Service Never ForgottenSacrifice Always Remembered

Service Never Forgotten

Sacrifice Always Remembered

Charles Romans

The Ashland Beacon

Steen Funeral Homes held its annual Veterans Appreciation Luncheon on Sunday, November 9, 2026, at the Elks in Ashland, Kentucky.

“We have been doing this for 24 years,” said Brian Binion, managing partner of Steen Funeral Homes. “It would have been 26, but we lost a couple of years due to COVID. This is all about honoring veterans,” Binion said. “Honoring them and their families, and the families who have lost their veterans.”

The keynote speaker for the luncheon was Stanley G. McDonald Jr., a retired senior master sergeant with the United States Air Force. McDonald served more than 26 years in the Air Force, serving throughout the United States as well as in diverse locations such as Guam, Japan, Kosovo, and South Korea.

Following his retirement, McDonald continued serving veterans through the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Huntington, West Virginia. Beginning in 2017, he served as transportation director for Ashland Independent Schools. He is also pastor of New Hope Missionary Baptist Church and a volunteer chaplain for the Ashland Police Department. McDonald also serves on the boards of the Ashland Community Kitchen, the Black History Museum in Ashland, Four Winds Christian Ministries, and BBC2 Enterprise.

The luncheon began with the posting of the colors by the Greenup County Marine Corps Junior ROTC, under the direction of Master Gunnery Sergeant Paul Sites, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. The National Anthem was sung by Sydney Ramey. Binion called attention to the military displays and thanked Greenup County High School junior Barron Royster for providing them for the veterans in attendance to enjoy.

Binion recognized both wartime and peacetime veterans and thanked them for their service before introducing the keynote speaker, retired Senior Master Sergeant McDonald. McDonald thanked those involved in making the luncheon possible and also expressed his appreciation to every veteran in attendance.

“Whether you served two years, four years, or 20 years, your willingness to raise your right hand and take an oath to defend this nation deserves our respect and appreciation,” McDonald said. “Today, we have gathered to recognize veterans. But I want us to think about something a little deeper than simply saying thank you. I want to talk about why veteran appreciation matters.”

“Appreciation matters because freedom comes with a responsibility and a sacrifice,” McDonald told those gathered. “We did not simply sign an employment contract,” he said of those who joined the military. “We made a commitment that placed the needs of our nation and its mission above many of our personal preferences and comforts. That commitment meant being willing to go wherever we were sent, whenever we were needed, and to do whatever our assigned responsibilities required.”

McDonald spoke at length about military service, whether during wartime or peacetime, and how it helps forge veterans into individuals who continue to serve their communities long after their active-duty service ends. Their contributions have helped shape the America that Americans enjoy today, he said. Appreciation of veterans, he added, not only recognizes those who have served but also reminds future generations that freedom is not free and that true citizenship comes with responsibility—a responsibility that veterans have met and exceeded.

Ashland native Kelley Serey was among the veterans attending the Veterans Appreciation Luncheon. Serey said he spent 12 years in school at Holy Family in Ashland, Kentucky, and served a two-year tour in Vietnam as a boiler technician with the United States Navy. Serey recalled the sniper fire that wounded his knee and said the snipers tried to take him out but “barely nicked me.” Serey said the Veterans Appreciation Luncheon was a wonderful way for the community to remind veterans that their service has not been forgotten.

Robert Montague of Greenup said he also served in Vietnam with the United States Army from late 1971 to 1974. Montague said his active-duty service began just as President Nixon put a freeze on sending new troops to Vietnam. Montague underwent training at Fort Bliss in Texas, but rather than being sent overseas, he was sent to New Mexico to help train NATO troops.

Though Montague might not have seen action in Vietnam, he said he came perilously close to seeing action in New Mexico.

“An interesting situation occurred in October of 1973,” Montague said. His battalion-sized company was operating a small post called McGregor Range, which he said was, at the time, the largest landlocked missile range in the country. Montague's company trained various NATO forces in air defense.

At one-point, armed forces from both Israel and Egypt were present and undergoing training, Montague said.

“I got a call from our company commander,” Montague recalled. “He said, ‘Lieutenant, I need you to come out to McGregor Range right now.’”

It was 2:30 a.m., and his commander wanted him there by 3:00 a.m.

“As it turned out, Egypt crossed the Sinai and invaded Israel, starting the Yom Kippur War.”

“We went on alert, and our mission was to keep these guys apart,” Montague recalled. He said that morning they contacted the commanders of the Egyptian and Israeli units and mediated the situation. Fortunately, the potential conflict was diffused, with both units eventually returning to their respective countries without open combat occurring on American soil.

“But it was pretty intense for about three days,” Montague recalled.

American servicemen and women are committed and dedicated to serving their country in whatever capacity they are called upon to perform. Whether in combat, as Serey experienced, or in maintaining peace and security, as Montague experienced, the men and women of the United States Armed Forces deserve all the appreciation—and more—that they are given.