To mark this year’s Veterans Day commemoration, Hollywood actor Chris Pratt penned a powerful Instagram post in tribute to the men and women of the armed forces.
Pratt comes from a family steeped in armed service, with several of his loved ones having spent considerable time in the military.
“This is my older brother Cully. #happyveteransday,” Pratt wrote alongside a picture of his brother in uniform. “I always wanted to be exactly like him. He is a good big brother. He’s always led with love.”
“Growing up we wrestled for hours every day and smashed every bit of furniture in the house but never actually fought,” Chris continued. “He taught me everything. He put up with me and my incessant hyperactivity and forced his friends to do the same.”
Too often, we think of our armed forces as a distant group of people who are out fighting in some far off land. We may appreciate them, but we often fail to remember that each and every one has a life story and a reason for why they enlisted in the first place.
Christ said he felt it necessary to provide something of a profile on his big brother in order to highlight that “he’s a real person.”
“The more we can look at our veterans for who they are, actual people, with siblings and parents, with children and funny pasts- the more we can approach our relationships to them with compassion and understanding,” Pratt explained.
The “Jurassic World” star added that Cully “didn’t join the army because he wanted to be Rambo” but “because it was an opportunity for a hard-nosed kid who couldn’t afford college, somebody who wanted to get the hell out of his small town.”
Pratt concluded:
“We have the greatest armed forces the world has ever seen. It’s made up of real people who joined for myriad reasons. Brave men and women who sacrifice a whole hell of a lot. Today is their day. So celebrate a veteran today. Today I celebrate Cully, as well as my cousin Curtis, Uncle Steve, Uncle Skip, second Cousins, Joey and Alex, besties Jared and Jeffrey, all those I’ve fished for hunted with, those who’ve blessed me with their challenge coins as I’ve encountered them on press junkets and in my travels, the many in the film industry working both in front of and behind the cameras. To those currently serving and those out thanks for your service. We appreciate you!”
Cully is now a police officer in Solano County, California. He also creates and sells faith-based artwork. Faithwire spoke with Cully last year to discuss his faith and what inspired him to create artwork.
A selection of his works can be found here.