I was going to try and write more about our amazing trip to Blackwater Worlwide, but no one can top Susan Katz Keating’s excellent narration.

So instead I have decided to link to her blog and let you read her version.

http://susankatzkeating.blogspot.com/

Written by Will Armstrong, History Associates Incorporated

Shortly after the Army drafted Desmond Doss for service in World War II, his superiors found themselves in a predicament: what to do with a superior soldier who refuses to kill the enemy?

Cpl. Doss was a devout Seventh Day Adventist to whom the Commandment “Thou Shalt Not Kill” was sacrosanct.  He was also a proud American, eager to serve his country.  Instead of seeking an exemption from the draft, Doss joined the Army as a conscientious objector.

Doss served as a combat medic, tasked with saving lives rather than taking them.  He was in many ways a model soldier, but his religious convictions stirred controversy.  Doss refused to violate the Sabbath, refused to train with or carry a weapon, and spent much of his spare time in solitude praying or reading the Bible.  Unwelcomed and resented by his fellow soldiers, at one point the Army threatened to dismiss Doss.

Those attitudes all changed, however, after Doss’ unit, the 307th Infantry Regiment, 77th Infantry Division, entered combat on Guam in 1944.  Doss quickly gained a reputation for heroism under fire, routinely placing himself in harm’s way to aid his wounded comrades.  During the liberation of the Philippines the unarmed medic was awarded the Bronze Star for gallantry in action.  He earned his greatest fame on Okinawa in May 1945, after a Japanese counterattack isolated a large group of wounded Americans on a ridge.  Doss moved the entire group to safety, one at a time, under constant enemy fire.  For that action and others throughout the following days, when Doss continued to put himself at grave risk and suffered serious wounds in order to rescue wounded men, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Truman on October 12, 1945.

“I wasn’t trying to be a hero,” he told a reporter after the war. “I was thinking about it from this standpoint — in a house on fire and a mother has a child in that house, what prompts her to go in and get that child?  Love.  I loved my men, and they loved me. I don’t consider myself a hero. I just couldn’t give them up, just like a mother couldn’t give up the child.”  Cpl. Doss, who never wavered in his convictions, nor in his devotion to his country, passed away in 2006.

Yes, it is true we went to Blackwater Worldwide last Friday and had the time of our lives. You may have already seen the post about our trip on Susan Katz Keating’s blog, but I must now admit that Craig Stewart our President & CEO and I are the ones responsible for orchestrating this mission. We rounded up Dave of The Thunder Run, JP of milblogging.com, Susan Katz Keating and Uncle Jimbo of Blackfive and took them away for the day. What could four military bloggers, Blackwater and two NMAW staff members all possibly have in common? Well I am sorry to say I am not allowed to release that information at this time, but check back soon.

More information to follow…

Star Exponent

Published: January 5, 2009

By Nate Delesline III

Sweat will flow from two local people for a good cause this spring.

Experienced marathon runners Joe Troy and Wendy Taylor have decided to take off into history by participating in the Boston Marathon.

“Boston is like the holy grail of marathons,” said 60-year-old Troy of Culpeper. This will be the first time he will run in the well-known event. Neither is a stranger to the road races, however. The April 20, 2009 run will be Troy’s eighth and Taylor’s fourth. Troy’s runs include Toronto, Paris, and Disneyworld. Taylor participated in the Marine Corps Marathon.

“We have to endure four months of extensive training to be able to run the 26.2 miles,” Troy said, adding that they’ve already begun a rigorous training regimen.

Begun in 1897, the Boston Marathon is one of the world’s best-known marathons and is the world’s oldest, according the race’s Web site. About 20,000 people participate each year. Although cash prizes are awarded, most, like Troy and Taylor, run for charity or just for the satisfaction of running the race.

The duo met at their workplace in Culpeper — Swift — and the idea to run in Boston started out on a whim, according to Taylor.

“This all started with Joe,” said the 42-year-old Taylor, of Fredericksburg. “I think we were joking around and Joe had this idea that we were going to run Boston,” she said with a laugh.

But their mission is serious. About 16 others will join Troy and Taylor in raising money for Homes for Our Troops. The Massachusetts-based charity raises funds to modify homes or build new homes for severely injured veterans. A Marine Corps Vietnam veteran, Troy also says he’s running in memory of a high school friend and fellow Marine that didn’t return home.

“We made a commitment of $3,000,” Troy added. He said several Culpeper businesses have already committed to helping them.

