Black Rifle Coffee Company Honors Our Fallen Heroes with Touching Tribute Ahead of Memorial Day
As Americans gather for Memorial Day on Monday, Black Rifle Coffee Company has issued a video reminding Americans about the purpose of the day.
“For those who put the welfare of the group ahead of their own lives and paid the ultimate sacrifice, we thank you, this day and every day,” Black Rifle Coffee said on its YouTube page.
“As people across the country come together over Memorial Day Weekend to reflect and honor the US service members who are no longer with us, this video serves as a reminder to those who love America that freedom is never free,” Black Rifle Coffee said in a statement.
Remember what matters this Memorial Day weekend… pic.twitter.com/wMSoQJJV78
— Black Rifle Coffee (@blckriflecoffee) May 25, 2018
The video, titled, “Brotherhood: I Choose Life,” focuses on the selfless nature of those who would lay down their lives for their nation, and for those with whom they serve.
“Our honor and understanding for the generations of sacrifice has to be unwavering,” said company vice president Mat Best, a former Army Ranger, according to American Military News.
“May we always carry the utmost reverence for the ones that made the ultimate sacrifice. This video is a small gesture of our appreciation for the deep debt we owe our heroes. I hope it is a reminder for people to enjoy a weekend filled with laughs, love and remembrance,” he said.
The video combines sounds and sights of America at war in Afghanistan with Americans going about their holiday activities. The video then talks about its theme, brotherhood.
“The brotherhood is different from friendship. Friendship happens in society. The more you like someone, the more you would be willing to do for them,” the narrator says.
“Brotherhood has nothing to do with how you feel about the other person. It is a mutual agreement in a group that you would put the welfare, you will put the safety of everyone in the group above your own. In effect you’re saying, I love these other people more than I love myself,” the narrator adds.
A U.S. Marine walks with a small girl through headstones prior to a Memorial Day commemoration at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in Belleau, France. pic.twitter.com/NEBwKrCIvu
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 27, 2018
During the video, some people fade away, while others remain. Those who disappear are intended to illustrate those whose sacrifice is remembered on Memorial Day.
“It’s not about today. It’s about them,” Best says in the video. “The ones that gave their lives. For when a life fades, it’s up to us to make sure the legacy doesn’t.”
Marty Skovlund Jr. of Black Rifle wrote about the day on a company blog and noted that while it is a light-hearted holiday for some Americans, for others it is a day of sadness as they recall friends they lost.
Veterans who have lost a friend or loved one should share that memory with others, he suggested.
“Talk about them; tell stories of their heroics but also their personality that you so fondly remember. You may not reach everyone, but in that effort you make Memorial Day more about the holidays intended purpose for those within your sphere of influence,” Skovlund wrote.
“The day need not turn into a funeral, but remember the reason for the day, and be thankful for the 1.1 million who have died in the name of our country,” he added.
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