The True Nature of the American Patriot

Today I want to talk about the American Patriot.

As Patriots, we are often given a bad name - even here in our very own country.

We are called: racist, bigots, xenophobes, etc.

It has become a stigma to wear or display our flag.

The world seems upside down.

What a Patriot Really is...

This past week Jacob and I attend a fair in Cache Valley, Utah.

For those who are unaware of this community it is very conservative.

The members of this community wear their patriotism without apology.

Today I want to talk about what I saw at this fair.

One lady that really stood out to me.

She came by our booth to buy a shirt for a veteran that she looks after.

She said the veteran is 90+ years old.

I was impressed as she talked about how much she enjoys listening to his stories.

She loved our mission and even voluntarily over paid for the shirts.

She said that she wanted to help us move forward what we are trying to do to help veterans and the patriotic causes we are involved in.

I was humbled by her generosity.

To top it off, she also gave my 8-year-old daughter some money for being there helping out.

This lady is a true patriot.

She was generous, kind, and loves her country.

I was also impressed by the youth of this community.

There were many young patriots that stopped to talk and buy products.

What really stood out to me was their awareness of our cause and how important helping veterans is.

Many of them looked me in the eye and said “thanks” and expressed their love for our country.

I was impressed to see this coming from the younger generation.

Many later brought their friends by to buy some of our gear.

I could see them taking pride in their country and our booth was a way for them to express it.

They were excited about freedom and understood its importance.

These individuals were: respectful, kind, patriotic and sincere.

We saw people come by our booth from many different races and ethnicities.

No one was treated differently – quite the opposite.

I saw how unifying patriotism really is.

When supporters come together under the idea of freedom, these differences in color are not even considered.

Despite what the news tries to portray, patriotism doesn’t care about skin color.

I love how unifying patriotism really is.

This is something you will never hear on the news but I saw it firsthand in the small community.

These are just a few of the examples - out of many - that I saw in the three days we spent at the fair.

And I have no doubt this is happening all around this great country of ours.

When we left, I asked my daughter what she learned from the fair.

I was expecting her to say something related to how to sell shirts or take care of customers.

Her response: I learned that there are way more people who love our flag than I thought there was – and that they are all so nice.

As a dad, I was proud that my daughter understood the true nature of patriots in our country.

I am grateful for the good people of Cache Valley for teaching this to my daughter – and reminding me of it as well.

I am proud to be a part of this community and for the opportunity to surround myself with patriotic individuals.

Despite what the news, politicians, or any one else has to say about who we are.

One thing I know for certain is that patriots are good people.

They would do anything to help others.

They love their country.

They aren’t racist, bigots, xenophobes or anything else.

They are caring people who want to support the cause of freedom for all people.

They are what makes America great!

The most important thing we can do is keep being that person.

Serving in our families, communities, and our country.

Despite what we are called, our actions will speak loud enough that others won’t be able to ignore the goodness that is the American Patriot.

Thanks for reading,

Darron Rowley

Founder of 1911 Apparel