Battle Buddy

I come up the stairs and see him sitting on the top step, head in his hands, crying. I sit down next to him.

He's sobbing uncontrollably, shoulders heaving, gasping for air. Tears and snot drop from his face onto the floor between his feet. I put my arm around him and bury my face in his shoulder.

Another Soldier with his arm in a sling comes and stands next to us.

After a while the sobbing slows, his breathing becomes regular and deep. He's tired.

"Ready to go out for a smoke?", asks the Soldier with the sling. "We can talk."

I look up at him. "You his battle?"

He nods.

Finally

Buck Sergeant's coming home.

From THE ENEMY OF THE GOOD: A Buck Sargent Epilogue.

The loss of a good man can make one question the why
Spurring a search for the answer for what did they die?
On behalf of ungrateful nations have our kin repeatedly bled
Over countless generations spanning acreage of war dead,
But for those who have fought for it hath freedom truly been tasted,
On account of what otherwise would most assuredly amount
Mere killing time well wasted.

Have a safe journey home, Buck Sergeant.

H/T Greyhawk

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just a regular day in this part of the world, but my thoughts are with all who are celebrating together with family, friends, and buddies.

I'm thankful for all of you... who understand that we are blessed to have something worth fighting for.

God Bless Texas!

500 phone cards donated to Soldiers' Angels Germany for the patients at Landstuhl.
A couple of months ago I was contacted by Cathy Frederic of Plano, Texas about a trip she was planning to Germany. Her Dad had been stationed here in the 60s and her sister was born at Landstuhl hospital.

"Knowing the important role that Landstuhl plays now in supporting our wounded soldiers I couldn't go to visit without bringing a gift and a Thank You for the soldiers. I didn't want to bring a small gift either so I started asking friends and workmates if they wanted to help. And they did want to help," Cathy explains.

"I got immediate positive responses, so I asked more people. I wanted to give everyone the opportunity to help."

So many wanted to help that Cathy was able to purchase 500 phone cards and collect 200 letters and cards of encouragement.

Many individuals contributed to this effort but there are some groups that stood out in their level of concern and commitment, according to Cathy.

The most outstanding sources of support were:

- The Vietnamese Initiative at Texas Instruments Dallas, Texas
- Spring Creek Women's Initiative at Texas Instruments Dallas, Texas
- Stephen Ministry at Grace Outreach Center Plano, Texas
- Children's Church at Grace Outreach Center Plano, Texas

There are many Diversity Initiatives at TI. Cathy, for example, is a member of two, TI WIN, the Texas Instruments Women's Initiative Network and CVI, the Christian Values Initiative.

But the most impressive response that Cathy received from anyone about the project was from the members of the Vietnamese Initiative, which she describes as "swift and decisive". They took it on as their own project and in 2 week's time had raised over $600 to contribute.

Why?

According to one of their members, "Many of us came to US as refugees between 1975 and 1987. We understand very well the values of freedom and democracy which we risked our lives to seek. We really appreciate US soldiers who leave behind their beloved families and a dream country to fight for freedom and democracy around the world. We value their sacrifice."

Cathy said it made her stop and wonder if someday we'll have Iraqi friends who value, appreciate, and love America as these new citizens do.

On behalf of the patients at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Soldiers' Angels would like to thank Cathy for her leadership, and each and every donor for their generosity. Your display of patriotism and compassion is an inspiration to us all, and has touched me deeply.

Our nation is truly blessed in its fighting men and women and those who support them.

I know what I am thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Cathy, husband Pat, and Pat's cousin Diana outside the Wounded Warrior Ministry Center at Landstuhl.

So what are you doing on December 14th?

Christmas at Arlington National Cemetery
Remember this? How would you like to help out this year?

Worcester Wreath invites you to attend the annual wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery or in your local area.

Since 1992 volunteers have placed wreaths donated by the Worcester Wreath Company at the headstones of over 5,000 of America's honored dead.

Morrill Worcester initially brought 4,000 surplus wreaths from the holiday decoration company he owns to Arlington. Every year since then he has driven to Arlington in December with a trailer full of wreaths and dozens of volunteers to place them throughout the cemetery.

This year, Mr. Worcester hopes to expand the Arlington Wreath Project into Wreaths Across America, and place memorial wreaths at more than 230 State and National Cemeteries and Veterans Monuments across the country.

As Mr. Worcester told an Air Force reporter in 2005: "We couldn't do anything in this country if it wasn't for the people who gave their lives to protect us. It's a great honor to be able to come here and pay our respects."

Please visit the Wreaths Across America website for more information about volunteering to place wreaths at one of the locations, to help organize pending locations, to make a donation, or to help in any way.

Wreaths Across America Mission:
Remember - Honor - and Teach
Remember the fallen;
Honor those who serve;
Teach our children the value of freedom.

Thanks to Mudville Gazette for the Open Post.

"It looks like a normal house from the outside... but inside, there's a LOT going on"

That was the comment from a boy to his schoolmates after visiting Sara Ehrlich's home.

