[Vision2020] Fw: Red Friday

[bear at moscow.com]

Glad to see this! Now if it just involves MORE than just wearing RED it will help even
more!
Yellow ribbons and wearing red is a great gesture, but MORE is needed!  

When I passed through Frankfurt Airport on my way to the Republic of Georgia, I stopped by

the Cafe Gothe, which if you go through Frankfurt, is THE place to stop for great coffee
and 
even better pastry.  An older gentleman,around 80, a German, walked up to my table and
asked 
if I was an  American soldier.  I told him yes, and invited him to sit down. Over coffee,
he told 
me he was a former soldier, and that he was in Russia during the war. He was wounded 
there, 
and sent home, one of the lucky ones as he put it. He told me of how much he respected 
American soldiers and our conduct as the occupiers of his country and picked up the tab at
the 
table, it wasn't much, just a few euros. My flight was called for Tblisi and I stood and
started to 
walk away, the old soldier stood up, shook my hand and saluted. I still get a lump in my
throat 
thinking about it.

Three weeks later, on my way to Warsaw Poland, me and several other Army officers had to 
pass through Paris and change airplanes. We jogged across Charles De Gaul airport, knowing

we had only a few minutes to catch our connecting flight. We got to the gate in plenty of
time, 
the gate was still opened, and passengers were boarding. We were stopped by French
Customs, 
and told we were too late to board, and that as Americans we would have to rebook our
flights.
We pointed out to him that the plane was there, the gate opened and still boarding. He
pointed 
out to us that THIS was not the United States and we would have to rebook. We all turned
away, 
and headed to the ticket counter, one in our group turned back to him and asked, "maybe
you 
didn't understand our situation, do you speak  German?". The customs officer drew himself
up, 
and said, "No! I do not speak German!"............ Where upon the soldier looked him in
the eye 
and said, "I didn't think so, YOU'RE WELCOME!".

Some memories are more memorable than others.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> From: rowan33 at suddenlink.net
> Date: Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:56:06 -0700
> To: rowan33 at suddenlink.net
> Subject: Red Friday
> 
> Will you give this to my Daddy?
> 
> As a Company, Southwest Airlines is going to support 'Red Fridays.' 
> 
> Last week I was in Atlanta , Georgia attending a conference. While I was
> in the airport, returning home, I heard several people behind me
> beginning to clap and cheer. I immediately turned around and witnessed
> one of the greatest acts of patriotism I have ever seen. 
> 
> Moving through the terminal was a group of soldiers in their camos. As
> they began heading to their gate, everyone (well almost everyone) was
> abruptly to their feet with their hands waving and cheering. 
> 
> 
> When I saw the soldiers, probably 30-40 of them, being applauded and
> cheered for, it hit me. I'm not alone. I'm not the only red-blooded
> American who still loves this country and supports our troops and their
> families. 
> 
> Of course I immediately stopped and began clapping for these young
> unsung heroes who are putting their lives on the line everyday for us so
> we can go to school, work and home without fear or reprisal. 
> 
> 
> Just when I thought I could not be more proud of my country or of our
> service men and women, a young girl, not more than 6 or 7 years old, ran
> up to one of the male soldiers. He kneeled down and said 'hi.' 
> 
> The little girl then asked him if he would give something to her daddy
> for her. 
> 
> 
> The young soldier, who didn't look any older than maybe 22 himself, said
> he would try and what did she want to give to her Daddy. Then suddenly
> the little girl grabbed the neck of this soldier, gave him the biggest
> hug she could muster and then kissed him on the cheek. 
> 
> The mother of the little girl, who said her daughter's name was
> Courtney, told the young soldier that her husband was a Marine and had
> been in Iraq for 11 months now. As the mom was explaining how much her
> daughter Courtney missed her father, the young soldier began to tear up.
> 
> 
> 
> When this temporarily single mom was done explaining her situation, all
> of the soldiers huddled together for a brief second. Then one of the
> other servicemen pulled out a military-looking walkie-talkie. They
> started playing with the device and talking back and forth on it.. 
> 
> After about 10-15 seconds of this, the young soldier walked back over to
> Courtney, bent down and said this to her, 'I spoke to your daddy and he
> told me to give this to you.' He then hugged this little girl that he
> had just met and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He finished by saying
> 'your daddy told me to tell you that he loves you more than anything and
> he is coming home very soon.'
> 
> The mom at this point was crying almost uncontrollably and as the young
> soldier stood to his feet, he saluted Courtney and her mom. I was
> standing no more than 6 feet away from this entire event. 
> 
> 
> As the soldiers began to leave, heading towards their gate, people
> resumed their applause. As I stood there applauding and looked around,
> there were very few dry eyes, including my own. That young soldier in
> one last act of selflessness, turned around and blew a kiss to Courtney
> with a tear rolling down his cheek. 
> 
> We need to remember everyday all of our soldiers and their families and
> thank God for them and their sacrifices. At the end of the day, it's
> good to be an American.
> 
> RED FRIDAYS ----- Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing
> Red every Friday. The reason? Americans who support our troops used to
> be called the 'silent majority'. We are no longer silent, and are
> voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. 
> 
> 
> We are not organized, boisterous or over-bearing. We get no liberal
> media coverage on TV, to reflect our message or our opinions. Many
> American, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize
> that the vast majority of Americans supports our troops. 
> 
> Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity
> and respect starts this Friday -and continues each and every Friday
> until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that.. Every
> red-blooded American who supports our men and women afar will wear
> something red. 
> 
> 
> By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make the United States on every
> Friday a sea of red much like a homecoming football game in the
> bleachers.
> 
> If every one of us who loves this country will share this with
> acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family. It will not be long
> before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops know the
> once 'silent' majority is on their side more than ever; certainly more
> than the media lets on. 
> 
> The first thing a soldier says when asked 'What can we do to make things
> better for you?' is...We need your support and your prayers.
> 
> Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example; and
> wear something red every Friday.
> 
> 





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