More messages from the desert -- Send yours!

**THE NATIONAL TOUR ROUTE IS ALL SET, AND WE ARE CONTACTING THE 55 CHOSEN CITIES.  IF YOU BELIEVE YOU ARE AN OFFICIAL STOP, OR YOUR HOMETOWN IS ALONG THE ROUTE, LET US KNOW.  WE MAY BE ABLE TO FIT YOU IN AS A "HEART STOP".  (PIC 19)  We feel these messages to our hometown Heroes were important, so they are taking Journal priority.

The following are the latest messages coming in from our troops with words of thanks, and respect for our firefighters, law enforcement, and emergency responders who selflessly gave the shirts off their backs to show their support.

Journals limit word space, but we have no limit of space for these wonderful messages and photos from Heroes to Heroes ... Keep 'em coming, we will keep posting them as they arrive!

Here ya go ...

~**~**~

  My name is Sgt. Joseph Anthes. I  am a combat medic in  2-1 Infantry of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat team from Fort Wainwright, Alaska. We are currently forward deployed in Mosul , Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
    On Monday afternoon, I walked into our battalion headquarters and something caught my eye from the doorway of the office of our Chaplain. On the back of his chair hung an FDNY officers shirt, so I walked in and asked him about it. He explained the Hero to Hero program and asked if I had received one yet. I said that I had not, so he pulled the shirt off the chair and handed it to me. He knows that I will be entering the fire service after the completion of my enlistment, so it was a great gesture. It really meant alot to me. I am attaching a picture of me wearing the shirt.
    I want to thank Lt. O’Hanlon and the rest of the members of the FDNY for their support of our operations all over the world. I know they understand why we do what we do. I have carried a piece of paper in my wallet since before I deployed that sums up why I  became a medic. It reads as follows.
    “We knew the tops of the buildings would eventually fall. That was the worst case scenario. We didn’t expect the towers to collapse the way they did.  After the first tower fell, we kept searching for people. Was I wary of the second one coming down? Yes. But we don’t abandon people.”  --FF John Ceriello, Squad 18, FDNY
    It would be great to hear from Lt. O’Hanlon and any other members of his house or anyone from the FDNY. I would like to send some unit patches and hats and such to him if you could send me a mailing address. **As there was no contact info for Lt O'Hanlon, if anyone in the FDNY has a contact for him, or would like to communicate with the good Sgt, feel free to e-mail us and we will make the connection for you.  (THIS  message sums up why we do this!) lj  **Update ... LT O'Hanlon of FDNY has been contacted!  (Love it when a plan comes together!) lj

Thank You.

Sgt Joseph Anthes

~**~**~

THE 452ND ORDNANCE COMPANY AND I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU THAT HAVE AND WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT US TROOPS OVER HERE IN IRAQ.  THE SHIRTS AND THE MESSAGES ARE AWESOME.  KNOWING THAT WE ARE THOUGHT OF DAILY, AND REMEMBERED, IS A GREAT MORALE BOOSTER.  TRUST US WHEN WE SAY THAT WE ARE THINKING ABOUT YOU AS MUCH AS YOU ARE US.

THANX AGAIN,  SGT. LEMING

 

~**~**~

THE SHIRTS ARE AWSOME,  THANKS AGAIN FOR THE SUPPORT.  ITS  NICE TO KNOW WE STILL HAVE TRUE AMERICANS BEHIND US....

 

THE GUYS FROM THE 505TH ENGINEER BATTALION,  GASTONIA, NC THANK YOU.  HOPE THE PICTURE HELPED !!!!!!

 

SPC WEAVER

SPC KILLOUGH

SGT BARRETT

SSG SPAULDING

SFC BLEDSOE

SFC FLOYD

MSG HILL

CPT LANE

~**~**~

Here are SOME of our Hero to Hero pictures. The Soldiers really enjoyed the shirts and hats. Now I have to try to keep them from wearing them all the time.

Thank you,

Captain SETH A. OWEN

Commander

21st Cargo Transfer Company

~**~**~

(The following came from one of our adopted troops ... I believe the support group he is referring to is AnySoldier.Com ~ one of our personal favorites ~ and a huge supporter of H2H.)

 ...I wrote this a while back but wanted to share it with you. Sorry it has taken so long to foward it. By the way, I am the one in the photo squatting. (Pic #15)

21 February 2006
I arrived at this place in my life by influence of one single event. It was a typical sunny September morning and I was brewing a fresh pot of coffee as I sat down to thumb thru the Kinston Free Press. I remember being excited about the day because I was in the process of developing a housing subdivision and I had meetings with potential homebuyers later that afternoon.

 

All of a sudden a coworker stormed into my office and turned on my television and we both watched in horror as the events unfolded before our eyes. I remember feeling many emotions in the following weeks. Having previously been a soldier after high school, I wanted to run out and reenlist but at the time I was married with children and there was no way I could afford our lifestyle on the salary of a soldier not to mention the disruption that would cause in their everyday lives.

 

My wife and I later separated and I remember watching a video of those who died in the World Trade Center and all those emotions came
back again.

 

I reenlisted in March 2003 and have been deployed under Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, and now Iraqi Freedom every month since. When I return home in November or December I will have spent nearly 4 years away from my daughters and other loved ones, with the exception of a few weekend visits here and there. It has been tough but I hope they understand one day why daddy was gone for so long.