Through flyers and word of mouth, Sara had spread the word before Halloween within her New Jersey community that extra candy could be dropped off at her home and she would send it to our deployed troops.

"If you get the word out in advance and contact a local elementary school (2 schools, a boy scout troop, and neighbors have donated this pile) you WILL get people who are eager to help", explains Sara.

Enough candy for an Army :-)
When several of the parents and children from one of the schools that collected the candy came by to drop it off, Sara showed them the rest of the "operation" - the room where she fills packages and stores the magazines, books, snacks, and personal care items she regularly sends to our Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A few days later, one of the teachers stopped by with even more candy and reported what one of the boys had told other kids in the class after his visit to Sara's home.

I guess the teacher had to see it personally ;-)

Snacks
Sara doesn't buy all this stuff herself, although she does claim "Power Shopper" status. Through creative ideas like the Halloween project she is able to offer others the opportunity to get involved.

Hygiene items
She has obtained permission to place a box in her local supermarket with a flyer listing items deployed troops enjoy. Shoppers can simply drop items into the box, which Sara checks every couple of days. Schools and scouts are always interested in community service projects, and a simple note on a box placed near her front door asking for magazines and books generates lots of donations.

Books and magazines
Sara is a long-time member of Soldier's Angels, an all-volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to making sure "No Soldier Goes Unloved". One of her jobs there is to review the daily submissions from deployed Soldiers requesting "adoption".

"When I see that a Soldier or a unit has requested some additional support I think to myself, 'well, I guess I can send one more package.'"

Sara is a Proud Army Mom whose son is currently serving his second deployment to Iraq.

To find out more about Soldiers' Angels, please visit our main website.

Buckeye fans in Iraq

Who knew?

Wolverine flag held for ransom by bad guys in Iraq.

The Best Kid's Letter to Wounded Soldier Ever

Dear Sold Wounded Hero Man,

Thank you for fighting for me. I hope you get better soon so you can get back out there and fight for all of us again.

(smiley face)

Don't worry,
be happy.

The huge grins this letter generated among the inpatients were priceless.

In Your Head

In your head, in your head they're still fighting,
With their tanks and their bombs,
And their bombs and their guns.
In your head, in your head, they are dying...

Yeah, there's a story behind this I won't go into. This is for Mike, and for Charles, and for all the guys who have to live with what's in their heads.

Because nobody hates war more than a Soldier.

(Not that the Cranberries would know, but whatever.)

Pilot Shot Down Over Laos 35 Years Ago to be Buried at Arlington Today

Air Force 1st Lt. James "Larry" Hull - AP Photo

1st LT. James Larry Hull, recipient of the Silver Star, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, Purple Heart, and nine Air Medals, will be buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery today, November 13, 2006. He was shot down over Laos in 1971 and his remains were recovered in May of this year after years of negotiations with the Laotian government.

Pilot shot down over Laos to be buried:

[Hull's wife] knew her husband was flying over the Ho Chi Minh Trail and that the flights involved reconnaissance. What she didn't know was that he'd volunteered for the highly classified "Prairie Fire" unit, where he commanded the planes and helicopters that dropped Special Forces teams behind enemy lines and pulled fighters from the jungle to safety.

Unlike some other reconnaissance flights that typically flew no lower than 1,500 feet, these pilots flew as low as 50 feet, sometimes so low that tree limbs scraped the bellies of their planes.

"We had to find these guys in the jungle and we had to get right at the tree tops," said Tom Yarborough, a retired Air Force colonel who trained Hull and flew with him until the day he died.

On Feb. 19, 1971, Hull's unit was searching for the crew of an American helicopter that had been shot down. Yarborough had been flying above the soldiers who were on the ground fighting their way toward the wreckage, and in the afternoon it was Hull's turn.

"There was a heavy machine gun up on the slope; it had fired a couple of times," said Yarborough, who now works in Arlington, Va. "I told Larry about that gun, said, 'He's up there and he's firing.' That was the gun that shot him down."

The 25-year-old pilot died instantly, his body trapped behind the engine of his plane. A sergeant with him also died.

When a recovery team arrived at the scene, they were able to pull the body of the other man from the wreckage, Yarborough recalled. But with the enemy closing in and Hull's body pinned inside the cockpit, there was only time to grab one of Hull's dog tags and leave.

Flying over the site a few days later, Yarborough spotted enemy soldiers at the crash site. He could only imagine they were taking his friend's belongings.

Angered, he led another attempt to recover Hull's body. But when he shot a smoke rocket to mark the site for other members of the team, he accidentally struck the plane. It burst into flames.

With that, Yarborough had to do something unthinkable — leave his comrade's body behind.

1st Lt. James "Larry" Hull information and tribute site.
COMING HOME, Reflections by Retired Colonel Tom Yarborough

"You should have seen the sky today," Larry would exult whenever he went flying, training for his wings. "You should have seen the sky."

Welcome home, 1st Lt. Larry Hull.