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The Sentinels of Freedom Foundation held a ceremony last evening at the Bridges Golf Club in San Ramon to welcome two new Sentinels' Scholarship recipients, U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Matthew Carhart and U.S. Army Cpl. Elizabeth Bailey Wafflard.

Representatives from veterans groups presented the flags of the five branches of service: Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, and Air Force.

San Ramon Mayor H. Abram Wilson, a Vietnam War veteran, received a standing ovation when he said, "Duty, honor, country - these three words build courage."

Other speakers included Danville Mayor Mike Doyle, and Pleasanton Vice Mayor Jerry Thorne.

Sentinels of Freedom provides four-year "life scholarships" to severely wounded veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. It was founded in San Ramon in 2004 and has been expanded across the country. Carhart and Wafflard will receive assistance on jobs, housing and higher education for the four years they are in the program.

Two of the original Sentinels of Freedom were Jake Brown, the first scholarship recipient, who was hired in a management position by Sybase in Dublin; and the second recipient, Manny Mendoza-Velencia, who has just purchased his own first home, in Danville.

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