Division 283

[Amber-Brad's mom]

A way for everyone with a loved one in div 283 to share.

[faeriequeene11 *Ship 07 Div 283*]

I know! I love the ribbon, and the combat boots are adorable!!!

[faeriequeene11 *Ship 07 Div 283*]

The latest from Michael:
The military WILL pay for me to join him at A school (he's going AECF) Yay! I was hoping they would!
He wants fattening food. He's complaining that all they serve is healthy food (like salmon and jello)
They get a pizza party immediately after their "I'm a sailor" call.
The division argues a lot so they get a 30-45 min "beating" session every other day.
He says the final phase of boot camp starts next Wednesday, and our battlestations is August 15th!

[Sailor's Sweetheart]

August 15!!!! Ahhh, I have been waiting in anticipation of knowing that date for what feels like SO LONG now! THANK YOU for posting that :)

[faeriequeene11 *Ship 07 Div 283*]

You're welcome. I was SO excited when I heard that too!

[Amber-Brad's mom]

I bought the Buttons (flags & an army pack) at joanns. The "army pack had the dog tag (which is what I used on the ribbon in the pic, it says Brave soldier), combat boots, tank, A button that say Hero, and two other ones, all these buttons are greenish in color but if you want to use them, they could be painted. The "flags" came in a pack of two. The silver letters/numbers are from the scrapbooking area, they are a very lightweight metal. The red glitter strips are also from the scrapbooking area and are like rasied stickers. This is what I did to make the ribbon, since the ribbon is 1.5 inch wide and white on one side, I folded the ribbon lengthwise and glued it together with a hot glue gun (this also makes the ribbon a bit "stiffer" so I would know that I wouldn'tt have to be making sure it was readable all night/day , I then made the "shape of the ribbon" and took the dog tag button and sewed it into place (this also held the shape of the ribbon, I then hot glued the letters/numbers and red strips into place, and then cut off the excess at the ends. Placed a very small safety pin on the back. Thats it!

[Amber-Brad's mom]

Woo-hoo, I'm so glad to get a date for BS 21, I'm going to buy my blue candle on Sat.

[bky- Johns mom(ship07 div 283)]

Red Shirt Friday- simple but effective.




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The daughter of a Soldier
Last week I was in Atlanta, Georgia attending a conference. While I was 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 thru the terminal was a group of soldiers in their camo's, 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 she asked him if he would give something to her daddy for her. The young soldier, he 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 daughters 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 unfolded. As the soldiers began to leave, heading towards their gate, people resumed their applause. As I stood there applauding and looked around, their were very few dry eyes, yes, 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 Friday
Just keeping you "in the loop" so you'll know what's going on in case this takes off.
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 Americans, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize that the vast majority of America 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.

[bky- Johns mom(ship07 div 283)]

I am the Navy Veteran you met last Friday at Applebee's. I apologize for taking so long to send this to you.

If you, your Son, or any of the other Navy Mothers need anything, let me know and I will try to assist in any way I can.

Sincerely,
-Steve

Steven W. Niethamer
NIOC SUGAR GROVE WV
Installation Environmental Program Manager
63 Hedrick Dr., Code: N45
Sugar Grove, WV 26815

TL: 304.249.6341
FX: 3-4.249.6397

"A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America " for an amount of "up to and including my life." Now that's Honor, Courage and Commitment." -Anonymous

[bky- Johns mom(ship07 div 283)]

Hope you girls don't mind I posted all this email.. touchs me that after after all the yelling they get at boot camp theres a strong unit waiting to support them!!

[gayla sue]

Hi everyone, I'm JD's Aunt. What a nice group!

[JDs~Angel~ (RCU)]

Gayla!!!!! You made it on here! WOOO!!! Ladies, this is my SR's Aunt.. she's AWESOME!

Also, I have news to share but it'll have to wait for a few more hours for me to get off work. It probably isn't the most up to date (the letter was dated the 25th) but hey.... you know how it is... Nothing major, just things going on up there.

Oh and my SR also has shin splints like Sweetheart's SR. Poor guys :(

[gayla sue]

Yes, I made it! Planning to bring a big batch of his favorite cookies when we come up.

Awesome?? *I blush*