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Fort Hood, Texas - November 5th, 2009

"These are trying times for our country.

In Afghanistan and Pakistan, the same extremists who killed nearly 3,000 Americans continue to endanger America, our allies, and innocent Afghans and Pakistanis.

In Iraq, we're working to bring a war to a successful end, as there are still those who would deny the Iraqi people the future that Americans and Iraqis have sacrificed so much for.

As we face these challenges, the stories of those at Fort Hood reaffirm the core values that we are fighting for, and the strength that we must draw upon.

Theirs are the tales of American men and women answering an extraordinary call -- the call to serve their comrades, their communities, and their country.

In an age of selfishness, they embody responsibility.  In an era of division, they call upon us to come together.  In a time of cynicism, they remind us of who we are as Americans.

We are a nation that endures because of the courage of those who defend it.

We saw that valor in those who braved bullets here at Fort Hood, just as surely as we see it in those who signed up knowing that they would serve in harm’s way.

For history is filled with heroes. 

You may remember the stories of a grandfather who marched across Europe; an uncle who fought in Vietnam; a sister who served in the Gulf.

But as we honor the many generations who have served, all of us -- every single American -- must acknowledge that this generation has more than proved itself the equal of those who've come before.

We need not look to the past for greatness, because it is before our very eyes.

So we say goodbye to those who now belong to eternity.  We press ahead in pursuit of the peace that guided their service. May God bless the memory of those that we have lost.  And may God bless the United States of America."

President Barack H. Obama, November 10th, 2009

 

IN MEMORY OF THOSE LOST AT FORT HOOD:

Lieutenant Colonel Juanita L. Warman

Major Libardo E. Caraveo

Captain John P. Gaffney

Captain Russell G. Seager

Staff Sergeant Justin M. DeCrow

Sergeant Amy S. Krueger

Specialist Jason D. Hunt

Specialist Frederick Z. Greene

Specialist Kham S. Xiong

Private First Class Aaron T. Nemelka

Private First Class Michael S. Pearson

Private Francheska Velez

The unborn child of Private Francheska Velez

Michael G. Cahill

May they rest in peace knowing the love and respect of a grateful nation for their sacrifice and selflessness.

Hooah!! fellow warriors.

 

Once again we are brought another horrendous event to rend our hearts and souls.

In the safety of a base in the heart of Texas our warriors faced a foe they could not have expected, one who was supposedly "one of our own".

14 individuals were killed, and many more wounded in a Jihadist attack by a lone individual, fueled by radical islamic ideals.

For those who should have known, and should have been in a position to prevent this event from ever taking place, the newly anointed bible of political correctness has cost these people their very lives.

 

AMERICAN TRAGEDY IN THE SKY

Space Shuttle Columbia, Mission STS-107.

 

"In the skies today, we saw destruction and tragedy.

Yet farther than we can see, there is comfort and hope.

In the words of the prophet Isaiah, 'Lift your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these?

 He who brings out the starry hosts one by one and calls them each by name. Because of his great

 power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.'

The same creator who names the stars also knows the names of the seven souls we mourn today.

The crew of the shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Earth,

yet we can pray that all are safely home.

May God bless the grieving families, and may God continue to bless America."

President George W. Bush, February 1st, 2003.

 

IN MEMORY OF THE CREW OF STS-107:

Commander Rick Husband, 45, Colonel - U. S. Air Force

Pilot William McCool, 41, Commander - U. S. Navy

Payload Commander Michael Anderson, 41, Lt. Colonel - U. S. Air Force

Mission Specialist Kalpana Chawla, 41, Civilian Astronaut

Mission Specialist David Brown, 46, Captain - U. S. Navy

Mission Specialist Laurel Clark, 41, Commander - U. S. Navy

Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon, 48, Colonel - Israeli Air Force

         

 

The shuttle Columbia broke up over Texas at approximately 0900 hours today, Saturday, February 1st, 2003.

This was the 113th Shuttle flight, the 28th flight for the Shuttle Columbia.

