God bless him and I am so happy he could overcome and inspire.I appreciate all those recuperating in hospitals today who have been wounded.
I know the tour extensions have been a real downer.God bless and protect all in harm's way.
Thank you very much , It's war , Bless U.S. army .
In checking around, I found his website,
Roever & Associates. This man is an inspiration, check it out!
I also found an article on a speech he gave in 1997, which I reprint below:
*******************
With Humor and Tragedy,
Roever Speaks to Students
December 1997
BY BECKY WALL
"Honor and respect make the world go round. You can go to bed at night knowing that what you did was right."
On November 12, Dave Roever gave an inspirational speech to the entire student body. Roever, a Vietnam veteran who had been injured in the war, used his life to reinforce his message. He used different facets of respect to tie together his speech. Roever focused upon respect between men and women. He began by discussing his relationship with his wife.
"My wife and I were virgins when we were married, and 30 years later we’re still together... you thought I was going to say we were still virgins, didn’t you. No, I’m happily married with children," he stated.
"A boy isn’t a man if he can make a baby, he’s a man if he can raise a baby," he stated.
"What America needs is a pregnant teenage boy. ‘Pop, I missed my period.’ Can you imagine if a boy went home and said that?"
Roever used these examples to emphasize the respect that is lacking between the sexes in high schools today. It also shows the funny optimistic ways that he presented his information. He talked to the students and used examples that they could relate to. He was honest.
Brian Sipe, junior, stated, "It was funny. I think he was right on about how men treat women."
"I think he knocked some sense into some guys when he was talking about respect," said Heather Hanna, senior.
"It was cool, but girls do bad things too. He was focusing in on the guys too much," stated Ulrick Jones, freshman.
"Any boy who calls you a bitch, you have my permission to slap them across the face," Roever explained emphatically.
"A lot of time, I’m appalled by the language guys use around the young ladies. Things weren’t like this when I began teaching. My generation was raised differently. There were certain things that you said and did around women," stated Mr. Nelson, English teacher.
"When you open a door for a woman, you aren’t trying to show her how macho or superior you are, you’re showing her that she’s a valuable human being," Roever stated.
After this, he turned his attention to his own life. He told of his struggles in the jungles of Vietnam where he was injured twice. The second time, he had been throwing a white phosphorus grenade when a bullet hit the grenade, causing it to explode. Sixty percent of his body was burned.
"I didn’t understand the war in Vietnam...it was out of my control...but I’m proud to be an American," he explained. "The question isn’t ‘Are you going to get hurt?’ The question is, ‘How are you going to deal with it?’"
"This assembly wasn’t boring like the rest of them. It was a sad story, but he made it fun. It will make me respect people more," stated Robert Jenkins, sophomore.
"If you build a relationship on respect, it will never die. When I was laying in the hospital bed, my 19-year-old teenage wife looked me in the eye and said, 'I love you.' I was loved when I was unlovable...My wife is my hero."
He also told of other experiences he had in other high schools around the country.
"One fifteen-year-old girl came up to me and asked to speak to me alone...she leaned really close to me and said, ‘My stepfather raped me and I’m going to kill him.’ If you listen to that kind of pain and don’t weep you’re not human. She wiped the tears off of my face and said, ‘No one ever cried for me before. Your scars are all on the outside, but mine are on the inside. If you can make it, I can too.’"
Roever also spoke about staying in school, not cheating, and always trying to do your best. He finished the assembly by playing a song on the piano. This action was a testament to his speech because he played the song with only five functioning fingers, because the others had been damaged in the explosion. The students gave him a standing ovation.
Roever was born in McAllen, Texas in 1946. Twenty years ago, a high school in Indiana invited him to speak to the school, and he hasn’t stopped since than. He has spoken to over 6 million students in 20 years.
"I loved doing this so much...that I’ll be doing this as long as I live," he stated. "It’s about the kids. The best part is when they come up to me afterwards and thank me. Many kids have been hurt and need encouragement."
"He had me in tears when he was telling about how much young kids go through and that people shouldn’t judge others if they don’t know what they’ve been through," stated Starla Horton, senior.
"I was crying when he said that his wife was his hero. It made my day. I wanted to go up and give him a hug," stated Amanda Moletzsky, sophomore.
J Z Parsons, senior, stated, "He was realistic. I could relate to it. He made me really emotional."
"He had good points in everything he said. He taught that you have to give respect to get respect, and to never give up," said Tammy Williams, freshman.
Roever wished to tell the entire student body that this was one of the most courteous schools he had ever spoken in, and thank you.
///end
WOW, what a man. Sometimes there are people who cross your path who literally take your breath away with their courage and determination. God was having a really good day the day he created this one.
If you ever get a chance to hear Dave Roever please do.....
He gave a highly motivational talk about his relationship with Jesus Christ and his love of America to the soldiers at Ft. McCoy, WI. a few years back- the base commander let him speak his mind with no censorship..
Dave next went over to the VA hospital...where he was not allowed to speak the name of Jesus (they said talking about Christ might be offense to some) but was allowed to talk about patriotism..(of course they never seem care if not talking about Christ might be offensive to some disabled Veterans)
Vietnam Veteran, gunner’s mate in the “Brown Water” Navy, Dave Roeper, survivor....encouraging our troops in the war zone, Iraq ~ Bump!
