OKEECHOBEE -- Okeechobee community members gathered at the Veterans Memorial in Flagler Park on May 25 to remember those who gave their lives for their country.

Okeechobee County Veterans Services Officer Paul Hiott told the crowd about Isaac Davis, the first American officer to die in the Revolutionary War, leading the Minutemen at the Battle of Concord on April 19, 1775.

"Take good care of the children,"  were the last words Davis spoke to his wife as he left for war, Hiott told the crowd. "Mere hours later, he was shot and killed.

"Davis was a blacksmith. In the months leading up to the inevitable fight, he trained his men hard," Hiott explained.  Davis also used his blacksmith skills to make bayonets for the men in his unit.

"He knew the cost of freedom and was willing to pay it," Hiott said. "For 250 years, other Americans left their families and their homes."

Hiott also told the crowd about Tech Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, one of six Air Force personnel who died in March when their aircraft crashed  in Iraq. They were part of a mission supporting the U.S. operations in Iran.

Pruitt left behind a daughter and a stepson. Her husband described her as radiant, lighting up every room she entered.

 Since the opening shots of the Revolutionary War, 1.3 million U.S. service members have died in conflicts, Hiott continued.

"We honor a promise to never forget their service," said Hiott. "We mourn, and we carry on.

"They served, and they sacrificed. They entrusted us with the most important things they left behind: Their children, their families, and their legacy, our freedom.

"That's the promise we keep, to take good care of what and who they gave everything for," Hiott said.