HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY US NAVY SEAL'S

Here's a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to US Navy SEAL's and hoping they get to unwrap some special presents. After all, it is because of dangerous men like this we get to sleep peacefully at night.

Remember.... Their Sacrifice. Our Freedom.

The Chinook Tragedy In Afghanistan

Photo by Kristina Divine Memorial Day 2011

I was at a Cub Scout Camp with my boys when I found out about the death of the 30 men on the Chinook. I shared the sad information with the Cub Master, a Veteran. At the camp fire, a Flag was retired. Before it was placed in the fire the Cub Master read a variation of the poem I Am The Flag. He included the lost and their families into the ceremony. The Flag retirement ceremony seemed like a fitting memorial for the service members who had died fighting for the Flag. The ceremony was emotional for several of us around the camp fire. Once home I contacted my friends who knew a few of the deceased and offered my compassion for their loss. I shared with them the experience of the Flag ceremony as a memorial. I have been given permission to post part of their response to their friends sacrifices.

Don't cry for any lost, though. Know that all (well, most of us) join these communities with the full knowledge and acceptance of the possible outcome. Many of us would rather die doing something to help others than as old people in our beds. Don't cry or mourn...celebrate and be grateful and love them and their familiies for what they did. 

I have experienced my share of death in this life, it is the living I feel for, because learning to live without a loved one can be like learning to breathe underwater. It seems impossible at first. I hope the families of the fallen from this crash, as well as the families of the fallen over the last 10 years from Iraq and Afghanistan feel the love and support of American's everywhere. As my other friend put it:

Its okay to cry and mourn, but what i like to do is think about the good times that you had with them and the smiles that you shared. I knew some of the guys that went down in the Chinook and finding out about their names this morning, I was hurt at first, mad the next second, and then realized that theres nothing I can do about it now. We spent the rest of the day laughing remembering funny things those guys had done and said. Laugh, smile and remember the good times.

The men who died are more than a number on a tragic day. They are sons, fathers, brothers, husbands, uncles, and friends. I wanted to take my friends advice and write a post that celebrated their lives, only I didn't have the honor to know any of them. Then I found this article by Stars and Stripes which celebrates the lives of each one of the men through the eyes of those who loved them. I highly recommend you read and honor the lives and the families of the men who died in the crash.

Remember Their Sacrifice. Our Freedom.

Jason Redman, US Navy SEAL, and Wounded Warrior

Why is Lt. Jason Redman, a US Navy SEAL someone you should know?  It's not his 18 years of service, or how he was an enlisted man before becoming an officer.  It's not because he survived being shot in the face by the enemy, which shattered his face, obliterating his nose and one cheekbone.  Or how he endured "The land of stares and gawks" otherwise known as public while he recovered from his wounds.

Redman admits to, "Looking really rough," through his recovery.  He wore an eye patch, had a tracheotomy tube, along with other tubes coming out of his face, and was fitted with an external fixator or a "halo" which was attached directly to his skull by metal rods which made wearing normal clothing impossible to wear.

It is obvious the above makes him an incredible man, but what makes him an exceptional man is how he gathered all of the above experiences using them for inspiration to start a non-pfrofit called Wounded Wear to help his brother's and sister's recovering from their wounds.

Wounded Wear hands out kits containing a meadium-weight jacket, polo shirt, three T-shirts, pajama pants and a luggage roller.  Free tailoring for uniforms and clothing is also available.  Redman believes after being at war for so many years in two different countries the public should recognize the sacrifices of America's Wounded Warriors.  As a result the T-shirts say "Scarred so others may live free."  These shirts can't be bought, they are only for those who've received a purple heart.

Wounded Wear works with a foundation formed by SEAL Marcus Lettrell to raise the necessary funds to visit the wounded in facilities like Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C. and the Navy hospital in Bethesda passing out clothing kits.

Redman is an active duty Warrior, a Survivor, a Husband, a Father of three, and an inspiration.  Please check out his organization at http://www.woundedwear.org/Wounded_Wear_Home.html