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Opinions
Message was more than an address
BY GLENN HARBISON, PUBLISHER
Monday, December 29, 2008 3:12 PM CST
After channel surfing through some late night news shows last week, I had stopped on an area television station. I had turned the television on more for the company of the noise than anything else, so I was not really paying attention.
Suddenly, something caught my ear. The words, “...say hello to my Mom in Blue Ridge, Georgia,” made me want to know what was happening.
This particular station is one that routinely runs brief greetings from service men and women stationed overseas to their families in this country. I did not know if this feature would be aired on this night, nor was I looking for it, so the words were unexpected.
To my surprise, Michael Waranis was the featured service man on this night. I knew I recognized the name.
Sure enough, when I checked our “Support Our Troops” box the next morning, he was listed.
The address for him bothered me, though, because it did not seem to correspond in any way with where he was shown for his message, which was somewhere on a ship in the Middle East.
But, knowing military mail works unlike any other I have ever seen, I could only assume his mail was still reaching him, somehow.
There was another problem researching his address we print every week. Our records of the military addresses in “Support Our Troops” is vague at best. They have come from various family members, distant relatives, and friends. We rely on these individuals for updates.
Within a week, though, I found out my concern over addresses was legitimate. However, the one I was worried about was not one of them.
A lady from one of the local organizations that sent Christmas boxes to our troops contacted me to tell me eight of their boxes had been returned. These carried addresses from “Support Our Troops.” Those included boxes for:
LCPL JW Peeler,
SPC William Oliver,
LCPL Joshua Powers,
PFC William C. Smith,
SGT Kevin Baker,
LCPL Chad D. Earl,
LCPL Dustin Smith, and
LCPL Charles Sharp.
So, if you know the correct address for any of these individuals, please let us know. Or, if the address is correct in “Support Our Troops,” we would appreciate hearing from you, too. Again, military mail sometimes marches to its own drum and the boxes could have been returned for any number of reasons.
But, the message home from Waranis was more than something that set off worry about addresses and mail service. His few words, at least the ones I heard, spoke loud and clear.
They told of a family separated at Christmas because of duty, honor and courage. No doubt, this family would much rather be together, but because the son chose to serve his country, they had to be apart.
This sacrifice is being made today by thousands of Americans, just as it has for over 200 years, because freedom is not free.
And, if we ever quit fighting for it and protecting it, someone will step in and take it from us.
Say a word of thanks, say a prayer, for these individuals who serve in our military. They deserve our support, and so do their families.
Glenn Harbison is publisher of The News Observer. He can be reached at 706-632-2019 or by e-mail at glenn@thenewsobserver.com.
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