What Not To Say To A Military Mom (or Dad)

When you see me wearing a yellow ribbon on my shirt,

please don't remind me of how bad it is "over there"

instead offer to pray for my son

When you see my car pull up with a yellow ribbon

and bumper sticker that says until they all come home

please don't remind me of "another three months"

ask me his name

and offer a prayer of protection for him and

all the other son's, daughter's, mother's, father's,

husband's and wives in the military

When you want to talk to me about the war

please don't tell me it is

unnecessary for them to be over there

and that the government made them go;

I am proud of my son and everyone else that is fighting

so we can have the freedoms that we do...

And may I remind people that there is no draft

in this great country

all the soldiers in the military made the choice to join,

knowing that we are in a time of war

When you see a tear running down my cheek

please don't tell me you know how hard this must be,

instead offer a hug and a prayer

For those of you who have a loved one in the military,

then you probably know what I am talking about

and for those of you who do not,

now you know what it is that a military family needs...

PRAYER!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday Evening post

Not too much to report today. Trying to get cards sorted so I can get em ready to bag up so they can go off to our troops. Waiting to get a total number of labels they will print off so I know how many boxes we will pack. I have gotten boxes the last couple of days but have been so busy I havent' even opened them yet. Also trying to help get organized for Drop-off Depot's we will be having this weekend so people in the community can make donations to pack up. Called all the local recruiters to get flyers to them & invite em to stop by if they can. Also to come to the packing.

No word today from 'The Communicator'. I'm sure I will hear from him soon as he keeps checking to see if his new debit card has arrived yet. Hopefully tomorrow. I know he must be going crazy without being able to spend money plus I'm sure he has phone bill coming up here soon. I don't want that to not get done or I don't hear from him at all.

Here is a card I was working on to send off but I just didn't feel right about it going to Iraq....even adding the beach ball & coke bottle....so I guess I will put it away for if "The Communicator" goes to Hawaii! Then maybe I will get some mail from him. LOL!

Heard from recipients of the Father's Day cards too but will post tomorrow....I got another post card to scan in. Nite all.

New Scam Targets Military Spouses

I know I'm trying to post good news these days but I saw this yesterday & shared with Butterfly Wife but it was mentioned that this has happened to Military Parents also so I am posting it here too. Unfortunately there are some awful people out there....so sad.

New Scam Targets Military Spouses
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 31, 2007 - The American Red Cross is warning military spouses about a new identity-theft scam that targets family members of deployed troops.
The Red Cross was alerted of the scam earlier this month, said Devorah Goldburg of the Red Cross.
The scam involves a person with an American accent calling a military spouse, identifying herself as a representative of the Red Cross, and telling the spouse that her husband was hurt in Iraq and was medically evacuated to Germany. The caller then says that doctors can't start treatment until paperwork is completed, and that to start the paperwork they need the spouse to verify her husband's social security number and date of birth.
It is hard to determine how many spouses have been targeted by this scam, Goldburg said, as there are many ways for spouses to report problems like this. However, one confirmed report was enough for the Red Cross to act, she said.
"We know that it happened to one person; it was probably going to happen to others, and we wanted to be prudent and alert people," she said.
American Red Cross representatives typically do not contact military members or dependents directly and almost always go through a commander or first sergeant, according to a Red Cross news release. Military family members are urged not to give out any personal information over the phone if contacted by unknown individuals, including confirmation that their spouse is deployed.
In addition, Red Cross representatives contact military members or dependents directly only in response to an emergency message initiated by a family member, the news release said. The Red Cross does not report any type of casualty information to family members; the Defense Department will contact families directly about family members' injuries.
It is a federal crime, punishable by up to five years in prison, for a person to fraudulently pretend to be a member of, or an agent for, the American Red Cross for the purpose of soliciting, collecting, or receiving money or material, according to the news release. Any military family member that receives such a call is urged to report it to their local family readiness group or military personnel flight.

A military mom’s lament

So well written......all mother's should be able to relate to this
For mother of Marine, time goes slowly