Blue Star Mother reflects on sacrifices of military families

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - For Linda Taylor, seeing her loved ones honored around downtown Baton Rouge this Veterans Day means a lot because she has grown up with the military.

Taylor says her dad, Charles Homer Colquitt, of Shreveport, was a World War II veteran who fought on the beaches of Utah during D-Day.

Her father started a tradition that’s been carried down for three generations.

“(My son) earned several awards. He was a culinary specialist and he cooked so well that only the officers wanted him and that he didn’t cook for the other 325 shipmates,” Taylor said.

But the challenges have not only been for her family members who served but also for her as a wife and mother.

“Being my son and knowing he was gone for months at a time, not knowing where he was, and being a military mom. Your heart sank a lot because there was no communication,” Taylor said.

Her husband also served in the National Guard, which meant she spent a lot of time raising her kids alone.

“I tried to participate and get my mind in gear to be able to handle everything by myself on Saturday and Sunday, every month, and sometimes it was hard. Sometimes it was a breeze. Sometimes it was nice, but other times it was just being a military mom,” Taylor said.

Taylor said it’s important to honor veterans for their sacrifices to protect their families and country.

“But he did not get out. He stayed with them for 20 years and served, and he did a good job too, so we’re proud of him,” Taylor said.

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