ROLLING THUNDER - Motorcycle riders cruise through Washington, D.C., during the 21st Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom, May 25, 2008. The bikers ride to raise awareness about prisoners of war, troops missing in action and veterans' benefits. Defense Dept. photo by John J. Kruzel More Photos - Story

Labels: Fallen Heroes, Memorial Day, motorcycles, POW/MIA, Ride for Freedom, Rolling Thunder, tributes, Veterans

They carried P-38 can openers and heat tabs, watches and dog tags, insect repellent, gum, cigarettes, Zippo lighters, salt tablets, compress bandages, ponchos, Kool-Aid, two or three canteens of water, iodine tablets, sterno, LRRP-rations, and C-rations stuffed in socks. They carried standard fatigues, jungle boots, bush hats, flak jackets, and steel pots. They carried the M-16 assault rifle. They carried trip flares and Claymore mines, M-60 machine guns, the M-70 grenade launcher, M-14's, CR-15s, Stoners, Swedish K's, 66 mm Laws, shotguns, 45 caliber pistols, silencers, the sound of bullets, rockets, and choppers, and sometimes the sound of silence. They carried C-4 plastic explosives, an assortment of hand grenades, PRC-25 radios, knives and machetes.

Some carried napalm, CBU's, and large bombs; some risked their lives to rescue others. Some escaped the fear, but dealt with the death and damages. Some made very hard decisions, and some just tried to survive.

They carried malaria, dysentery, ringworms, and leaches. They carried the land itself as it hardened on their boots. They carried stationery, pencils, and pictures of their loved ones real and imagined. They carried love for people in the real world, and love for one another. And sometimes they disguised that love: "Don't mean nothin'!"

They carried memories!

For the most part, they carried themselves with poise and a kind of dignity. Now and then, there were times when panic set in, and people squealed, or wanted to, but couldn't; when they twitched and made moaning sounds and covered their heads and said, "Dear God," and hugged the earth and fired their weapons blindly, and cringed and begged for the noise to stop, and went wild and made stupid promises to themselves and God and their parents, hoping not to die. They carried the traditions of the United States military, and memories and images of those who served before them. They carried grief, terror, longing, and their reputations.

They carried the soldier's greatest fear, the embarrassment of dishonor. They crawled into tunnels, walked point, and advanced or flew into fire, so as not to die of embarrassment.

They were afraid of dying, but too afraid to show it. They carried the emotional baggage of men and women who might die at any moment. They carried the weight of the world, and the weight of every free citizen of America .

THEY CARRIED EACH OTHER.



Sent by Major Ross W., via Seamus

Labels: Memorial Day, tributes, USMC

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (May 5, 2007) - The plaque honoring Ensign Jesse Brown that was unveiled during a dedication ceremony at Naval Aviation Monument Park. Brown received his aviation wings on Oct. 13, 1948, as the Navy's first black naval aviator. He was killed when his aircraft went down over Korea in 1950. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class R.J. Stratchko

Labels: Fallen Heroes, photos, tributes, US Navy

Several weeks ago, I told you I was involved in a very special project to honor fallen heroes. It's finally time to unveil the details, and to tell you your help is needed to make this project happen.

One of my current adoptees with Soldiers' Angels is one with whom I share a common hobby - motorcycling. Sketch is a Harley guy - I've got a Kawasaki. In talking about our love of motorcycles, we also came to discuss a dream Sketch had - building a custom bike. He told me he wanted to use the bike in some way to pay tribute to fallen heroes...to make sure that the sacrifices of those who have fallen are not forgotten.

We rolled it around for a while, and with the help of Soldiers' Angels, the Fallen Soldiers' Bike is now a dream that has a chance to become reality.

We're starting with a Flyin' Hawaiian chopper by Denvers' Choppers, and customizing it with graphics and other items to make it a unique rolling tribute to those who have given their all. Sketch will be displaying the bike at as many motorcycle shows as he can get to. Though he's deployed now, and working long hours, Sketch is still spending as much free time as he's able to planning the bike. I'm helping to coordinate some things from here.

And the project has the support of one very special lady - Gunnar's Mom, Debey. It was right around the anniversary of Gunnar's death that Sketch and I first started getting the project blog up and running. I sent a link to Debey, who also happens to live not that far away from a motorcycle mecca - Sturgis. Debey loved the idea right away, and has also contributed to the bike's construction.