So with a dozen runs between them, they decided to do it. But experience or not, the training remains rather intense. “Weekends you get up at the crack of dawn,” said Troy. “It’s very time consuming.”

Running was something both took up later in life — Troy at 55 and Taylor at 40, but when it comes to training and running, they say age is just a number.

“If I can do it at 40, if he can do it at 55, you can do it too,” Taylor said. And “we have very good, supportive families,” she added.

According to the Boston Marathon’s Web site, the traditional 26.2 mile marathon distance was established at the 1908 Olympic games in London. The distance was extended from 24.8 miles so that the race would finish in front of the review box occupied by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandria.

http://www.starexponent.com/cse/lifestyles/culpeper_news/article/runnin_down_a_dream/27276/

A very special thanks goes out to Cassmere Productions for putting this video of our October 25th & 26th Open House together.

Check it out!

NMAW’s very own Board of Trustees Secretary, Susan Keating, has been nominated for a Weblog Award in the “Best Hidden Gem” category. Below is a link to Susan’s blog and a link to the poll’s. You can vote once a day for one week. Vote for Susan!

http://susankatzkeating.blogspot.com/

http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-hidden-gem/

It’s that time again, folks!  Christmas is over with, New Year’s celebrations are through (and hopefully recovered from!)… so now is the time to chase away those “after-holiday blahs” for our heroes! (Not to mention, the day-to-day “regular” blahs that come from being so far away from home!)   ~ Thanks for your support of our HEROES!

The Mission: To collect at least 3,000 Valentine’s Day cards for troops stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and all over the world. We are also collecting Hershey’s Kisses and Hershey’s Hugs – the more, the better!

The Reason: Being away from home and living in harsh conditions with combat & constant danger is difficult ~ our troops need to know we have not forgotten them!!! Mail from home helps to keep our troops’ morale strong, making a very real difference in their lives. It keeps them motivated and focused when they know we care about them!

The Address: Send your signed, unsealed thank-you cards to the following address:

OPERATION: LOVE FROM HOME

P.O. Box 1660

Loganville, Georgia, 30052

ALL CARDS MUST BE RECEIVED NO LATER THAN SATURDAY, JANUARY 31, 2009.

The Guidelines:

The cards can be handmade or store-bought. Even regular letters are fine. This is a great opportunity to get your Scout troop, school, church/house of worship and other civic organizations involved in doing something to tangibly show support for our troops.

Please do not write the date on your cards.

Keep the cards fun and light-hearted – this is not a dating service!

Send in Valentine’s candy if you are able to!

If you have any questions, please contact us at Kat@OperationLoveFromHome.org or info@operationlovefromhome.org

Check out our website: www.OperationLoveFromHome.org for more info, and join our Yahoo Group to stay in the loop - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveFromHome!

Postage costs are our biggest expense, and we are also in need of funds to file our 501(c)(3) application with the IRS. Donations towards postage and/or IRS filing fees are most gratefully accepted!

Written by James Lide, History Associates Incorporated

America’s second highest scoring World War I fighter ace took off from Verdun to launch an attack on German observation balloons, but never returned.

Daring and undisciplined, Frank Luke, Jr., the son of German immigrants, seized the opportunity to join in America’s World War I air war against Germany.  The fighter pilot enlisted in the Signal Corps Aviation Section in 1917 and arrived in France the following year, where he took on the dangerous task of targeting German Drachen observation balloons.  This was not for the faint-of-heart: to survive these missions, pilots skirted anti-aircraft and machine gun fire before hitting the top of the balloon precisely, while avoiding the resulting blast.  Luke’s first hit came on September 12, 1918, when his bullets ripped a hole through a Drachen and caused a hydrogen explosion.  His remarkable accuracy soon earned him the nickname of “Arizona’s Balloon Buster.”

Continued success throughout the month only made Luke more brazen.  On September 29, despite serious injuries and two Fokker aircraft in pursuit, Luke destroyed his eighth, ninth, and tenth balloons before German machine gun nests and planes forced him to crash land over France.  According to witnesses from the village of Murvaux, the fearless pilot refused to surrender.  Instead, he drew his pistol and continued to fight the approaching German troops until he received mortal wounds.

For three months, the Americans knew nothing of Luke’s fate.  Upon finally learning of his heroism, the Army Air Service posthumously awarded Luke the branch’s first Medal of Honor. Fellow ace Eddie Rickenbacker later called Luke “the greatest fighting pilot in the war,” and Luke’s commanding officer asserted that “no one had the sheer contemptuous courage that boy possessed.”  Luke is buried at the U.S. Military Cemetery at Romagne, France.