[...] He was born in 1918, and, like lots of others in South Alabama, his father was a sharecropper who raised cotton and peanuts on his land.

Though farm life could be tough, Pete loved being outdoors and he never missed a chance to hunt, fish or play ball. And while he enjoyed farming, Pete's career plans were quite different from his father's, as what he truly loved to do was work on cars. They say it was pretty darn rare to find Pete Peterson without a little grease on his hands. Eventually he landed a job as the mechanic at Shelby's Service Station. It was there he met a girl he would later marry, Nina. [...]

[...] The telegram came on a beautiful, sunny Alabama afternoon. The Western Union man had the unbearable task of taking it to the family. He took it to Neal's father who was working at the hardware store in Asbury. He was devastated. A little while later, Neal's father and other family members took the short drive out to Neal's house to tell the horrible news to his young wife and daughter. His daughter, Theresa, still barely remembers that day. "Mother was in the kitchen making fudge when the car came up the driveway. She knew why they were there and she fell apart. A little while later, she took me out on the porch and the two of us just sat out there. Just us. We were alone."

Next time you hear the National Anthem or look up at our flag flying high in the air, look at the colors and the stars and remember the young man who drove the Coca-Cola truck and worried about his wife and daughter. He is up there.