It's a costly project. The total estimated cost is somewhere around $45,000, give or take. Some of that depends on what custom elements are included, and how complicated the graphics get. We do know one graphic that will be there:

The Soldiers' Angels logo.

Sketch is an artist, and is working on other graphics for the bike - if you've got some ideas, please feel free to send them to me, and I'll forward them.

You can find the project blog at http://fallensoldierbike.blogspot.com. Visit, and you'll see a little more about what the bike means to Sketch, and to me. We'll be posting updates and pictures as the build progresses.

We can use all the help we can get to move this project along. There's the possibility of some media coverage once construction is in motion, but we need the funds to make it happen. If you would like to help be a part of this project, Sketch is going to maintain a list of donors which will be on display with the bike. Please consider donating in memory of a fallen Hero you know, or just in honor of all of those who have fallen in defense of our country. You can donate through PayPal at the project blog, or make checks payable to Soldiers' Angels, and send to:



Make sure to note "Fallen Soldiers' Bike" in the memo section of your check.

Donations to Soldiers' Angels are tax deductible.

Bloggers - please help to get the word out - link, trackback, or swipe this post!

Labels: Soldiers' Angels, Supporting the troops, tributes

Retired Army Cpl. Howard V. Ramsey, Oregon's last living World War I veteran and the last known U.S. combat veteran of WWI, died in his sleep Feb. 22 at an assisted living center in southeast Portland. Photo by Courtesy


Mar 09, 2007
BY Spc. April L. Dustin

PORTLAND, Ore. (Army News Service, March 9, 2007) - The echo of a 21-gun salute and bugler playing Taps seemingly marked the end of an era as a state and national treasure was laid to rest in Portland, Ore., March 2.

Retired Army Cpl. Howard V. Ramsey, Oregon's last living World War I veteran and the last known U.S. combat veteran of WWI, died in his sleep Feb. 22 at an assisted living center in southeast Portland. He was honored in a memorial service attended by nearly 200 people at Lincoln Memorial Park exactly one month before reaching his 109th birthday.

"This is a very historic occasion; we lay to rest today our nation's oldest combat veteran," said Pastor Stu Weber, who officiated over Ramsey's memorial service.

In an Associated Press report, Jim Benson of the Veterans Administration said there are now only seven WWI veterans on record with the VA, although it is possible there are unknown veterans who may still exist.

Of the seven known WWI veterans still living, none were shipped overseas, making Ramsey the last known combat veteran of "The Great War." Ramsey inherited the title two weeks before his passing, when Massachusetts veteran Antonio Pierro passed away on Feb. 8.

Ramsey's lifetime spanned three centuries and 19 presidents. He was born in Rico, Colo., on April 2, 1898, when the U.S. flag had just 45 stars and President McKinley was preparing to declare war with Spain.

Too young to be drafted, Ramsey tried to voluntarily enlist but was told he was too skinny by Army standards. After gorging on bananas and water to successfully meet weight standards, he was placed in the Army's transportation corps.

Ramsey sailed to France in September 1918 to join General John "BlackJack" Pershing's American Expeditionary Force. Ramsey drove cars, trucks and motorcycles for the Army and trained other Soldiers how to drive. He was often selected to drive officers to special engagements, one officer "gigging" him for having a dirty truck despite the constant rain and mud in France. He also drove ambulances, transported troops to the frontlines and delivered water to troops on the battlefields.

Ramsey once recalled his service in WWI saying, "We were under fire a lot at the front, and we really caught hell one time. I lost friends over there."

After the armistice, Ramsey spent several months recovering the remains of American Soldiers who had been hastily buried in the trenches and transported them to the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery, the largest American cemetery in Europe.

"You'd better believe it was pretty awful work," Ramsey told Oregonian reporter Rick Bella in 2005. "It was tough, but you became hardened to it."

Nearly 90 years later, Ramsey was still haunted by regret for not breaking the rules and keeping a diary that fell from the pocket of one deceased American Soldier. Ramsey told family and friends, "I wanted to keep that diary so badly to send it to his mother, but it was against the rules to keep anything from off the bodies."

Veterans of many generations and wars, and military representatives attended Ramsey's memorial service to pay their respects, including Brig. Gen. Raymond C. Byrne Jr., commander of the Oregon Army National Guard's 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and Jim Willis, state director of Oregon Department of Veterans Affairs.

"If we are going to end an era, I can think of no better way than to do it with a person who is a model representation of the kinds of Soldiers who served this country in WWI, and someone who would be an example to any combat Soldier serving up to, and including those who serve in Afghanistan and Iraq today. All (veterans) would be justifiably proud to have known Corporal Howard Ramsey," said Willis.

