Hero Stories for February 2006

Over the weekend, WSBT did a story on Deb Meyer's meeting with the President. Here's copy from the story, as well as a link to the video. Mother Of Fallen Soldier Gets Chance To Meet President (WSBT) She lost her stepson in the War in Iraq. Thursday she finally got the chance to talk about it with the President of the United States. Deborah Meyer lost her stepson, Jason, to friendly fire in Iraq in April of 2005. Despite her lost, she says she's remained a loyal supporter of President Bush a...

We heard from Deb Meyer recently. Her son, PFC Jason Meyer was killed in Baghdad on April 8, 2003. She had been wearing a HeroBracelet in his name since and recently had an opportunity to meet with President Bush and gave her HeroBracelet to him. We've sent her a new pair of HeroBracelets and I asked her if she could tell us a little about her son and her meeting with President Bush. This is what she sent in today. "Here's the story of my HeroBracelet: Many months ago, a friend sent me a link...

I just got this from Melody Pigg about her son's deployement to Iraq. I think for most people, sons and daughters going to war is someone else's story. We don't think about the reality of it. Mrs. Pigg has put into words what many of us have not really thought about. I'd like to thank her for sending us her thoughts.--CG "Thank you for posting the letter and pictures to the website. Believe it or not, it helped me deal with Marshall leaving. The tears started flowing Monday afternoon. General...

I heard from Melody Pigg today. She had ordered Deployed HeroBracelets with her son's name, Marshall Pigg. I asked her to tell us a little about Marshall and she wrote back with a pretty moving letter about him and his decision to join the Marines. She reflects on her pride in having a son willing to do the hard work that so many would never be willing to do, and she talks about the fear and hopes that every parent would have when their child goes off to war. I want to thank Melody for this. ...

We'd like to share some information about an organization called American Veterans of the War on Terror, AVWOT.org. We've been in contact with them since they first formed the group and we support them in their efforts. They formed to support the Veterans of recent conflicts in the war on terror. Here's some information from their Web site. "AVWOT is a non-profit, tax exempt corporation that is completely independent -- we are non-partisan and not aligned with any political party, organizatio...

One of the things we wanted to do with this project was to bring people closer to those who have given their lives in war. I remember when Nightline was pulled from the air for reading their names on national TV. I thought this did a great disservice to the men and women who had died in Iraq. I wanted to help build connections between those who have lost all, with those back home. This has proven to be very true. I saw firsthand when my wife was wearing one at work and a total stranger asked ...

Just got a note about a SPC Sloan who was recently injured while on patrol in Mosul. He was shot through the stomach, but his life was saved by his team (way to go guys!). At the time of writing, he is in Germany but is being transported to Walter Reed. She says he is in serious, but stable condition. We all wish him a speedy recovery and a quick return to his friends and family in Midland, TX. We found out about SPC Sloan through an order Purple Heart HeroBracelets. His family had ordered t...

This is the memorial in Morris, Minnesota for LT Jason Timmerman, SSG David Day and SGT Jesse Lhotka. It was built from donations throughout Westen Minnesota of money, material and time. Army Command Sergeant Major Erik Arne emailed us recently inquiring about ordering 475 customized HeroBracelets. Each bracelet was to have the names of three of his soldiers, 1LT Jason Timmerman, SSG David Day and SGT Jesse Lhotka. All were killed on the same day: February 21, 2005. I asked CSM Arne abo...

I came across a pretty amazing Web site yesterday. A gentleman named William Thompson had recently returned from Iraq to work teaching photojournalism. While he was in Iraq, he took probably thousands of photos of his work in and around Baghdad. His team was responsible for restoring basic civil services to one of nine central districts of the city. You can see his photos on his Web site, www.doghousephoto.com. There are many more at www.photojournalismstock.com and www.iraqphotopost.com I th...

I'm new to the world of blogs, but as I search the Web, I come across some amazing stories. For instance, I did a Google search on HeroBracelets and came across an entry in a blog called The Fire Ant Gazette. This is written by a gentleman named Eric Siegmund. In his blog, he mentioned (and said some very nice things about) the HeroBracelet project. Well, I wrote him to thank him. And he wrote back with a pretty interesting story. Apparently, through his blog, a SSG Will read his blog from Ir...