NASCAR & Soldiers' Angels

At this weekend’s Watkins Glen NASCAR Race (Sunday, 1p.m. ET on ESPN), keep your eyes peeled for the Green Smoke Chevy, driven by T.J. Bell. Right behind each door will be the Soldiers’ Angels logo, and a decal on the bumper will read “Text Soldier to 20222,” encouraging viewers to donate. There’s a lot more to the story, including a very special American hero who has been made an honorary pit crew member with full NASCAR qualifications, so check it out!

The press release from The Hero Organization spills the beans about that honorary crew member:

In addition to representing Miami-based Green Smoke®, Bell will race for a special cause. He recently formed an alliance with the Helping Early Responders Organization (H.E.R.O.). H.E.R.O.'s primary mission is to support and assist the non-profit organizations that help the men and women who are firefighters, police officers, E.M.T.s, members of our armed services and their families in their time of greatest need. Bell and Green Smoke will host these heroes as their trackside guests. The Watkins Glen H.E.R.O. will be Captain Dennis H. Knowles and the non-profit organization that H.E.R.O. will feature is Soldiers' Angels.

"Captain Dennis Knowles will be with our Green Smoke® Chevy team this week at Watkins Glen," Bell said, of his guest that is a graduate of Buffalo State College and Canisius College. "Captain Knowles has served our country for twelve years and he’s now able to be on inactive reserve. It gives him the opportunity to be an asset and inspiration to the Addison Central School District where he teaches sixth grade. Hopefully the honors he’s earned for his years of service at the World Trade Center site, in Kuwait and Afghanistan make as much of an impression on his students as they have on me.”

Since Captain Knowles is a military veteran, the No. 50 Green Smoke® Chevy will feature a special Soldiers’ Angels “Text Soldier to 20222” decal as part of the team’s alliance with H.E.R.O. Soldiers’ Angels volunteers provide aid and comfort to the men and women of the United States Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, veterans and their families. By texting “Soldier” to 20222, racing fans will be able to immediately donate $5 to the Soldier’s Angels non-profit organization.

Check out the Green Smoke car (without the Soldiers' Angels logo, which won't be revealed until later this week), so you know what to keep an eye out for Sunday!

My Week

Saturday my dog came home from the animal hospital in St Louis. He looks so pathetic. The surgery was tricky and He has his eyes open all the time. I have eye salve for him. Bentley bumps into everything with that cone on his head. Gradually he seems to be feeling better. The lab results showed a garden growing in his ear canals.

I tried out for the Rocky Horror Show cast at the Hoogland Center but was not selected. Although they said I could sing, which I said I could not, I did not make the cut. However, I also listed on my application my vacation that could really hamper practice schedules. No biggie!

After church, I got my Sunday paper and learned from the clerk at Casey's that the Sunday SJ-R is going from $1.75 to $3 next week. Not a gradual price increase. I guess we have to pay to have it printed in Peoria and shipped.

Sunday afternoon I went to the ABATE downed Rider benefit. I had a pork chop and got some raffle tickets. I bid on the silent auction but came home empty handed.

Wednesday evening on the way home, a car tried to move into my lane without checking and I had to defensively go on the inner shoulder of the 2-lane highway. Made me mad but as I passed, he held up the 2 fingered peace symbol. Thursday morning I met my next door neighbor on the corner at the stop sign. She told me that someone drove across her lawn about 6:30 and took out her mail box and brick retaining wall at a high speed. Ya know that the car had a lot of damage. There’s also a lot of crime steeling copper and the city wants to make the easy cashing of copper to recyclers a little more difficult. Where’s Batman!

Well, next time I won't plant zucchini so close to butternut squash. Butternuts look just like a zucchini when they are immature. Preparation is different.

I hung my humming bird feeder. My son said he already saw one earlier near the Cana.