Retired Army Col. Don Holden, whose father was Ramsey's classmate at Washington High School, shared fond memories of Ramsey's sense of humor. He said farewell to his old friend by reading the epic WWI poem "Flander's Field," which Ramsey could recite from memory well into his late 90s.

(Spc. April L. Dustin writes for the Oregon National Guard Public Affairs Office.)

Labels: heroes, tributes, WWI

I first brought you the story of Hero Sean McEndree and his wife here - they are developing a unique rolling tribute to fallen heroes, in the form of a custom-painted semi truck. Sean's military service has ended, but that isn't stopping him from honoring his fallen brothers.

Recently, Diane emailed me to let me know that painting on the truck was underway. She promised to send some pictures. And true to her word, she did:






The McEndrees are still in need of funds to ensure the completion of this unique tribute. To learn what you can do to help, visit their website.

Diane and Sean, the truck looks beautiful! Can't wait to see it when it's finished.

Labels: Fallen Heroes, Sean McEndree, tributes

Here is one Michigan teenager who knows how to support our Heroes:

My name is Alexandra Lynn McGregor and I am a junior at Waterford Kettering High School. Everyday I get to enjoy the freedoms of living in the United States of America. I can freely live the life I choose to live because there are women and men fighting all over the world, to protect me and everyone else around me.

In honor of the people who fight for me, I would like to hold a national "Support Our Troops Day" on March 26, 2007. On this recognition day I would like to think about the people who are fighting for us right now. All the soldiers around the world who fight for us everyday deserve a lot of recognition for everything that they do for us. They spend days, weeks, months, years, and lives, protecting us from the hardships of issues going on throughout the world. Our soldiers not only protect us in big issues such as the war in Iraq but they also protect us from things that could erupt into wars. These men and women do so much for ou r nation, the least we could do is thank them. You do not need to support the fighting going on in Iraq but please realize that our soldiers do much more than that. That is why I am coming to you for support for this event.

This event would not be hard to achieve. My goal is to get the whole nation involved in a moment of silence for two minutes. At 6:00 PM Eastern time, we would stand in silence thinking about how much they do for us. The whole day would be to thank the soldiers but the only thing expected would be that single two minutes of silence. Also, if you are able to attend I am asking that you could bring a gift of support to send to the soldiers (gum, movies, USB's, etc.)

We would love to have you attend but if you can't:

a. Ask your family and friends to support our troops by taking 2 minutes out of their day on March 26, 2007, at 6:00 PM Eastern Standard time.

b. Help spread the word, we would love to have hundreds of people at this event to honor our troops

I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I hope you will support this event and make it a day of recognition for our soldiers. Please contact me if you are interested in helping make this event a success...

Sincerely,

Alexandra McGregor





If you are interested in helping with / attending this event, I do have contact information for Alexandra; just email me.

Labels: Supporting the troops, tributes

February 23, 1999

Labels: Carlos Hathcock, Marines, sniper, tributes, USMC

Last month, I meant to get to a post to note my 2-year blog-iversary.

Hard to believe it's been two years since I started here.

The two-year blog-iversary came with some other milestones, too. I was named one of the Ten Best Milblogs in the VA Mortgage Center Blog contest. And more recently, I've been nominated for a Milbloggie. Pretty darned cool, to put it mildly - I can remember when I said to myself, how cool would it be to get nominated for a Milbloggie?.

I started blogging tentatively, after forwarding a few items to Patti. She finally turned the blog over to me, a responsibility I take seriously. I have always tried to stay true to what Patti started this for - to support our Heroes, to post lots of pictures in the hopes that those who knew the Heroes pictured would be able to see them, and to get out the good news about what our Heroes were doing. Nervously, I often asked Patti if something would be OK to post - especially when it concerned my early rants. Patti was always encouraging - "Anything you like, I like," she'd say. Pictures were always a large part of this blog, which is why you'll still find several posted daily. My favorites are the "My Hero..." posts. Anything that lets military families brag about their Heroes is OK by me.

A darker element of the beginning of my blogging days is that they started right about the time that we lost a young Hero named Gunnar Becker. I have posted about Gunnar before. He was very special to Soldiers' Angels, as is his Mom, Debey. It was Debey that let me know about an anti-war display that was using Gunnar's name, and then sent the pictures of how fallen Heroes should be honored. If you can today, please spare a moment to honor his memory. And let Debey know you're thinking of her. I have a special project to tell you about soon that Gunnar's memory, for me, plays a part in, but I'll save that for another post.

