Once again, we set aside a day to honor all our veterans – the nearly 24 million who are still with us and those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. These are the citizens to whom we owe so much. Many risked their lives on the beaches of Normandy, in the snows of the 38^th parallel and in the jungles of Vietnam. And today, in the mountains of Afghanistan, the villages and towns of Iraq and in unnamed places around the globe they continue to do their duty as they counter the threat of global terrorism.

We thank all our servicemen and women and take this opportunity to salute our CACI employees who have served or who are currently serving as members of the National Guard or Armed Forces Reserves.

This year, let us offer a special tribute to that extraordinary group of veterans, numbering only about 3500 out of the tens of millions who have served through the years, that represents the ultimate in courage, sacrifice and simply caring for others before self.

These are the recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is presented for "... [conspicuous] gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against any enemy of the United States." And these very words explain so well why the medal is most often awarded posthumously.

Who are these people? Let us draw from the official citations and consider one from each major conflict dating from World War I. As you read these accounts, be humbled by what they did and thankful that our nation has individuals like this to help keep us safe and our way of life secure.

At CACI we continue to honor and support all of our veterans through key initiatives and programs. For example, CACI sponsors and provides funds to Comfort for America's Uniformed Services (Cause). We were the presenting sponsor of Cause's 2007 Benefits Gala and are serving in the same capacity for the upcoming 2008 Gala. CACI employees also support Cause by volunteering on site at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC and Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX handing out books, DVDs and video games to our recovering wounded warriors.

We are also extremely proud of our Deploying Talent - Creating Careers program, which identifies qualified disabled veterans to hire into open CACI positions. This CACI initiative provides meaningful careers for talented veterans with disabilities, while contributing to our mission of supporting vital national priorities. It is our way of doing the right thing for the people who served our country and growing our business with the best talent available.

And as a further example of our support for veterans at several airports you'll find special USO centers sponsored by CACI.

We honor and give thanks for their courage and are proud to support their missions.

Paul Cofoni

See the sample list of Medal of Honor winners