Bringing SMILES to faces
Put Your Tongue in the Wind
May 2, 2011
After my driver returned from church yesterday (Sunday), we spent the rest of the day, night, and this morning printing the Fallen Heroes roster as of April 25, 2011. We have three versions in red, white, and blue binders.
- The white binder has plenty of space for people to write notes or comments, and it also has blank pages at the back. The roster is printed on 320 pages.
- The red binder has smaller print and is printed on 177 pages. We're thinking about leaving this binder at a memorial in Washington DC, or holding it to present to a group. If we leave it at a memorial, we're thinking abou the Vietnam War Memorial (The Wall), but if we find a memorial for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, then we will leave it there.
- The blue binder is an alphabetical roster that cross references to the pages in the white binder. We reported the city based on what the Department of Defense released, but we found that sometimes it's difficult to find someone. For example, we escort Master Sergeant Shawn Simmons to a funeral home in Fayetteville, NC. We know he was transported to Florida for burial. However, we found that he was listed as being from Massachusetts, which is where his name is located in the Fallen Heroes roster.
We took a photo. The front covers are all the same, which is the cover on red binder. The back cover is on the blue binder.
The folded USA flag will be on top of my T-Bag. We will by flying three bike flags: The Honor and Remember Flag flanked on each side by Christian Flags.
If you see us and want to write in the white binder, feel free to do so. If you are a Gold Star family member and your Fallen Hero was not in this war or gave his/her life outside of the Iraq or Afghanistan theatres of operation, feel free to write in his/her name.
We will also be carrying a 3'x5' flags of the PGR and Honor and Remember. Anyone can sign the PGR flag. Signing the Honor and Remember flag is reserved for Gold Star families. Please ask Thomas or my driver if you want to see the Fallen Heroes roster, write in the white binder, or sign the PGR flag.
The folded USA flag will be on top of my T-Bag. We will by flying three bike flags: The Honor and Remember Flag flanked on each side by Christian Flags.
If you see us and want to write in the white binder, feel free to do so. If you are a Gold Star family member and your Fallen Hero was not in this war or gave his/her life outside of the Iraq or Afghanistan theatres of operation, feel free to write in his/her name.
We will also be carrying a 3'x5' flags of the PGR and Honor and Remember. Anyone can sign the PGR flag. Signing the Honor and Remember flag is reserved for Gold Star families. Please ask Thomas or my driver if you want to see the Fallen Heroes roster, write in the white binder, or sign the PGR flag.
My driver posted our planned route and itinerary in the May 3 blog page. We will be meeting Chuck "Greywolf" Ballas at Exit 364 Rest Area on I-40. Thomas, my driver and I will be taking a short hop on a Cessna 172 provided by Brunswick Air. Dave Manzel will be our pilot. Many thanks to Barbara Gwin for coordinating this. AND... a sincere thank you to Jim of SunCoast Aviation BiPlane Rides at Oak Island. We wanted to ride in the "Belle", a 1942 open cockpit biplane. The "Belle" is in maintenance, but maybe we can fly with him later this year.
On Wednesday, we will be at Raleigh-Durham airport for the Triangle Flight of Honor. On Thursday, we start our westward trek. We will be staying at my favorite hotel in Maggie Valley: Smoky Mountain Lodge. For dinner, I'm taking my driver to Smackers so I can have a "Chewy Burger".
I appreciate my many sponsors -- a very special thank you. You are very much a part of this mission and I hope the travel blogs I barktate to my driver or video are enjoyable reading or viewing for you and your family. I've been watching my driver make sure the cameras work and he's making sure we have charged batteries.
Thank you to Macedonia Baptist Church, the church my mom and my driver attend and which I sometimes go to outdoor events. They are praying for our safety and a special prayer for my driver.
Look for me on the road with my tongue in the wind!
On Wednesday, we will be at Raleigh-Durham airport for the Triangle Flight of Honor. On Thursday, we start our westward trek. We will be staying at my favorite hotel in Maggie Valley: Smoky Mountain Lodge. For dinner, I'm taking my driver to Smackers so I can have a "Chewy Burger".
I appreciate my many sponsors -- a very special thank you. You are very much a part of this mission and I hope the travel blogs I barktate to my driver or video are enjoyable reading or viewing for you and your family. I've been watching my driver make sure the cameras work and he's making sure we have charged batteries.
Thank you to Macedonia Baptist Church, the church my mom and my driver attend and which I sometimes go to outdoor events. They are praying for our safety and a special prayer for my driver.
Look for me on the road with my tongue in the wind!