I'm trying to sell my Piaggio MP3. I’ve listed it on the biker sites, ebay classifieds, Craigs List, etc and had a hopeful buyer but it turns out to be an overseas scam wanting upfront Western Union fee for shipping before his hold on his 'so claimed' payment to my paypal account clears. I reported this to spoof@paypal.com! I'll shame his name: Stephen King kingofautos490@gmail.com BEWARE!

https://www.paypal-community.com/t5/Fraud-phishing-and-spoof/western-union-scam/m-p/303886/highlight/false#M7265

I’ve been planning a Labor Day trip to the Quad Cities to see my sister. We hope to see the river front and IMAX Theater.

I let the dogs out in the back yard this morning and they ran to the fence to chase a cat. Well then I saw (actually heard first) a humming bird sipping from my Cana flowers.

Saturday I helped with the Purple Heart Veterans group viola campaign at county Market. I just said "please accept this viola on behalf of the Purple Hearts" to everyone. When I gave one to a woman in East India native dress, she put $20 in the bucket. I almost felt imposing since she obviously was not American. I'm impressed. After my shift, I went to take a picture of Sean and John from the Vet Center at their booth. We took in almost $2,500, which includes sale of Purple Heart hats. Subtracting them out we had donations of just over $2,400. One-third ($800) of what we collected will be donated to the Vet Center in food coupons and bus tokens.

Sunday I filled up Buck. According to the receipt it calculated the mileage to be 56.59 MPG

my week

I was notified on Tuesday that my brother-in-law, Neal, had lost his long battle with pancreatic cancer. I was notified by my son but Kate didn’t want to disturb my work. Too late for that, I’d already let my mind stray. Neal went peacefully she told me. She prepared him for meeting God and his ancestors in Heaven. Although Neal was heavily sedated in hospice with a full time nurse, the nurse relayed that just before he died, Neal looked upward as if to see something/someone she couldn’t see. He then raised his arms upward. Wow, Neal surely saw the face of God. That brought tears to my eyes.

My dog, Bentley, had surgery in St Louis for a total ear oblation. My son did the transportation. I had credit for 6 months no interest for the fee which is about $2,400. During the prep for surgery, we learned he has moderate heart disease which could affect the amount of anesthesia they give. This will take the pain away but the heart problem may follow in a year or two. He came out of recovery in the evening and my son got a call that things went fine. Hope that when we bring him home, he can rest OK because in addition to having Marley (who is laid back) we are dog sitting for a hyper active Dottie Jack Russell. Dottie pooped in the house within the first half hour.

Wednesday morning I went to a PGR mission for a soldier in Virden, IL. It was real hot and humid. We held a flag line from 8:30 to noon in the shade with a few breaks. This young soldier had 4 children. I just had to drop my own salute to pull my camera out to snap this boy saluting his father's casket coming out of the funeral home. Next to me from the photographer’s position, I stood next to a gold star dad who was in yellow road construction shirt and said he was just passing by and noticed the flags and motorcycles and had to stop and pay his respects. I’d been told Jerry had been lookin’ to see if I was in the crowd. I had just returned from Hardees down the street for a bit of sustenance in all that heat drainage. I squeezed his hand and he welcomed the affection. He told me had not yet gotten the report on his son’s death which has been going on 9 months. I’ve added AmVets volunteer credit hours to our post for Don and myself for supporting this soldier’s funeral.


I finally got my permanent bridge after having ruined a tooth on Thanksgiving Day. I had to have work done little by little and even cross over to another fiscal year for the benefit of insurance.
I learned that the disk needed for my new little motorcycle costs $500 if bought from Yamaha so we are looking for a used part.

Wednesday evening I met with the American Legion riders to discuss our recent poker run. I was pleased to learn that for the youngest chapter in Illinois that our donation to the American Legion Legacy Scholarship Fund was twice the other chapters.

Friday through late Sunday I was in St Louis attending the Womens Overseas Service League’s biannual convention. Next will be in AZ in 2013. The convention was very well organized. The same hotel held an Army Career convention and ball and a family reunion as well. That would be me on the far left of this picture with the baldric going the wrong direction cuz I put it on while still on the hanger. Duh! Nobody told me so I changed it during the ceremony. This photo has me wearing it proper after the ceremony with fellow members of the Springfield Unit.

