George, sitting in his rocking chair on his front porch at his heavenly home looks over to his wife, and says, “Well Martha, who would have ever believed that this little experiment in liberty we help set up in 1776 would have lasted two hundred and fifty years?” 

Martha replies ,“And just think George, they wanted you to be king.”

”Well Martha, you would have been an awesome queen, but I had been away for the better part of 30 years and I was ready to come home to you and to Mount Vernon. Besides, I was tired of all of the fussing between Jefferson and Hamilton about the way this new country should be going, and I’ve wondered sometimes how things would have been different if Hamilton would have survived that duel with that irascible Aaron Burr. But this country was very lucky to have Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine, the Adams family and the 56 brave men who signed the Declaration of Independence and the thousands of soldiers and shopkeepers who joined me in this fight for liberty and independence from one of the greatest powers/empires to have ever existed.”

Yes, thanks to the writing ability of Thomas Jefferson who wrote the Declaration of Independence with just minor changes, especially from Benjamin Franklin. Thanks to Thomas Paine, John Adams, John Quincy Adams, and Benjamin Franklin for reminding everyone that this did need to be a government by a United States, not just a group of colonies.

Hamilton was a brilliant administrator, politician and financier who advocated a federal bank and a one currency system so that the United States could collect tariffs and pay off their war debts. James Madison, with the help of 55 colleagues, wrote the United States Constitution and look how well it has held up for 250 years with only 27 amendments. Isn’t that amazing?

What is meant by first one out of the boat? It means being one of the first ones who stand for liberty, who will/did put their own well being back as a second thought to standing up for and protecting the liberty and independence of this great country.

Such as: Being one of the first farmers who fired the shots against the Great British Army in the New England conflicts during the Revolutionary War.

Being one of the first ones out of the boat when Washington crossed the Delaware.

Being one of those lonely soldiers who spent the winter at Valley Forge when Washington could barely get them a pair of new socks, let alone a pair of new pair of boots or a paycheck.

Being one of those 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence who knew their name was going to be put on a treason list and that, if they were caught, they would but to death.

Being one of those who led the charges in the battles of the Civil War because you were willing to die for what their country or side believed in.

Being one of those proud Americans that when the world entered into chaos in 1917, they stepped out of the trenches when called upon to fight to preserve freedom for our European allies. Over 820 Barry County young men served in World War One.

Being one of the over 2,150 Barry County young men and women who, when tyranny arose again, answered the call to leave their homes and to go overseas to preserve liberty and freedom for thousands of people throughout the world. For the farm boy who said “any darn fool can drive a truck, I wanna be in the Air Force,” and who flew dozens of bombing raids over Germany in a invention/contraption that had only been around for 20 or so years built by somebody that probably only had a month’s worth of training. Scary.

But mainly for being one of the first guys out of the boat at Normandy or on the beaches of Okinawa or all the islands in Southeast Asia. Can you imagine jumping out of those boats in three foot of water, wearing 40 pounds of gear with machine guns firing at you? This to me is/was Bravery to the NTH degree.

For being the ones who realized there were terrorists on a hijacked plane, knowing that they might die, but if they didn’t do something thousands of people may die, but they said, “Are you guys ready. Let’s roll.”

To our police and fire departments and other first responders who face hazards every day, especially to the firemen who were going up the stairs when everybody else was fleeing down the stairs to escape the Twin Towers on 9/11. Wow!

For all of our young men and women who have served in our Armed Forces in all of our wars, including the Desert Storm Wars, let us remember that freedom is not free. Someone, somewhere had to put their life on the line for you to enjoy this freedom, and liberty is not just the ability to go down Walmart and buy what you want for snacks. 

Liberty is having the freedom to say what you want to say without being thrown in jail, as long as you don’t cause a riot. Liberty is the ability to worship the way you want to without being persecuted or being demanded to believe a certain way. Liberty is the ability to own as many guns as you want to in this country, as long as you obey the laws.

Liberty and freedom in this grand old United States of America means that you can go out and do or be just about anything you want to be as long as you’re willing to work for it. As you know, or should know, there are many countries in which you have very little choice in what you’re going to do, what religion you worship, how much money are you going to make or even who you’re going to marry.

Missouri and Barry County has always been a place where courage grows. From our first settlers who carved out an existence on this wild frontier, to the soldiers who crossed oceans to defend liberty, to the ones who stayed home who strengthened our communities — Barry County has never failed to answer the call.

On this 4th of July, on this 250th anniversary of this great idea, let us honor and thank our past leaders and heroes and let us pray for present and future leaders that they may as make as many a wise decision as our forefathers did in setting up this great country.

May God bless our veterans, may God bless Barry County and may God forever bless the United States of America.

Lynn Hilburn is an officer in the Barry County Genealogical and Historical Society, and invites all to come and join meetings, to provide information about their families or to look up information about their families. Hilburn may be reached at [email protected].