‘What they were willing to give up’

A close-range gunshot wound didn’t stop him from giving a Veterans Day speech.

Mike Kralicek, an Air Force veteran who in 2004 was shot in the face by .357 Magnum while serving for the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, joined his wife, Carrie, in Coeur d’Alene on Wednesday in honoring the living and deceased men and women who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.

The ceremony, held on a foggy day flanked by five service flags and Lake Coeur d’Alene, was sponsored by American Legion Post 14 and VFW Post 889.

“Today is an inclusionary recognition day,” Mike said to the crowd of nearly 100 people, many of whom were fellow veterans. “There’s no gender, no race, no political agenda. It’s not about the birth or death of one person. It’s not about one branch of service that won the war. Today is for all veterans.”

Veterans Day originally comes from the World War I Armistice. On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, the Allies and Germany declared a temporary cessation of hostilities. 

Mike, also noting America's 250th anniversary, said he wanted everyone to remember this.

"A lot of people forget, eight years ago we had our 100th anniversary since the signing of the Armistice agreement to try and end WWI,” he said. 

Wednesday’s ceremony was ushered in with the singing of the U.S. national anthem, a prayer and an American flag folding ceremony. The flag used for the ceremony, which flew over the U.S. Capitol Building at one point, was gifted by U.S. Congressman Russ Fulcher from Idaho. 

Girl Scout cookies were also provided by the local Service Unit 443. 

During the signing of the national anthem, many veterans in the crowd stood up and held salutes.

After, Mike spoke about what it’s like joining the military.

“I wanted to be a pilot; that didn’t happen. But I made a lot of good friends,” he said. “I got to do all kinds of things for our country that I did not learn in school, that is for sure.”

Damon Darakjy, of American Legion Post 14, praised the Kraliceks. Carrie is a psychiatric nurse and Mike, who is legally blind, is a motivational speaker. 

“They do so much for veterans in our community,” Darakjy said.

Carrie, also an Air Force veteran, said people who sign up for the military “quickly learn that freedom is something that you can never take for granted.” 

“When a young man or woman raises their right hand, they are signing a blank check payable to the United States of America,” she said. “For an amount up to, and including, their life.”

Carrie went on to speak about all the wars fought by the United States since the 1918 Armistice.

“Different wars, different decades, yet every single one of us pays a price that stays with you long after the uniform comes off,” she said. “Nobody serves alone on the homefront either. Behind every veteran is a family who lived with a terrifying, unspoken fear that a knock at the door could shatter their world.”

Carrie said don’t just give thanks to veterans, “remember what they were willing to give up so you can live in peace.”

“May God bless our veterans,” she said, “and may God bless the United States of America.”

    Dennis Bjurstrom, who served both in the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force, salutes during a Veterans Day ceremony in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.
  

    From Left, Carrie Kralicek, her husband Mike, and Damon Darakjy participate in a Veterans Day ceremony in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.
  

    Chuck Riffel, a Korean War Veteran, rings "Pappy's Bell" at Veterans Memorial in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.
  

    From left, Marc Olson, U.S. Army, Dereck Jenkins, U.S. Army, and Coalton Webb, U.S. Air Force, hold M1 Garand rifles during a Veterans Day ceremony in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.
  

    Carrie Kralicek speaks during a Veterans Day ceremony in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.
  

    A Veterans Day ceremony takes place in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday.