It all changed for Chelle and Taylor Pokorney on March 23, 2003. That is the day Chelle’s beloved gentle giant of a husband Fred, a Marines Marine, and father to 2-year-old Taylor was killed along with other brave servicemembers in Al Nasiriyah Iraq. Chelle was now faced with continuing on in life without her true love and her best friend. So many stories have surfaced from this horrible story filled with loss sadness and great fear. Fred was 6 feet 6, and, on the day he died he ran into machine gun fire to save two young Marines’ lives. Recently I was witness to those two Marines meeting with Chelle to tell her how brave, loving, caring and heroic her Fred was to both of them and others. 15 years later, Chelle and Taylor live in Oregon proudly and live life to the fullest, while honoring Fred and his memory, along with the memories of all those who have given the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation, and for our freedoms we hold so dear. Her father Fred would be so proud as Taylor begins college this fall.



This Memorial Day I asked my dear friends Wayne Newton and Mark Wahlberg to join me in writing this Op-Ed where we call for two important things. Wayne and Mark have taken time from their busy lives to go to Iraq and Afghanistan respectively to visit with and thank our troops. They go to bases here at home to say thank you for the service of our brave men and women who volunteer to give of themselves serving the USA. I salute Mark and Wayne and other celebrities who care enough to make these important tripswhich help raise awareness and hopefully affect policy and fundraising for the unmet needs facing our military and veteran’s population.



This Memorial Day we call upon our fellow Americans to consider two things on this day: to take a few moments of silence with loved ones to honor, remember, and pay tribute to those who have died giving their life for our nation. And secondly to find a way to do something positive and meaningful in support of and for our servicemembers and Veterans. The first can simply be a moment of silence, lighting a candle and honoring Fred and his family or another family you might know that has made the ultimate sacrifice. The second would be to consider volunteering for or making a contribution to one of the great organizations out there and getting more involved. We recommend the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, The Fisher House, the Wounded Warrior Project, the DAV, the USO or the American Legion. Doing both of these acts of kindness and humility will put the adage “saying thank you isn’t enough” into proper context. We need to do more for our Veterans and we applaud you for considering both of these important constructs.



We want to encourage President Trump, Secretary of Defense Mattis and Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob Wilkie and our Congress to continue to do all they can to support our troops.

We say a most heartfelt thank you to our nation’s fallen heroes and their treasured families today. We owe them our eternal gratitude love and respect. Thank you and God Bless the Unites States of America.

Bill White is CEO of Constellations Group NYC and a national advocate for Military and Veteran families. Mark Wahlberg is a famed actor, producer, businessman and father of four. Wayne Newton is a celebrated entertainer, businessman and patriot.