"...I was honored to fight for freedom, and I’d do it again.”
Posted By Mr Wolf
THIS is a story.
The NYT has a great (!) story up in their obits about COL Lewis Millett, who just passed away. A Medal of Honor recipient, his story is one of the most unusual you will ever read about.
BLUF: He went from the US to the Canadian army in WWII, back to the US, convicted of desertion (and fined 52 dollars) and then fought in Korea and Vietnam. Honored for the famed Bayonet Hill charge, his legacy will long live on.
Captain Millett was wounded by grenade fragments, but his men took the hill. President Harry S. Truman
presented him with the Medal of Honor in July 1951. As the citation put
it, “His dauntless leadership and personal courage so inspired his men
that they stormed into the hostile position and used their bayonets
with such lethal effect that the enemy fled in wild disorder.”
As an antitank gunner in Tunisia, he earned the Silver Star after he
jumped into a burning ammunition-filled halftrack, drove it away from
allied soldiers and leapt to safety just before the vehicle exploded.
Not long after, he shot down a German Messerschmitt Me-109 fighter that
was strafing Allied troops. Col. Millett, who was firing from machine
guns mounted on a halftrack, hit the pilot through the windshield.
God Speed, Colonel. There are so few like you anymore...
There is little better in this world than doing some good, and especially doing some good for the troops with a good group of people. Cooking with the Wounded is now a formal program, and Phase II kicked off in high style thanks to Katy and Molly of the Yellow Bowl Bakery, who have founded their own group Bakers without Borders to do for the troops, and to Concrete Bob who brought together the 173rd ABN, the Warrior Legacy Foundation, DC Free Republic, and the grilling regulars to do quite a cookout. The result was pure Southern hospitality: grazing from the early afternoon on into the evening.
The day started with Concrete Bob and company setting up for an afternoon of fine eating. Bob provided some excellent chicken, which was far better than the last batch of BBQ chicken I did. Carter and Dayna, Lisa Everington (Apogee Solutions), and Gunn Nutt took care of the sides, hamburgers, hot dogs, and more. We even had Princess Crabby drive down from Boston to help with the cookout, and Mary Ripley of the U.S. Naval Institute joined in as well. Special thanks also go to Olga for her help.
This went from about 1 until 5:30, and a special shout out needs to go to a certain CSM who truly got things cooking. The crowd was not quite what was expected, but it turns out half the residents had hopped a charter to Vegas and that some field trips caused the crowd to slowly build. The families made it for me, however, and my favorite was the little girl who, when her parents wanted to leave and go inside, and daddy waved and said goodbye, simply looked up at him, smiled, waved, and called out good bye to him...
As things got dark, it was time to move in and for Soldiers' Angels to host Bakers without Borders. These excellent chefs brought: 6 Kentucky Bourbon pecan pies; 6 pumpkin pies; 6 blueberry oatmeal pies; 2 sheet cakes; brownies; cookies; and... I know I'm forgetting something but I lost count and track of all the goodies. I also have to admit, their pecan pie out did my momma's pecan pie and may even be my all-time favorite. We didn't get a shot of the spread, in large part because the hordes descended and we think around 200 people were fed. Again, I lost count and how do you count at least one person who came back for thirds on the pecan pie?
Phase II of Cooking with the Wounded is off to a roaring start. Work now turns to raising the money for the ladies of the Yellow Bowl Bakery to Landstuhl for the next event. There is some community support, and all support is welcome. Check out what we are planning, not just for Landstuhl but where we would like to take the program. You can also check it out on Facebook.
My thanks to Bakers without Borders, Bob, and everyone who came and made this event such a success. Just goes to show what you can do when good groups and people all work together. Thank you.
LW
PS: If you want to know why all of us, from all the different groups, do this here's one reason why from an e-mail sent to Concrete Bob:
Your group's presentation and serving of an afternoon meal on 11/14 at Malogne House was of the highest regard and is sincerely appreciated. My son is recently returned from Afganistan with battle wounds, and is overcome with emotion at the incredible outpouring of support from virtually all he encounters. May the Lord bless all of you, and all that you do, in support of these warriors. Thank you again.
Our thanks to you and to your son, Sir. The honor and pleasure are ours.
In honor of this very special Veterans Day, the Warrior Legacy Foundation is letting you all in on a little secret- they are letting out a sneak preview of a new fundraising and awareness campaign- all led by WLF Board Member and Country Singer Derek Sholl.
This is a teaser of what is to come, and what they are working on with his team to accomplish. Headlined under the banner ''For a moment, put yourself in their shoes..'' and have celebrities, entertainers, leaders and others be photographed in the boots of our Warriors. Here are some sneak pictures of SOME of those who have already committed to getting photos done (and many more to come...)
Veterans Day - Part 1 - We Start With the Late Great Mike Royko
Posted By Blackfive
"A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards." - Theodore Roosevelt
Again this year (sort of a Veterans Day tradition), I wanted to offer up my favorite Veterans Day article from the late, great Mike Royko (1932 - 1997) who penned it in 1993. I don't care if you were a paratrooper, cook, medic, grunt, pilot, or ran the laundry and bath point, you have my thanks for serving our country.
