Those who serve in the military deserve recognition, praise, and respect. They make huge sacrifices to defend freedom and democracy. Their training is grueling, they often have to be far from home, and they routinely take immense physical risks. We honor fallen service members on Memorial Day. Nevertheless, people who proudly don the uniform of this nation, whether today or years ago, merit that kind of attention more frequently. That was the powerful message conveyed by Darius Rucker recently. Per People, he got the Veterans Voice Award at the 52nd American Music Awards on Monday, May 26, and spoke eloquently on the topic.
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Rucker Gave a Moving Acceptance Speech
The accolade that went to Darius Rucker was given by the Honor Through Action initiative of the USAA. That is the United Services Automobile Association. Rucker was spotlighted for performing for USO tours, giving a hand to the Military Warriors Support Foundation, and for singing at occasions like the DoD Warrior Games.
Rucker spoke with feeling and humility when he was presented with the award. "It's called the Veterans Voice Award, and I take that to heart big time because all of us can use our voice to support these brave men and women who are serving our country. We've got to make sure that they feel appreciated, not just on big days like Memorial Day, but every day."
Clearly, Rucker's interactions with service members and their families left a big impression on him. He said, "You learn real quick what resilience looks like when you're sitting and talking to the military families. Because the sacrifice isn't just the person in uniform, it's their spouse. It's their kids. It's their parents, it's their cousin, it's their brother, it's their sister, it's their friends."
He Also Gave the Rest of Us a Stark Message
The Hootie & the Blowfish frontman, 60, also issued this message. He was inspired to mention it by a veteran he met. Rucker shared per the outlet, "He said to me that when somebody says to him, 'Thank you for your service,' he says, 'Thank you for living a life worth serving,' And that's what we all should be doing right now. We should be striving to become a community and become a country that we deserve what they sacrificed."