Our soldiers don't have to be on a battlefield to save lives

Face of Defense: Recruiter Saves Life on Dallas Freeway

DENTON, Texas, July 22, 2011 – When Army Staff Sgt. Marcus A. Stone saw cars suddenly braking and swerving ahead of him on Interstate 35 East in Dallas, he knew something bad had just happened on the freeway he was driving on. In the minutes that followed, Stone pulled a victim from a burning vehicle.

Those actions that December day prompted Stone’s commanding officer to nominate him for the Noncommissioned Officers Association of the United States of America Military Vanguard Award, presented annually to recognize acts of heroism.

...

Officer Susan Sharp, who was the investigating officer that day for the Farmers Branch Police Department, said Stone gave responders his recruiter business card and left the scene. Only after she compiled the statements from witnesses and drivers involved in the accident, who referred to Stone as “that Army guy,” did she realize how crucial a role Stone played, she said.

“Had Sergeant Stone not extricated [the victim], he would have burned to death within a minute or two,” Sharp said. “Stone didn't just save a life. He was the difference between a group of bystanders seeing a man rescued by one of America's heroic soldiers, versus seeing the man die a horrific death, burning right before their eyes.”

Stone, an Iraq combat veteran, said his Army training played a crucial role in his actions in saving the man that day. The Iraq experience, he explained, helped in that he was much calmer because he had already had enough pressure-packed situations in Iraq.

“It just comes down to being at the right place at the right time,” he said. “I’m just glad that somebody was able to continue their life, and I’m thankful that I was able to help someone in that capacity.”

Bus crash victims and hero soldier tell of rescue from fire, explosions:

Syracuse, NY -- William and Sandy Blair worried as they sat in row 8 of the Farr’s Coach Lines Ltd. tour bus on the side of the New York State Thruway early Friday in Junius Ponds.

....

At about 1:20 a.m., the bus pulled back onto the highway. It had just crossed the rough surface of the road’s shoulder when a Matrix Expedited Services truck carrying 14,000 pounds of ball bearing crashed into it.

...

At about the same time, Army Sgt. Jacob Perkins, 28, was driving his truck westbound. Perkins was stationed at Fort Drum in the First Squadron 89th Calvary Regiment and had served in Iraq. He was beginning a couple of weeks leave with a long drive to his home in Mountain Grove, Mo.

“It was just a big fireball of a crash. There were two vehicles burning on the side of the road and people were outside, but there weren’t any first responders there,” he said.

Perkins pulled his truck over.

“All of a sudden this guy came running. He ran right onto the bus that was fully engulfed in flames,” Michelle said.

Perkins said he didn’t hesitate. “They kept saying there were still people on the bus, so I didn’t really think about it. I ran in there.”

He helped a couple of people off the bus. “I pushed back farther into the bus to start checking the seats to make sure there was nobody in there. It was on fire. It wasn’t burning me or nothing. There was fire and smoke. When it got overwhelming, I just got off the bus,” Perkins said.

...

Michelle approached three state troopers on the side of the road. “My dad’s gone. We don’t know if he’s going to live. We need to get to where he’s going. How can we get there,” she asked.

The troopers said they didn’t know.

“Jacob (Perkins) was standing about 10 feet away. He said ‘I’ll take you anywhere you want to go. Get in my truck’.”

Perkins drove the Blairs to the hospital in Rochester. He gave them his cell phone to call family in Canada.


“I went into the hospital covered in blood, one sock, limping and a sports bra. They had no idea what was going on,” Michelle said.

The Blairs told the hospital what had happened, and said they were looking for William. The hospital told them he wasn’t there. He’d been re-routed to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse.

“We were in tears. We didn’t know what to do,” Michelle said.

Perkins told them “Get in my truck. We’re going to the other hospital. I’ll get you there.”

The sergeant drove 90 minutes back to Syracuse.

“Jacob stayed with us. He refused to leave until we had family here,” Michelle said.

Perkins stayed with the women until Sandy and William’s son arrived from Canada. Then he left.