I think Mike's got the right idea about how to celebrate Veterans Day, GI-Style:
I just phoned six friends and asked them what they will be doing on Monday.
They all said the same thing: working.
Me, too.
There is something else we share. We are all military veterans.
And there is a third thing we have in common. We are not employees of the federal government, state government, county government, municipal government, the Postal Service, the courts, banks, or S & Ls, and we don’t teach school.
If we did, we would be among the many millions of people who will spend Monday goofing off.
Which is why it is about time Congress revised the ridiculous terms of Veterans Day as a national holiday.
The purpose of Veterans Day is to honor all veterans.
We are almost there, or are we? Times are tough, but there is always more we can do. Yet, sometimes we need a bit more incentive to go do it. Well, we have some incentive for you. Patti and others are willing to go bald if you will take it over the top. With an example like that, how can I fail to step up?
If Team Army gets to $50,000 by Wednesday evening, I will go bald as well. I will even arrange to have photos or video taken if you can kick it up to that level.
So, what's it to be? Shall we just barely equal the Marines, or show what Army Strange Strong really means.
Posted By Laughing_Wolf
Last Wednesday, I had the honor to attend the third annual Stand Up For Heroes gala in New York. A fundraiser for the Bob Woodruff Foundation/ReMIND.org, it brings together a variety of people to raise money for our wounded. Not only that, but the first three rows at The Town Hall theatre (where the phrase "not a bad seat in the house" was coined) were given over to some of those wounded in the last year and their families.
Brian Williams of NBC was the MC, and the acts, well, let's see: Elvis Costello, Bruce Springsteen, Louis CK, Stephen Colbert, and Lisa Lampanelli were the highlights. Jon Stewart, along with the First Lady and President G. H. Bush, sent a video presentation for the evening. All the performers, and I include Brian Williams in that category, were good. Williams has a very dry sense of humor, and the decency to keep the audience informed of what was happening in a certain world series game... Louis CK was good, and Colbert (in his camo suit) got off some really good lines, my favorite was his discussion of Gen. Odierno as Shreck, and how soft the generals hands were and about how he gave Colbet a full Brazilian to go with the haircut. I will also admit that Lisa Lampanelli has never been a favorite of mine, but her equal opportunity picking upon was well done, and I (and others) just about fell out of our seats over her gay Navy routine. The best line was "that's why the Navy uses powdered soap, it takes longer to pick up."
The goal was to raise money, and they did. A company promised to match any and all donations made that night up to $150,000.00, and given that I think they raised more than the $150k based on pledges, I suspect they cleared well over $300,000.00 on that alone. In addition, Bruce Springsteen presented the guitar he played in his last set for auction, and it was bought by actress Mariska Hargitay for $50,000.00. The victory dance she did when Bruce handed her the guitar (possibly in/on her seat) was worth the price of admission.
Two things need to be noted here. First, ReMIND.org gives most of the money it raises to other charities, grassroots organizations that are already doing the work with the wounded. They are not trying to reinvent the wheel. Second, they -- like Valour-IT -- are in doing a fundraiser centered on Veteran's Day. If you are of a mind to, they are looking to get people to donate $11.11 on Veteran's Day. It's a good cause and I've donated to them before myself.
While it was a quick trip, I did get to do a couple of other things. Rich Lowe and his wife were kind enough to offer me the hospitality of their home, and it was a pleasure to get to peruse his library a bit and to view the excellent collection of military miniatures and impressive dioramas there. Richard was also kind enough to buy me an excellent lunch at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station (Blue Point Oysters with anchovy butter) before I walked over to the U.S.S. New York for a visit. I want to thank the Navy for letting me aboard, and the Marines for an excellent visit/tour/instruction session. It was a true pleasure to spend time with such a good group, and to be able to present a Soldiers' Angels "May We Never Forget" coin to a ship that has "Never Forget" as its motto.
Don't forget, if you can, give a bit to ReMIND.org and there is still a chance to get my head shaved if Team Army gets extremely lucky. Come on, you want to see me bald...
Military Motivators For Valour-IT - USAF Nancies in the crosshairs
Posted By Blackfive
Update: Been receiving a lot of email from irate USAF personnel and retirees. Please, people, I respect the USAF - just not until November 11th when the Valour-IT competition (divided by military branch) is over. Stop with the emails about how many times you were in combat or how many times you were shot, stabbed, shanked, punched, burned, and blown up in the line of duty. Chip, meet shoulder.
Let's boost TEAM ARMY and donate to Valour-IT. More Military Motivators at the expense of our brothers and sisters in blue after the Jump.
The red symbolizes our military backgrounds, and the white symbolizes the peace that we all desire. The dagger represents justice, the wings represent swiftness, and the shield represents protection.