Do you remember in the days following 9/11 when Democrats and Republicans put aside their differences on national television and joined together with American pride? Do you remember when people drove into town with American flag decals and ribbons in the back window of their cars? Do you remember the choked up feeling you had every time you heard that patriotic song on the radio as you drove to work or carpooled the kids to and from school? I remember this time well because everywhere you went you could feel American pride in peoples voices and actions. Upon every home hung an American flag with great pride and defiance against those who threatened our land. What happened to all of that? I began to notice things slowly change back to the way it was prior to 9/11. I drove by peoples homes and saw a tattered and worn flag where a strong and bold looking one used to hang with pride. I noticed sun faded decals either poorly removed with a scraper or just covered with some humorous bumper sticker. I noticed the radio stations changing back to their original formats. Our lawmakers began to bicker once again as if small children searching for anything to complain about just so they could hear themselves complain. I began to feel that most Americans had forgotten or given up on their display of daily patriotism. It saddened me to see this happen.

All that changed last week. I began to receive letters from people all over that found my name and address on a website that supports troops serving in combat areas. They wanted nothing more than to let us soldiers know they supported us. I received a letter from a 12 year old girl that said she would try to save up some money to send us things like movies, baby wipes, etc. I sat there reading it with that same choked up feeling I had several years ago when I would hear that patriotic song on the radio. I started getting more letters as the days passed and now everyday we gather around the mail truck at noon to see where the letters are coming from.

 

Getting mail from our loved ones is one of the best feelings a soldier can have over here but to get mail from a total stranger really shows how powerful compassion and pride can be and it helps motivate us all. Without people like that 12 year old little girl supporting us we could not do what we do everyday. I only wish our Vietnam Veterans had received this kind of support. Then and now we are all Americans and as Americans we must answer a call to duty to protect our way of life.

I hope by writing this I have in some way inspired at least one person to stop and take a closer look at the flag the next time you walk by and remember the blood that was shed to protect it and what it stands for. Maybe you will even shake the hand of that elderly man in the grocery store that’s wearing a WWII Veteran hat. Trust me, it would really make their day. Maybe you would just take a moment out of your day to pray for the families of those that have fallen. If you do one of these things, that means you have done your part as a patriot and I thank you.

SGT John Smith
~**~**~

 

My name is Staff sergeant Chris Sandoval, and im a Medic serving in Mosul, Iraq with C Company 505th Engineer Battalion. I recently received a T-shirt from yall through the Hero To Hero program and I wanted to say thank you for your support. This is by far the best show of support I've seen in my 3 combat tours. Thank you so much and God Bless each and every one of you.

 

~**~**~

 

Greetings from Tikrit, Iraq
I am the Commander of a unit you sponsored with your Hero to Hero program. Those t-shirts are so popular and a huge hit with my Soldiers and leaders alike. I have taken many photos and will begin sending them here this morning. I just wanted to take a few minutes and thank you for your efforts. We play sports here, and those Hero To Hero shirts have become our team shirts. Our teams are fairing well and claim that is because they have the strength of two heroes instead of one in each person.

Photos are on the way. I just wanted to personally thank you first. It really means alot to all of us.

CPT Ali Masson

 

~**~**~

Headquarters Support Company, 505th ENGR BN,
Willing & Able!, ESSAYONS!!!
In Iraq

EL DORADO HILLS FIRE DEPARTMENT;
Thanks for continuously protecting the hills of El Dorado Firefighter Ferlini,

Chief Kennedy & Chief Fry!  God Bless you all!

~**~**~

 

To the folks at HeroToHero-
The entire 54th Military Police Company, currently  in Iraq, would like to extend a huge thank you to all the supporters who sent us the wonderful t-shirts.  The Soldiers appreciate being reminded that their efforts and sacrifices are noticed back home.  Fortunately, the company's deployment is a short one and we will return to Fort Lewis next week.  The Soldiers have performed well in the challenging detainee operations mission and are looking forward to returning to their family and friends.
Thank you again for the effort and support.

CPT Jennifer Steele
Commander, 54th MP Co
Dragon Maulers!  <<WELCOME HOME DRAGON MAULERS!~**~**~

 

I would like to thank all that were involved with the Hero shirt project.  On behalf of Headquarters Support Company, 505th Engineers, we appreciate your organizations support and letting Soldiers know that folks care about what we are accomplishing abroad. 

The attached picture is of the members of my company headquarters.  First row:  members from left to right are 1SG Donnie Loftis and CPT James Ross.  Second row: members from left to right are SGT Lisa Dumire and SPC Brittany Hull.

Sincerely, CPT James Ross

 

~**~**~

 

 

We have more pictures coming and my soldiers are very thankful for all the support from folks back home. Thanks to all of you for taking the time to collect, size, and box the shirts for us. It was like Christmas when we got the boxes open and we sorted them by sizes and went down our roster filling the bags for each section. Being away from home is a commitment we all make because we’re doing what we want to do. But knowing the folks back home support is critical. We see the things we’re doing is making an impact for the people here and that makes it worthwhile. Thanks for all you guys do to support us here, and taking the time to share your shirts.               

 

First Sergeant Donnie Loftis                                                                                   

505th Engineer Combat Battalion                                                                      ~**~**~

We have received the t-shirts and are verythankful for the support the American People.  We want to give a special thank you to all the individuals that provided a t-shirt.  This was an outstanding motivational tool for our soldiers.                           1SG Mauney                                                                                                     

 

~**~**~

Greetings,

Attached to this email is the HSC 505th ENGR BN, Company Supply Section.  (*pic 81) We would like to thank you for sending us your HeroToHero shirts.  You do not realize how much it means to us that you support the troops.  These shirts came at a great time because morale was getting lower but these shirts put a smile on our faces.  Thanks again for all of your support and keep up the good work.

SSG Heineman
Supply NCO
HSC 505 ENG BN

***

PS ... If a member of the Hodge Hall group could, please contact me at HeroShirts@aol.com