| I would like you to think for a moment about the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence over 200 years ago. These men were wealthy landowners, lawyers, doctors, judges, educators, merchants, and businessmen. In the war that followed, five were captured or imprisoned. Nine died of wounds or hardships. Twelve lost their homes. Seventeen lost everything they owned. Every one of them was hunted. Most of them went into hiding to escape the British. They were offered immunity, rewards, the return of their property or the freedom of loved ones if they would give up their cause. That cause was the fight for freedom and not one did. Not one man broke his pledge. Because of men like that - men of dedication and purpose - we enjoy living in a free country today. |