Former Paratrooper and Army Officer, Matthew "Blackfive" Burden started this blog upon learning of the valorous sacrifice of a friend that was not reported by the journalist whose life he saved. Email: blackfive AT gmail DOT com
Retired Special Operations Master Sergeant, Jim Hanson ("Uncle Jimbo") is now focused on writing about the military, politics, intelligence operations and foreign policy. Email: jimbo AT unclejimbo DOT com
Writer, photographer, and raconteur C. Blake Powers is the Laughing Wolf. He is independent in politics and covers topics including journalism, military, weapons, preparedness, space, science, cooking, food and wine, product and book reviews, and even spirituality. Email: wolf1 AT laughingwolf DOT net Laughing Wolf's Amazon Wish List
Grim -- an Old Norse name that means 'one who wears a mask' -- blogs on issues of intelligence, information operations, and foreign relations. Email: grimbeornr AT yahoo DOT com
Instapinch
Bill Paisley, otherwise known as Pinch, is a 22 year (ongoing) active and
reserve naval aviator. He blogs over at www.instapinch.com on a veritable
cornucopia of various and sundry items and will bring a tactical naval
aviator's perspective to Blackfive. Readers be warned: any comments of or
about the F-14 Tomcat will be reverential and spoken in low, hushed tones.
Email: wpaisley AT comcast DOT net
Mr. Wolf has over 26 years in the Army, Army NG, and USAR. He’s Airborne with 5 years as an NCO, before becoming an officer. Mr. Wolf has had 4 company commands. Signal Corp is his basic branch, and Public Affairs is his functional area. He recently served 22 straight months in Kuwait and Iraq, in Intel, PA, and senior staff of MNF-I. Mr. Wolf is now an IT executive. He is currently working on a book on media and the Iraq war. Functional gearhead.
In Iraq, he received the moniker of Mr. Wolf after the Harvey Kietel character in Pulp Fiction, when "challenges" arose, they called on Mr. Wolf...
Email: TheDOTMrDOTWolfAT gmail DOT com
Deebow is a Staff Sergeant and a Military Police Squad Leader in the Army National Guard. In a previous life, he served in the US Navy. He has over 19 years of experience in both the Maritime and Land Warfare; including deployments to Southwest Asia, Thailand, the South Pacific, South America and Egypt. He has served as a Military Police Team Leader and Protective Services Team Leader and he has served on assignments with the US State Department, US Air Force Security Police, US Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. He recently spent time in Afghanistan working with, training and fighting alongside Afghan Soldiers and is now focused on putting his 4 year Political Science degree to work by writing about foreign policy, military security policy and politics.
COB6 spent 24 years in the active duty Army that included 5 combat tours with service in the 1st Ranger Battalion and 1st Special Forces Group . COB6 was enlisted (E-7) and took the OCS route to a commission. COB6 retired a few years back as a field grade Infantry officer.
Currently COB6 has a son in the 82nd Airborne that just returned from his third tour and has a newly commissioned daughter in the 4th Infantry Division.
Uber Pig was an Infantryman from late 1991 until early 1996, serving with Second Ranger Battalion, I Corps, and then 25th Infantry Division. At the time, the Army discriminated against enlisted soldiers who wanted use the "Green to Gold" program to become officers, so he left to attend Stanford University. There, he became expert in detecting, avoiding, and surviving L-shaped ambushes, before dropping out to be as entrepreneurial as he could be. He is now the founder of a software startup serving the insurance and construction industries, and splits time between Lake Tahoe, Boonville, and San Francisco, CA.
Uber Pig writes for Blackfive a) because he's the proud brother of an enlisted Civil Affairs Reservist who currently serves in Iraq, b) because he looks unkindly on people who make it harder for the military in general, and for his brother in particular, to succeed at their missions and come home in victory, and c) because the Blackfive readers and commenters help keep him sane.
McQ has 28 years active and reserve service. Retired. Infantry officer. Airborne and Ranger. Consider my 3 years with the 82nd as the most fun I ever had with my clothes on. Interests include military issues and policy and veteran's affairs.
Email: mcq5 -at - bellsouth -dot- net
Major Pain --
A Marine who began his blog in Iraq and reflects back on what he learned there and in Afghanistan. To the point opinions, ideas and thoughts on military, political and the media from One Marine’s View. Email: onemarinesview AT yahoo DOT com
Get the official Warrior Legacy Foundation shirt at Ranger Up!
The front has the logo and the back has our unofficial motto from the military code of conduct:
I will never forget that I am an American, fighting for freedom, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free.
The Blog of War
"Grab it before the Pentagon orders it burned..." - Vanity Fair
"...nonpartisan patriotism is the common thread tying together these reflections, love letters and stories of combat. They make for riveting reading." - The Washington Post
Winner of the 2006 Gold Medal for Anthologies - Military Writer's Society of America
"This collection is an excellent introduction to an emerging form of war reporting." - Booklist
"...there is much to tell, and celebrate, in the tough, day-to-day work that our soldiers are doing in one of the most challenging environments any army has ever faced..." - The Philadelphia Inquirer
"...the collection is riveting...a worthy tribute." - The American Prospect
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