those who have died in service to our country. It reassured the rest of us that they have not died in vain. It was a powerful remind- er of how important our veterans are to our community. ank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly. Purple Heart Dinner transcends NFL by BILL BOWMAN The Sandhills Purple Heart Dinner is the epitome of patriotism and respect, honoring America's veterans and their families. Photo by Teresa Hayter of brokencrayonsphotography. 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