Remembering Lee High School First Veterans

Tommy Towery 

LHS ‘64

This week we once again celebrate our Veterans on Veteran's Day - 2023. Veterans Day (originally known as Armistice Day) is a federal holiday in the United States observed annually on November 11, for honoring military veterans of the United States Armed Forces (who were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable). It coincides with other holidays including Armistice Day and Remembrance Day which are commemorated in other countries that mark the anniversary of the end of World War I. Major hostilities of World War I formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. At the urging of major U.S. veteran organizations, Armistice Day was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.

Veterans Day is distinct from Memorial Day, a U.S. public holiday in May. Veterans Day commemorates the service of all U.S. veterans, while Memorial Day honors those who have died while in military service. 

The Wayback Machine

Tommy Towery

LHS '64

Dale Meyer, LHS '66, requested me to ask the Wayback Machine for a song for him, and his request is fitting for Veteran's Day. Here is the result. Originally released in 1967 “Time Has Come Today” by the Chambers Brothers out of Mississippi became an anthem during the Vietnam War. A blend of Rock and psychedelic.

The Chambers Brothers are an American psychedelic soul band, best known for their eleven-minute 1967 psychedelic soul hit "Time Has Come Today". The group was part of the wave of new music that integrated American blues and gospel traditions with modern psychedelic and rock elements. Their music has been kept alive through frequent use in film soundtracks.

The song was recorded and released as a single in 1966 by Columbia Records. It was then featured on the album The Time Has Come in November 1967, and released again as a single in December 1967. The 1967 single was a Top 10 near-miss in America, spending five weeks at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the fall of 1968. In Canada, the song reached No. 9. It is now considered one of the landmark rock songs of the psychedelic era.

I am including two versions of the song. The first one is a graphic reflection on the combat actions in Vietnam. If you feel this is not something you want to remember, then the second version is just a clip of the Chambers Brothers doing the song.

Does anyone have any information about Stan Hortin? His emails keep bouncing back to me.

You might get tired of viewing the video I created for the first veterans of Lee, but I, for one, always celebrate Veteran's Day as a time to remember those who have served our country with honor. I dare think how many students at Lee today will end up serving in the military in any capacity. Not only did we serve, but we served when men were dying in war daily. War is not over. Look at Isreal today. Thank you my fellow veterans for your service. Many say they would serve - we DID!