Thoursands of American men and women, many from our local communities, are currently or have served in Iraq and Afghanistan since the war against terrorism began over five years ago. Each and every one has a story, mostly untold, of honor, bravery, service and sacrifice.

The Delta News*Citizen would like to honor these brave men and women in the July 2 edition with a special "Salute to Soldiers." If you or a loved one has a story that you would like to share, we would like to share it with our readers. Whether it be an email or snail mail sent home from the front lines, a "letter to the editor" format, a short written story describing a soldier's daily life in the war zones or comments from loved ones about their soldier's call to duty, please send it by Friday, June 27, to The Delta News*Citizen, 127 W. Main, Malden, MO 63863 or email: deltanews@dailystatesman.com.

On this Independence Day, 2008, we recall, as in wars past, that"freedom isn't free." It is the hope of this newspaper that these letters/articles will serve as a means to become more aware of and pay tribute to the sacrifices being made by our local military personnel to keep our country safe and free.