The Blairs offered him cash in thanks. Perkins refused. Gas money? Nope. Cup of coffee. No thanks.

"He wanted nothing. He said, 'That's what people do for other people'," Michelle said.

...

Perkins, reached by cell phone at 10 this morning, was on the side of the road in Ohio where he had stopped to eat. He was still 8 hours from his Missouri home and 5-year-old daughter.

Sounding exhausted, he spoke humbly about his role in Friday’s crash.

“I just think it’s what anybody would have done in that situation. I just happened to be there.”

Major kudos to SSG Stone and SGT Perkins for taking action when they weren't required to do so, and saving lives in the process!

Wounded Vet Fights for Brothers

Mel "Buddy Lee" Dobberteen is paying it forward:

“My life was saved by Soldiers' Angels and Voices of a Grateful Nation.” So begins the story of musician and wounded warrior Mel "Buddy Lee" Dobberteen, who is now giving back to Soldiers’ Angels some of what he has received. “They helped me find a better way,” he says, “they turned me on to songwriting.”

From a benefit concert next week, to a brand new Soldiers’ Angels project for musical wounded warriors beginning today, Buddy is now passionate about helping his fellow veterans.

Buddy will be appearing at Sam's Burger Joint in San Antonio at 8:00 on Wednesday, July 20. Entry is $5 and funds raised will support Soldiers’ Angel Operation Harmony, musical projects for veterans in conjunction with Voices of a Grateful Nation (VoGN) and Yamaha Music and Wellness Institute. “I want you to hear my story, how Soldiers' Angels has affected me,” Buddy says, “so that you can go out and affect others.” In addition, 50% of the profits through the month of August from sales of his new CD, Second Chances will be donated to Soldiers’ Angels.

Even bigger, today kicks off the new songwriting program Buddy has created with Soldiers’ Angels to help wounded veterans. Working with songwriter Dustin Welch (Texas Country/Americana) and Yamaha, Buddy will be providing songwriting and recording opportunities to wounded veterans as both music therapy and career development. Yamaha is also building a recording studio in his house that will be used by program participants to record their newly-written songs.

Read the whole thing.

Face of Defense: Airman Aids Afghans With Carpentry Skills

Our troops often make use of non-military skills when they are deployed. One Airman utilizes his carpentry knowledge for a somber, but important, project:

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan, June 14, 2011 – Some of the heat has burned off as the summer moon rises overhead. An airman labors over scrap wood in a makeshift workshop under a canopy of camouflage. Fitting pieces of wood together, the shape of a tiny coffin emerges.

Air Force Master Sgt. Jason Reininger builds a child-size coffin to be turned over to the hospital at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan. Reininger is an aerospace medical technician assigned to the 451st Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

When the contract providing coffins for deceased Afghans expired, members at the hospital here immediately began making alternative plans. Americans stepped in to continue the role after their British counterparts brought the deficiency to their attention.

"[British army Maj. Martin Smith] came asking to see if our airmen would help out," said Air Force Lt. Col. Barbara Persons, commander of the 451st Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron Detatchment 1 Contingency Aeromedical Staging Facility. "I didn't even hesitate. I knew my airmen would feel the same way as I did -- anything to preserve the dignity of an innocent child."

Read the whole thing.

From the Soldiers' Angels (Official) facebook page:

A deployed Army staff sergeant has reached out for help for his entire company. Due to their isolated location in Iraq and the base PX closing as the military draws down, they cannot purchase their own supplies. They are in a terrible situation and desperately need hygiene items ASAP. The few things they have left are being stretched for the entire company.

They need:

Soap
Shampoo
Razors
Shaving cream
Toothbrushes
Toothpaste
Deodorant
Lotion
Baby wipes
Foot powder
Body powder
Nail clipper kits
Aloe
Breath mints
Floss
…other basic hygiene items
Sheets (twin size)
Pillow & Pillow cases

If you are a VERIFIED Angel, you can email amyqrf -at- soldiersangels -dot- org with subject line "SSG W" for the shipping address to send things directly to this struggling unit. Please help!