The latter had the former glowing as they celebrated Veterans Day on Thursday. Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo, running back Sammy Morris, defensive lineman Gerard Warren and defensive tackle Kyle Love all gushed about their relatives who have served the United States military.
Because of that, Veterans Day means a little bit more to each of them.
“I think it’s important,” Morris said. “It’s a special day of appreciation, especially in the state of the way the U.S. is right now. Definitely, paying homage to those guys is huge. It should be every day.”
Morris’ brother is an EMT in the Air Force. He is currently in San Antonio, Texas, but he has served in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Love, who was born in South Korea and has lived all over the United States due to his father’s tours, said he’ll be making sure he calls home to again share his appreciation. Love’s father has done computer work in the Army, and he served during Desert Storm, among other operations, but is now retired.
“It really means a lot to me because I love my dad, and I know he’s done a lot for this country and everything,” Love said. “It means a lot to me.”
Warren really glowed about his father, who served 22 years in the Army and did a couple of tours in Vietnam.
“It means a lot. We always celebrated that,” Warren said. “Without him making it back, hell, there wouldn’t be no ‘Big Money’ or none of this going on. It’s an important day. It’s an important part of my father’s life and our life growing up, and I celebrate it and send out my hard blessings to all the veterans right now who are out serving the country.”
Mayo had a long list of relatives who were in the military. His grandfather, a Chief Master Sergeant, and father were in the Air Force, while his grandmother and mother worked as civilians in the Air Force. And his stepfather was a Marine.
“It means a lot to me,” Mayo said. “I grew up in Hampton, Va., and Langley Air Force Base was right there. We have every branch, so Veterans Day was always a big part of my life.”
But the four Patriots weren’t just proud of their relatives. They showed a significant amount of respect for everyone who has served and continues to serve the United States, and they wanted to send out a big thank you to each of them.
“I’ve got a lot of respect and pride and dignity for those guys,” Warren said, “answering the call of duty, setting examples and being the role models.”
