Editorial: A salute to nonpartisan patriotism

We are in the midst of another, ridiculously long presidential election cycle, a time when even the most patriotic Americans can be forgiven for rolling their eyes and wondering when it will all end. It’s a time when tempers fray and Facebook posts grow increasingly shrill and partisan. It’s also a time when politicians from both major parties claim that it is they who do the most to support members of our armed forces, seemingly oblivious to the fact they’re turning into political hay a most difficult and stressful occupation.

But there are shining lights on the homefront, even as the campaigns ratchet up their rhetoric. On Saturday, community members will gather in the parking lot of the Burbank Keller Williams office for the fifth annual “Thank-A-Soldier” event, a decidedly nonpartisan event. There they will pack health and comfort items into shipping cartons, in support of the nonprofit Hands Across the Battlefield organization. The care packages will be delivered to local residents serving overseas, as well as to service members from other areas of Southern California.

Those men and women currently serving our country here and abroad, tackling a potentially deadly job, deserve nothing less than the support of the folks who are not in the military. We are proud to say that they are not forgotten by the people of Burbank and Glendale.