By Staff Reporter |
A heartwarming scene unfolded in Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport over the weekend.
The Cisneros family of Phoenix welcomed home their loved one after six months at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina: Marine Corporal Josue Cisneros. The young Marine was able to return home in time for a Memorial Day gathering with family, as well as his sister’s graduation and his own birthday.
The nonprofit organization Miles for Military made the reunion possible. This Massachusetts-based nonprofit covers the cost of flights home to the most junior service members in exchange for volunteer hours with 501c3 charities. These flights home enable service members to be home for the moments that matter most: holidays, family celebrations, and emergencies.
Cisneros expressed how great of an honor it is to wear the uniform and serve his country, and his gratitude for Miles for Military. Along with his family and friends, Cisneros told Fox 10 he planned to save some quality time for man’s best friend: his loyal dog.
“My family, they mean the world to me. It’s really great to be honest,” said Cisneros. “If it wasn’t for Miles for Military I would not be able to be here for the next two weeks, so I’m really grateful for the opportunity they gave me.”
Marine mother Maureen Byrne founded Miles for Military in 2021 after discovering many of her son’s fellow Marines couldn’t afford to fly home.
Cisneros is part of a storied legacy of Arizonans who take up the noble cause of serving their country, knowing they will potentially make the ultimate sacrifice.
While Cisneros was able to return home to his family this Memorial Day, we acknowledge and remember those who never came home.
Approximately 25,000 American soldiers died during the Revolutionary War — the first to give their lives in defense of America.
Over the next century, more war would challenge the resolve of the fledgling nation: approximately 2,400 American soldiers died in the War of 1812; over 13,000 soldiers died in the Mexican-American War; and over 2,400 soldiers died in the Spanish-American War. Then, America endured what remains the bloodiest conflict in her young history.
An estimated 360,000 Union soldiers and 250,000 Confederate soldiers died during the Civil War. Some of those residing in the Arizona territory ultimately joined the Confederacy.
The Civil War would inspire the first recognition of a Memorial Day in 1868, initially known as Decoration Day.
Of course, Arizona wouldn’t come to be a state until 1912 — just two years before the breakout of the first World War, and five years before the U.S. joined the conflict.
According to the best available data, the following are the total numbers of Arizonans who gave the ultimate sacrifice across the wars of the last and present century: over 300 during World War I, over 1,600 during World War II, over 200 during the Korean War, over 600 during the Vietnam War, five during the Persian Gulf War, and over 150 across the recent conflicts throughout the Iraq War and War in Afghanistan.
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