Category: Iraq

Homecoming of 3/4 Weapons Company

Homecoming of 3/4 Weapons Company


My heart goes out to all the families who have lost their loved ones in this war on terrorism. These are what all of us parents and warriors alike live for. This is the homecoming of 3/4 Weapons Company and some of the members of 81’s Platoon. This reunion took place at Twentynine Palms California on July 29th. read more

Chicago Suburban Marine Awarded Prestigious Silver Star

Chicago Suburban Marine Awarded Prestigious Silver Star


I am a VERY PROUD MARINE MOM and would like to share the following. Click on link then hit play. Hope you have sound. I have also included some still pics and a link to the Daily Southtown Newspaper.

http://cbs2chicago.com/seenon/local_story_221181255.html read more

Thoughts

Thoughts

Although I am not good with words, I feel like writing. Here we are, September 11th, 2005. Four years after that devastating day when we as American’s were attacked on our own land by cowards and lost thousands of innocent people. And we saw a nation come together in the wake of a tragedy, and a new breed of heroes came about. Both firefighters and police alike gave there lives for something that seems very simple, because most watch it through a T.V. Saving a life, in the middle of chaos, and giving your own, easy to see, easy to write, but not easy to do. During a moment of silence today, when we rose our Colors in Al Asad Iraq, this was all passing through my mind. I will never forget that day, neither will anyone that existed during it. I was honored to be able to take a moment of silence, in Iraq for all the victims, then I looked around and and took my own personal moment for all the Marines I saw around me serving with me in this war, the one that began on that day. Most of them barely 20, and some not even 19, men and women, who knew exactley where they were gonna go, and still signed their life away, VOLUNTARILY. I thought about what brought me here, in 2001 I was a 18 year old punk, who did not have a care in the world, no respect for authority, nonetheless, for anything. I was careless on a one way road to nowhere, was not thankful for anything. Then at work on that day I heard the news stating the attacks in New York, it was merely reported as a plane hitting one of the towers, and eventually turned into alot more than just that. We took a smoke break, then Lee came and let us clean up and head home to watch the news. When it got soaked in, it freaked me out, and noone really knew what to make of it, we were all freaked.

In the coming weeks after, I started to realize how much of a loser I really was, and how much I had taken for granted in my life, I had everything a kid coulda wanted, and a good head, but I pissed it away, and barley made it out of school. I was in a 1 bedroom roach infested apartment, lived like a slob, and came to the conclusion there was no way out, I could not afford school, neither could my parents. So after alot of thought, and some advice, I took a walk to the recruiting station, and straight to the Marines office, I decided if I do it, take the hardest road, to not only teach myself a lesson in life, but to prove I wanted to change. I got laughed at, I was quite overweight, took me 6 months to drop about 70 pounds, just to get shipped to boot camp. And change I did, I had an attitude at first, but it got knocked out of me quick, in about 1 second to be exact. I made it through, 30 more pounds lighter, and a whole new outlook.
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Sabre Update

Sabre Update

Next time you think about whether you want to take time to vote, remember this: it took Sabre Squadron six months, the loss of six of our heroes, and hundreds of combat operations to set the conditions for the Iraqi Referendum Vote for their constitution today. The good people of Tal Afar went to the polls in huge numbers to vote. Not a shot was fired. The crowd below was chanting, ?No to terrorism? in Arabic. The purple fingers signify those that voted. They displayed them all over the city with tremendous pride. The guy in the blue shirt and helmet is the Chief of Police of Tal Afar and the guy to the right in a helmet is the commander of the Iraqi Army brigade in Tal Afar. Your Soldiers did an absolutely tremendous effort to make this historic event happen. Thank you for your continued support. We are good to go. read more

Honorary Nephew

Honorary Nephew

Greetings! My “honorary nephew” is back, safe, sound and newly promoted from his deployment in Iraq with the extremely hard-hit 3rd/35th USMC Reserves. Both he & his dad were very pleased with the items I got for them from Sgt. Grit; they as well as their fellow Marines & families thought my “Strength and Honor” T-shirt very appropriate too. read more

My Fiance

My Fiance

I just wanted to brag about my fiance Lcpl CARTER of 2/7 Fox Co. He is currently in Iraq and I wanted to thank you for putting on such a great web site and newsletters. It really helps those of us who are waiting here at home. Before he left for Iraq I remember reading other people’s stories, knowing that someday I was going to be living them as well. Now, that time is here, and talking to him and listening to what he tells me reminds me of things that I learned not that long ago in history books at school. As you can imagine it is really hard just waiting here not knowing much, but Marines are the coolest and bravest people that walk this earth! God Bless you all. read more