The shuttle broke up at an altitude of about 203,000 feet and a speed around 12,500 miles an hour.

I can remember our previous space program tragedies, the Apollo 1 fire in January, 1967,

the Shuttle Challenger explosion in January, 1986, and how I felt when they occurred.

Closer to home, all seven members of mission STS-107 were in their forties, as am I.

Captain David Brown was the same age as I on this day. Please pray for the families and friends

of these lost souls, and remember they died doing something they passionately believed in.

It is our duty to carry on in their names.

 

AMERICA ATTACKED

 

A word from God, this is God's rule which provides stability in the midst of panic:


How dare you tell me, "Flee to the mountains for safety, " when I am trusting in the Lord?
For the wicked have strung their bows, drawn their arrows tight against the bowstrings, and aimed from ambush at the people of God.  "Law and order have collapsed," we are told.  "What can the righteous do but flee?"
But the Lord is still in his holy temple; he still rules from heaven.  He closely watches everything that happens here on earth.  He puts the
righteous and the wicked to the test; he hates those loving violence.  He will rain down fire and brimstone on the wicked and scorch them with his
burning wind.  For God is good, and he loves goodness; the godly shall see his face. 

Psalms 11


This has been a dark day for our country, September 11th, 2001. We have been stung to our heart in an attack that is as severe as the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor over 50 years ago.

I am sure that we all hold the victims and their families in our thoughts and prayers as they go through this terrible time.

I know that we all pray for OUR president and congress at this tough time and hope that they work together not only to make those who are responsible pay for this crime with their lives, but to work to make sure this kind of attack is much harder for terrorists to carry out in the future.

The McKinney Family

 

Sebana Seca, Puerto Rico, December 3rd, 1979

In the early morning of December 3rd, 1979, I was at the airport in San Juan Puerto Rico, awaiting my plane back to the states after being stationed at the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station for three years. I was in my Navy white uniform and had already checked my bags and simply had some time to kill.

I was approached by a naval liaison Petty Officer who was at the airport to assist military personnel and told I needed to go to my gate and stay there till my plane left. He went on to explain that a bus load of sailors headed to a remote transmitter site from the NAVCOMSTA at Sebana Seca, just outside San Juan, had been ambushed and machine gunned enroute. They didn't know how many were dead and wounded yet, but they knew there had been deaths involved. At the time we only knew it was some kind of Puerto Rican terrorist group involved, but we didn't know which one.

I left Puerto Rico at approximately 0900 that morning, never to return to this day.

 

In memory of those lost in the terrorist attack on U. S. Navy personnel by Puerto Rican independistas.

RM3 Emil E. White from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands and

CT(O)1 John R. Ball from Madison, Wisconsin

In addition, 11 other Navy and Marine personnel were wounded in the attack.

RM3 Dottie A. Allen

CT(T)2 Cynthia C. Edwards

CT(R)SA Monique A. Ritter

CT(O)3 Sandra L. Seaton and

CT(M)2 Debra J. Whitehurst

CT(R)SN Allen Bush

CT(R)SN Bradley D. Clark

CT(M)3 Joseph R. Key

CT(O)SN Richard D. Sauter and

CT(R)C Warren Smith.

All of the wounded and killed were awarded the Purple Heart.

{CT(R)C Warren Smith was also awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for his actions in returning the bus and personnel to the safety of the main compound so that they could get the much needed medical attention.}

Five additional brave and dedicated naval personnel were on the bus and thankfully were not injured in the attack.  They were:

CT(R)SN Clifton Looney

CT(M)2 Robert Minnick

RM3 Drusilla Penderghest

CT(T)SN Kenneth Toman and

CT(M)3 Gilbert Zuback II.

 

This is a link to a tribute page about the Sebana Seca attack by a former sailor.

My Flag Tribute

Down In Uville

An Open Letter To Terrorists

Astrodome/Katrina Duty - 2005

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(I thought the theme to "Braveheart" was fitting here.....)

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