Then there was the other event marking my blog-i-versary this year - a bit of a shocker, actually, but in a very, very good way.

Another Soldier I've mentioned more than once is my first adoptee with Soldiers' Angels. I can remember the day I got his name in my email - I fired off my first excited letter, and was thrilled to get a reply pretty much immediately (almost two weeks to the day that I sent my letter off - pretty remarkable). My first adoptee was a Cavalry Scout, with a wife and a young daughter at home. We shared the same wry sense of humor, and we hit it off immediately. He became a sort of little brother to me, and I could predict the day letters would arrive from the land of sand. His picture is on my wall at work, there's an Iraqi bill in a frame on my desk, and there's a letter on my wall from his squad, thanking me for Halloween candy I sent. They all signed it.

Eventually, he was able to instant message me, and I remember one day, when he was talking with me about a very difficult day he'd had. I won't go into specifics, but he was asking me if his reaction - almost none - had been normal given what had happened. He asked me if it was messed up.

I can remember struggling for what to say, and I can remember when it hit me - 'Holy crap, I'm trying to cheer up a Soldier in a war zone. What the hell do I say here???'

'No,' I told him. 'It's not messed up. You're a Sergeant, and you were taking care of your men. You were doing your job. Remember what I told you - there's the you at home with your wife and your daughter, and there's Super Sarge. You'll be OK.'

'Then again,' I said, 'you're asking me what's normal in a war zone. I'm not sure there's any such thing. And how the heck would I know, anyway? I'd probably freak out if I did your job.'

'Yeah, you're paranoid of spiders,' he said - the first sign of his humor kicking in.

'Now, that's not fair. I'm telling you, just 'cause I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're NOT out to get me.'

And just like that, the darkness passed. He was laughing again - that was a good thing. By the end of the conversation, he was in really good spirits, and I was left hoping I'd helped.

It's a momentous thing to do what Angels do. For those of us who are lucky enough to get close to our adoptees, I think there comes a universal moment when you realize exactly what it is you're doing - trying to help, in whatever small way you can, to keep "your" Soldier (or Airman, or Sailor, or Marine) OK, trying to let them know what they mean to all of us.

My little bro hadn't really been specific about anything he was seeing until one letter I'd written. I had been travelling, and I'd seen the news - talking about a pretty ugly event in the area he was working in. I'd included in my letter the following sentiment.

Just want you to know, there is nothing you can ever do that will make me think of you as anything other than a Hero. I know that my father-in-law tells some stories that are pretty ugly about where he was, and judging from the few stories he thinks are fit to tell, I probably don't want to hear the other ones. I know enough to know that war is ugly. If you need to vent, vent. It will not change one thing about what I think of you. You are, and will always be, a Hero to me.

That must have unlocked something, because after that I got more glimpses into what it was to be a Soldier in Iraq. Nothing too specific - nothing that would violate OPSEC, of course, but little details here and there about what his life was like. Some funny, some scary, but each one a treasure in that they represented the fact that a Hero trusted me enough to share them.

I cried the day he told me he was coming home - most of that was joy and relief. Some, admittedly, was the fact that I'd miss talking with him. He promised to stay in touch, and part of what my husband referred to as his "coming home dream" was to come up and visit. In our last IM conversation before he left Iraq, I told him,

'It would be very cool to see you, and you're certainly welcome to visit, but I just want you to know that if you change your mind when you get home, that's OK. Things may change a lot once you actually get home to your wife and daughter.'

He insisted he still wanted to come and visit, and again I said he was welcome, but would not be hurt if he didn't. I also told him that whether we stayed in touch or not would be entirely up to him. Soldiers' Angels has a policy that once your Hero comes home, contact ends unless it's requested, initiated, by the Hero.

'I'm a part of a pretty ugly episode in your life,' I said, 'so I understand if you don't want to stay in touch. If you ever need me again, I'm here. I told you in my first letter - my support comes with no strings whatsoever. It's a privilege to have been your Angel.'

He was still insistent that he wanted to stay in touch. And, in truth, he did email me a little while after he got home to let me know he was home safe. After that, the emails got rarer, and then stopped. Much as I missed talking to him, I also took it as a good sign - if he didn't need to talk with me, then life was probably just motoring on, which was my hope all along. Come home safe, and get on with your life.

