(Not actual picture of the person mentioned)I am so excited to announce that we will be starting some projects over the next month or so to bless those serving abroad in our military and giving their all to make sure that we remain a blessed, free nation. The first thing I would like to present is the opportunity for you, the Ordinary Hero, to bless our men and women, the ultimate heroes, serving abroad. So many times we take our military for granted as we live our comfortable lives here in the States. I think it is important to take a moment, today on Veteran's Day especially, and thank our brave men and women who give their all for us. I have recently connected with one of my facebook friends who is serving tirelessy right now in Afghanistan. He is from my Hometown. I asked him about the people he is serving with and what would be some things we could bless them with. Here is his response:
"Most of our folks love home baked stuff and most things not really good for us (LOL). One request, of all things, that was made today was pumpkin pie; if there is a way (LOL) to add this to their shopping lists, that would be great (two of our folks asked specifically for home baked). Funny how things like this get missed when we are away from home. Other stuff like peanut butter and crackers, slim jims, etc. are always crowd pleasers. We got a box the other day with some halloween decorations and some of our young ladies almost fought one another trying to decorate our offices (just an idea for the upcoming holiday season). Honestly, it is the little things and the simplest gestures that bring smiles to faces. The guys that are here from Fort Campbell are in another region of the country and I have little interaction with them. We provide support to Soldiers out of Fort Lewis, Washington and Fort Bragg, NC. The task force to which I am presently assigned is out of Heidelberg, Germany. Otherwise, most of the people I work with are coalition partners (24 nations to be precise) from around the globe. Together we are trying to provide some element of stability and control throughout the southern region of Afghanistan. Our road is long and cumbersome; hopefully, worth our efforts in the end. To give you an idea, I follow some of your traffic you post. I am a logistics officer for a medical command operating throughout southern Afghanistan. We see some of the worst of this mission. Most of our "clients" are local nationals that get caught in the cross fire of decades of heavy fighting among tribes mostly; recall, we were not the first country to assume control of Afghanistan (not that this is our mission, but among the multitude of nations involved in this fight, it sure seems like it most days). The guys that work with/for me are healthcare logistics professionals. We ensure our hospitals, surgical teams, and a variety of other types and designs of healthcare agencies receive adequate supply to continue their mission of caring for the wounded and ill. We STAY busy. Please know that this means US Army. We have a joint forces headquarters in which we work. We have US Navy and Army working among our ranks. We have one Air Force sergeant, but he will have returned to another base by the time this happens. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I could tell you more, but don't want to bore you too much. Each soldier, sailor, airman, and marine has a story and a home town, so any taste of home is truly appreciated. I really do appreciate your efforts and thank you for your support. From the types of postings I am seeing of you, you have a rather noble mission in life. Thanks for everything you do to make the world a brighter place. Thanks so much. JV "
He gave me the names of 10 men and women who serve with him, including himself, that he could get our packages to. I would love to show our love and support to these noble men and women by sending over packages to bless them. If your family, church group, bible study, school, etc would like to take part in blessing these brave men and women please comment on this blog post or email me at kelly@ordinaryhero.org for more info. Let's show our love from America and say a great big THANK YOU.
On a side note, just after I had this idea the other day, my son asked if he could invite over a new friend from school. This little boy was brought over by his mother. I immediately noticed his nice manners as he greeted me with "MaM". He and my son ran off to play together as I stood and got to know his mother. When I asked about his family and how long they had lived in the area, she proceeded to tell me that her husband, the man she married at the age of 17, her high school sweetheart, and the father to her two boys, died two years ago in the Iraq war. She told me the details of his death with lots of strength of character while I could see she was still holding back tears. Yet she went on to talk of her faith and strength she finds in God and that is what has helped her move on. I have not heard from someone one on one like that who has been so directly affected by this war that continues to take place. Yet there are thousands of people just like her, who have had a family member pay the ultimate price. She told me that "people just don't get it. They walk right by the tv, hearing of another casualty and don't think a thing about it. That was someone's dad, husband, mom, daughter or son. " You know....she is right. We need to bring more awareness. I thought how odd that I meet her just when this is all in the forefront of my mind. God must be up to something :)
I hope to get more stories from her and from those I am in contact with who serve abroad to help remind us how real this is and to keep us from taking it for granted.
Also have some ideas bouncing around to bless the kids and families who will be without their moms and dads this holiday season as their loved ones serve abroad. More to come....
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