After our limousine passed through the gates of Arlington Cemetery, I looked left and saw two parents visiting their son or daughter. They sat on chairs in the garden in front of the tomb. It wasn’t the formation of the “missing man” planes that hovered over my head, that made me cry. It wasn’t a horse-drawn coffin that disappeared before the silhouette of the trees that made me sad. The armed men, shooting towards the sky in honor, began to chase after me. It was the sacrifice and the pain of loss that saddened me. All these men and women around me gave their lives for this country. I was sad for their parents, wives and children. My father was very old when he passed away. He lived a long and successful life. Most service members buried in Arlington did not have the same opportunity. That’s what my dad would have said, if he had been there.
Charles Bernard Kenning, an attorney at Arlington Cemetery, was buried with full military honors in February of 2009. He was strong, tough, and steadfast. He was reminding us that freedom is always at stake. You will be required to respect the law.
Younger lawyers learn to isolate, manipulate, and alter facts; However, Charles Kenning believed that there really was no middle ground. Our Founding Fathers fought tyranny with truth, values, compassion, and rule of law. It was believed that these men created the greatest democracy in history. Our Founding Fathers were smart. Many of them were not only statesmen, but also university presidents, lawyers, and fathers.
They have studied, sought, and fought for ideals such as justice, individual freedom, and human dignity. It is this date that cut off the United States of America from the world. This is the framework that has created a people with the ability to vote, work, and speak freely in pursuit of happiness. Charles Kenning would ask us not to let our rabbis blind us with dishonesty, taxes, and misinterpretations of the law. The unpaid bills, the rewritten rules that will lead our children into the era of economic, political and social slavery.
This message was consistent with his actions. Charles B. was dropped. Kenning over Germany on his twenty-third mission in 1944. In a prison camp he was aware of American rights, and he explained the Geneva Convention to his captors. All that was left to guard his camp, at that point in his wartime experience, were frightened young Germans with big guns. My father was lucky to speak German.
Like our grandfathers, Charles Kenning fought for democracy and individual rights. Upon leaving the detention center, Live Magazine took and published a photo of the event that marked his exit. With crutches in his hand, he tore off the Nazi flag. It was this image that alerted his mother, who was thousands of miles away – her son was alive. With his soul intact, he was returning home. Sonny-boy, as he’s called Nana, will tell you that we must respect, preserve and respect legal norms and our Constitution.
Charles B. graduated. Kenning of Georgetown University and passed several bar exams that were given around Capital Road shortly thereafter. The screw that was drilled into his leg to support his ankle during the war did not hinder his forward momentum. It was this persistence with which he dealt with his love of freedom. In life he was in good spirits. In illness and near death, he did not complain.
Charles B. Kenning was a collector. He collected cars, boats, and books. Few people know that he owns every law book that West Publishing has ever produced.. They meticulously put thousands of square feet of law library in our house. When I was a teenager, I remember learning that this is weird. Friends came to play, and later returned in groups to tour the library, and to shop for snacks. I soon learned to never invite people into this part of the house. I don’t want to be different. Not every other home in Pittsford is built on a foundation that reflects an underground city equipped with libraries and ramshackle shelters filled with food.
In college, my sisters and I started calling this part of our house “Chuck’s-Mart.” The prices were correct, after all. Anyone can find a free book, or feed the entire dwelling if necessary. There was no need for a special blue light in the Old Farm Circle. He never noticed the missing books or groceries. The unwashed and hungry masses that passed through our doors appreciated the omission.
When my father became disabled, his beloved library was moved to Albany, New York, and it became the best part of the law library for students. He would like to join them in the study. After graduating from law school, he studied law at John Fisher College. He was the kind of teacher who wanted students to read and actively discuss issues. When discussing a point with Charles Kenning, it is best if the facts are true. It was not an easy teacher.
If Professor Kenning were alive today, he would ask the students to read bills proposed by Congress. He was inviting his students to actively discuss issues. Wants precedence and justified contradictory positions. Professor Kenning would have been disappointed by the government and the people who read it. Members of Congress, not reading the proposed bills, appalled him equally. He was not a compromising person or an easy man.
I can imagine Mr. Kenning saying something like; “Some proponents of rewriting and creating new laws have learned that in anarchy there is opportunity. But in true freedom there is only the rule of law.” My father will say that the truth cannot be hidden in proposed bills and in revisionist history. Our history is clear, our founders were straightforward and our agenda as a people was destined. It is our duty, our right and our privilege to live freely and uphold the constitution. As leaders, we must hold legislators, politicians, and families to high standards.
It was not Charles B. Kenning oppresses the truth to gain political power, popularity, fame, or financial gain. He was a student of American history. who believed in the support of the law. He had great love and respect for the constitution. You will be asked to look forward to protecting your children and future generations with the same document. He was stubborn in this belief.
My sister recounts a conversation he was going to have with his children. It will start as a question; “Did you do your best?” If your answer is “yes,” then there will be more to follow, “…if that’s the best you can do, you’ve done enough.” Then he will add the fascia. “Now go help someone else do it better.” He was stubborn and unshakable.