On March 29, The Tidewater News will publish a special promotion as a tribute to all of the men and women from the area who have bravely served our country.

We would like to ask everyone in our readership area, if they are family or friends of a soldier, to please send us that person’s full name, their rank in the military, their branch of service and their hometown.

Submissions can be sent via e-mail to soldier@tidewaternews.com, mailed to P.O. Box 497, Franklin, VA 23851, or dropped off at our office at 1000 Armory Drive in Franklin.

We’re asking all of the entries to be submitted by Wednesday, March 18.

Our men and women in uniform do not receive the amount of recognition that they deserve. The three days of the year that we salute them for their sacrifices — Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and the Fourth of July — are not nearly enough.

Our nation is facing a domestic crisis with the economy, and most of our day-to-day lives are focused on that at the moment.

Meanwhile, our military personnel are going toe-to-toe with dangerous foes in Afghanistan and Iraq who want to destroy us and our way of life. They put their lives on the line to keep us safe.

We owe them an enormous debt of gratitude and our unwavering support. We hope that our special promotion in our Progress edition will, in one small way, let them know how much we appreciate them.