A Real Tear-Jerker

  


You've been warned.  
  
A Marine's Wedding:  
http://www.ninaberman.com/index3.php?pag=prt&dir=marine  
  
Purple Hearts:  
http://www.ninaberman.com/index3.php?pag=prt&dir=imagesph

War in reality is exactly how it has been described...H E L L but yet so many feel they have a duty to suffer the consequences no matter what. My hats off to all those that feel this way. It's a comradery that many will never understand.

This is real life.........not the news, or political rhetoric. These are real men and women who have sacrificed and continue to "soldier on". I'm proud of them. And, in some small way from my own service, proud to call them brother or sister.   
  
The unknown part of military service is seen there.  
  
Mark

Proof positive heros do exist and there is a higher calling than self.

The sad part of the pictures is that do not portray the unseen injuries that these men may have suffered in terms of inpaired brain functions and mental health problems that may take months or even years to become fully manifest.

...Joseph Mosner , was also the subject of a noted portrait photographer, Martin Schoeller  
http://www.camerawork.de/pictures/MS_Joseph_Mosner_PROOF.jpg  
  
To think that in WW I some governments wanted these men to stay out of sight so as not to lower the moral of the home front.

I joined the army long ago and got out without too much damage. But I always wanted to get that "GI Joe scar", you know that one on the figure and come home a hero. Real world wounds aren't so glamorous. If that lady is still with that marine, she deserves a medal. I know women here who are out the door and in the clubs and soon as their men go the field, let alone deployed or wounded.

I know women here who are out the door and in the clubs and soon as their men go the field, let alone deployed or wounded.  
  
It's sad to read that things have not changed in that past 40 years.

If that lady is still with that marine, she deserves a medal.   
  
Why? His wounds are on the outside of him.......not the inside, where it counts. Ever think that they married because of what's on the inside? She may not see what you see.  
  
Mark

Why? His wounds are on the outside of him.......not the inside, where it counts. Ever think that they married because of what's on the inside? She may not see what you see.  
  
Just my 2/100ths of a dollar, but she deserves a medal not for marrying him with his wounds, but for doing the hardest job that can be asked of anyone... being the "other half" (that is fiance, wife or husband) of a service member... its like the window sticker that they sell in some Clothing Sales Stores on post... "(Insert Branch of Service) WIFE.... Toughest Job in the (Insert Branch of Service)"  
  
Its my humble and honest opinion, that all the guys and gals "Over There", Iraq or the 'Stan are heroes (even though I kept saying Im not a hero, just a guy doing a job) But I think the real heroes are the Spouses and Kids, Girlfriends and Boyfriends, Mothers and Fathers that support thier service member and keep their spirits up.  
  
I wish we as veterans and service members, be it from this war, or the past wars could give medals to the Homefront Heroes that supported us.....but I guess all I can do here is to say Thanks...

I saw a news story about this marine and his wife on msnbc.com. It was such a touching story - he has such a wonderful attitude and outlook on life!  
  
I guess he was severely burned when a suicide bomber attacked his convoy. He lost one arm and most of his other hand. The reported asked about depression, to which the marine responded that crying about it won't grow his hand back.  
  
The reporter asked what his hopes and dreams were for the future. The marine replied that he was living his dream: he married the woman he loved and was building a house so they could raise a family together.   
  
A wonderful story, though a real tear-jerker. I highly recommend it if it's still on msnbc.

Frequent flier miles help families of injured  
  
When a suicide bomber left Marine Cpl. Ty Ziegel near dead, it wasn't the military who flew his parents, brother and fiancee to the military hospital in Texas but a little-known charity called Fisher House.  
  
Today United Airlines and its customers are donating 123 million frequent flier miles to Fisher House and its Hero Miles program, which has provided more than 5,000 round-trip tickets to the families of injured troops. The donation includes 15 million from United and 108 million from its customers' Mileage Plus Program. The military usually only provides airfare for parents of injured troops, not extended family members.  
'Let's thank our wounded heroes'  
  
More then 20 military families in Illinois -- including the Ziegels of Downstate Metamora, -- have benefitted from the program. Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn is asking others to donate their frequent flier miles during the religious holidays of Easter and Passover. "As we gather our families to celebrate this joyous time, let's thank our wounded heroes for their service by giving them the chance to reunite with their families," Quinn said.  
  
Besides providing plane tickets, Fisher House provides homes for families of patients receiving treatment at 33 major military and VA medical centers.  
  
Since Ty Ziegel, 23, was severely injured in Iraq, the nonprofit has housed his mother, Becky Ziegel, and his fiancee, Renee Kline, at a house near the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas.  
'A way to support our troops'  
  
Ty Ziegel remains at Brooke, where he has had more than 30 surgeries. When Ty Ziegel's truck was bombed in Iraq, he suffered extensive injuries to his face and arms, including third-degree burns. His left hand and three fingers on his right hand were amputated.  
  
Fisher House and its Hero Miles have paid for more than a dozen flights of Ty Ziegel's family members. His father, a heavy equipment operator, has also been flown to Texas several times.  
  
"Having family around is good for these guys when they are recovering," said Jeff Ziegel, Ty's father. "They've made sure that the family is there. If people are looking for a way to support our troops, this one really does it."  
  
Airline tickets are available through Hero Miles for families of military or Department of Defense civilian employees who are injured as a result of their military service anywhere in the world.   
  
Here is a photo from another source...  
  
http://www.alpheratz.net/images/uploads/6938459_Detail550.jpg

For shaing a way that many of us can directly contribute to help support our wounded veterans and their families.  
  
Sincerely,  
Karin Timour  
Period Knitting -- Socks, Sleeping Hats, Balaclavas  
Warm. Durable. Documented.  
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society  
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

Reminds me of an old poem I once heard. "God and the soldier we adore, in times of strife and not before. But when the danger is past and all things righted, God is forgotten and the soldier slighted." Some things never change.

http://www.uea.ac.uk/edu/learn/braysher/tommy.htm  
  
"...or it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"  
But it's "Saviour of 'is country," when the guns begin to shoot;  
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;  
But Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool - you bet that Tommy sees!"

From our community we have a husband-wife duo and a brother-sister duo in Iraq at the moment. I don't know how the families stand it.