“The Pledge to America” author Drago Dzieran grew up under the oppressive socialist/communist government in Poland. The book describes his journey from political prisoner to a Navy SEAL. Drago says that “The Pledge to America” was not intended to be a “SEAL book”. Rather, his reasoning for writing the book was to provide a lens for fellow Americans to recognize how special our country is.

Drago had a rough upbringing in poverty and soon turned to violence as a survival mechanism. He even extorted the children of wealthy party members to bring extra food to school for the children who had nothing to eat. Visits from the secret police were not uncommon.

Drago cites an example of how government controlled everything. When his father deserted his family, his mother sought to move closer to her relatives. She had to get permission from the government to make the move.

After being thrown in prison for his involvement in an underground anti-government newspaper, he was eventually released and applied for political asylum in America. When he finally arrived in the United States, all he had was a bag of clothes and ten cents in his pocket. He has high praise for the church members who took him in and supported his transition. He cites this kindness as the inspiration that made him want to be the best American citizen he could be.

When the U.S. was attacked, Drago felt compelled to join the military as a way of repaying the freedoms that America had granted him. He served 20 years in the Navy and developed new breaching methods that are used to this day. He also founded the Navy SEALS Fund.

The Pledge to America is a great read with the perfect combination of humor, inspiration and cautionary tales.

TAKEAWAY: “My chance to live as a free man is ONLY possible because of the ideals the founding fathers fought for and have been carried forward to this day by Americans. I would like to say thank you to all Americans for my freedom.”