Department of Offense

First Place
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
When 2nd Lt. James Cathey’s body arrived at the Reno Airport, Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac.
During the arrival of another Marine’s casket last year at Denver International Airport, Major Steve Beck described the scene as so powerful: ‘See the people in the windows? They sat right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what’s going through their minds, knowing that they’re on the plane that brought him home,’ he said ‘They will remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They’re going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should.’

It’s a tough, but heart-warming story…with a picture of John Gebhardt in Iraq
John Gebhardt’s wife, Mindy, said that this little girl’s entire family was executed. The insurgents intended to execute the little girl also, and shot her in the head…but they failed to kill her. She was cared for in John’s hospital and is healing up, but continues to cry and moan. The nurses said John is the only one who seems to calm her down, so John has spent the last four nights holding her while they both slept in that chair. The girl is coming along with her healing.He is a real Star of the war, and represents what  the Western world  is trying to do.This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD!    Go for it!!
You’ll never see things like this in the news. Please keep this going. Nothing will happen if you don’t, but the public needs to see pictures like this and needs to realize that we’re making a difference. Even if it is just one little girl at a time.
We cannot direct the wind but we can adjust our sails…

It will eventually be shipped home and put in the memorial museum in Fort  Hood, Texas.

The statue was created by an Iraqi artist named Kalat, who for years was forced by Saddam Hussein to make the many hundreds of bronze busts of Saddam that dotted Baghdad.    

Kalat was so grateful for the Americans liberation of his country; He melted 3 of the heads of the fallen Saddam and made the statue as a memorial to the American soldiers and their fallen warriors.   

Kalat worked on this memorial night and day for several months.  

To the left of the kneeling soldier is a small Iraqi girl giving the soldier comfort as he mourns the loss of his comrade in arms.    

Do you know why we don’t hear about this in the news?    

Because it is heart warming and praise worthy.   

The media avoids it because it does not have the shock effect.   

But we can do something about it. 

We can pass this along to as many people as we can in honor of all our brave military who are making a difference.