I emailed him all the major holidays his first year home, and heard from him a couple of times. The next year (this past one), I only emailed him once - on his birthday.

Much to my surprise, I got a reply. He thanked me for the birthday e-card, and told me how much it meant that I'd remembered his birthday. He also told me something else - he was headed back to Iraq.

He was a little nervous about it this time, to say the least. And he promised to stay in touch.

Then I got an email from Kuwait, letting me know he'd gotten there OK, and would email again when he got a chance.

And so I've come sort of full circle in my angelling. From the first day, when I got the email with my first Soldier's name, to now, nearly three years later, emailing with the same Soldier, it's been quite a journey.

Still the best thing I think I've ever done with my time. Bar none. I am humbled, and honored, and proud, to be able to enter the world of Heroes. And every blog entry I post, every letter that I write, every package that I send, is, in some small way, related to one Cav Scout with a dry sense of humor, and a wife and daughter at home.

Keep your helmet on, your head down, and your wits sharp, little bro - hubby and I are always here if you need us. And you are always, always our Hero.

Labels: Gunnar Becker, opinion, Soldiers' Angels, Supporting the troops, tributes

I first brought you the story of Sean McEndree (pictured above), his wife Diane, and his rolling memorial to our fallen Heroes here.

Diane sent me an update; they've now dropped the truck off to have it painted!



Your help is still needed, though - they are still about $1,500.00 short.

Those of you who are country fans can help this memorial and get one heck of a piece of memoriabilia in return - Diane tells me that they have a baseball cap signed by George Strait!

To learn more, or to donate, visit the McEndrees' website here, or you can contact them via email.

Labels: Fallen Heroes, Sean McEndree, tributes

U.S. Army SPC Sean McEndree and his wife Diane were like a lot of military couples. Sean went to Iraq in 2004 with the 96th Transportation Company out of Fort Hood, and Diane waited anxiously for him to return.

Unfortunately, Sean also became like a lot of Heroes in a different sense. While conducting convoy operations, his unit was ambushed. A direct hit from an IED explosion, and several gunshots left him with wounds to his right shoulder and chest. Emergency surgery saved his life, but he lost a portion of his right lung, liver, gall bladder, and large intestine. He still lives with shrapnel in his right leg and chest. His injuries led to a medical discharge.

Fortunately, Sean recovered well enough to start a new career, as a truck driver. Many people would, after that experience, be content to move on, leaving their military experience behind.

Not Sean.

Many truck drivers would see this as just a rolling workplace:


Not Sean. Sean is a man on a mission. And this isn't a truck, it's a canvas - a rolling memorial in the making. Sean can't serve as a Soldier anymore - but he can help remember the fallen - and make sure that people who see this truck, coast to coast, remember them too.

Some of the work has already begun. In March 2005, Fallen Heroes Veterans Express, LLC, was founded.

The hood of the truck bears a name: SGT. Barry K. Meza KIA 19 DEC 04

The attennas are Striker attennas.

Here's the rest of Sean and Diane's vision:

He wants to have the Kevlar, rife, and boots spray painted on the back of the sleeper. The words Fallen Heroes on the sides. Also on the outside of the truck have the stacks replaced, new fenders, a drop visor, a texas square bumper, center plate, diamond plate decking and have all LED lights put on the semi.

Now on the inside he is planning on having the dash done as the American Flag. The arm rest are also going to be done like the American Flag. I am making curtains for him which will be the American Flag. He has already made most of the dash lights red and has blue toggles on the dash.

We are also putting together a display of all the Fallen Soldiers names so that we can display them at the Truck Shows for whom the truck is for. So if you know of some names please let us know. Also some other little things.

The guys at the Chrome Shop Mafia or also known as 4 State Trucks are going to be doing alot of this work. We also have several worthly organizations donating money for this cause which includes Soldiers Angels, MOPH- Military Order of the Purple Heart, Uhaul and RockWood.

As you can imagine, this project is going to cost quite a bit of money - Sean and Diane still need about $8,000 to finish the truck.

If you'd like to help, you can donate through PayPal - the address to send to is dimcendree-AT-hotmail.com. Why not be a part of this unique and heartfelt memorial?

I'll bring you updates as I get them - or you can check them out yourself at Sean and Diane's website - fallenheroessemi.com

Related Sites:
Article mentioning Sean's truck - at etrucker.com (scroll down to middle of page)

Sgt. Meza's page at Fallen Heroes Memorial

Labels: Fallen Heroes, Sean McEndree, tributes