Helping Hands for Freedom would like to recognize and thank the San Francisco 49ers organization for all the support they demonstrated for the Route for the Brave and for allowing our organization to present the game ball before the playing of the National Anthem. This night was a celebration of the culmination of a 3,100 mile walk across America to bring awareness to the families of the fallen and their sacrifice. Unfortunately, this joyous moment was overshadowed by the actions of quarterback Colin Kaepernick. While we understand that the United States Flag and the National Anthem are both sacred elements of the military essence and hold great significance to many veterans, they can be perceived in various different manners. The sacrifices that our veterans and military families have made have given Mr. Kaepernick the ability to speak his opinion about the state of our country. Although he is entitled to his opinion, we would have welcomed Mr. Kaepernick to have walked across this great nation with us and witness first hand the compassion, commitment and beautiful diversity across all people in each diverse city that we visited, perhaps instilling a greater sense of faith in America. While not a perfect country,we cannot be defined by the actions of a few. We continue to grow and progress and will only persevere through strong leadership and dialogue. Mr. Kaepernick is welcome to join us on our next walk, TBD, to see first hand the freedoms of our people to truly affect change.
