Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Washington, DC
82nd
Airborne Laptop Presentation at Walter Reed, September 10, 2010
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September 10, 2010
definitely goes down in my lifetime as one of the BEST days of my
life. The Gathering of Eagles, The Band of Mothers and Soldiers
Angels had the distinct honor of presenting 19 laptops to our
Wounded Warriors at Walter Reed. What was particularly heartwarming
for me is that these laptops were presented to the Warriors my Son
served with, the 82nd Airborne! That was such a surprise and I
thank George Samek, retired Vietnam Veteran and founder of The
Gathering of Eagles Laptop For Wounded Warriors Project, for
arranging this visit! Special thanks to 1st Sgt Comfort and SSg
Nunez for your escort throughout the day and for all you do to help
and assist your Brothers of the GREAT 82nd Airborne! To Linda
Rasnake and SSG Bradley Sage of the Warrior Transition Brigade,
thanks for all you do to assist our Warriors and the families of
these Great American Heroes. It was an honor and privilege to meet
all of you and thank you for all you do!
As far as I'm concerned, you haven't lived until you spend a day at
Walter Reed with these Brave Warriors who love their country and
countrymen so much they that risk their lives and limbs to keep us
safe. To walk among these Noble and Brave Heroes is humbling and
life altering. The guts and toughness of these 82nd Airborne
Warriors is astounding and the stuff legends are made of. They are
tough as nails and they represent the true spirit of America. You
might knock them down, but you better watch out when they get back
up! They are tough as nails and the most humble Americans you will
ever encounter.
As we walked into the rooms of these Warriors, the looks on the
faces of their mothers and families is unforgettable. We could walk
in empty handed and it wouldn't matter, they are just overjoyed to
see Americans show up to visit their beloved Hero. When they see the
laptops there are tears of joy. These laptops that George Samek has
spent the last year putting in the hands of our Warriors are
therapeutic tools, no doubt about it. For our Heroes and their Moms,
Dads, Wives, Girlfriends, Family Members, it means that they can now
all communicate daily. Recuperation and rehabilitation can take
months, even years, and family members cannot stay at Walter Reed
for the duration of treatment. They must return home to their jobs,
so these laptops enable continued communication with the families,
the very people who are essential components in the recovery of
these Wounded Warriors.
What I find the most difficult on these visits is when these
Soldiers say "Thank You So Much". I worry that they might not know
just how much we as a nation want to THANK THEM SO MUCH! It actually
took me this long to sit down and write this Report so I could
diffuse my anger at the ungrateful little Code Pink twits who sit
outside Walter Reed on Friday nights and protest against these Brave
Warriors on this hallowed ground. I defer to John Stuart
Mills:
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed
and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling, which thinks that
nothing is worth war, is much worse. The person who has nothing for
which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important
than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no
chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of
better men than him."
I would only add that the Code Pink punks aren't good enough to
clean the bottom of these Heroes shoes! They are miserable
creatures who ride on the backs of the Greatest among us and if
threatened, would be the first ones to scream for a Soldier!
To George Samek, what a difference you have made in the lives of
these Warriors. Over this last year, you have arranged for the
delivery of over 100 laptops to our Wounded Warriors. Your devotion
to your Brothers represents that special bond that is forever
prevalent among the most Noble Brotherhood on the face of this
earth, The Band of Brothers. I will never be able to put into words
the profound love that beats in my heart for all of you. You just
never stop serving and you NEVER leave your Brothers behind and you
George are the face of The Band of Brothers. You are an
amazing man George Samek! Thank you for all you have done to improve
the quality of recovery and recuperation for our Brave Warriors.
Your laptops represent the love and appreciation of a grateful
nation and I hope you truly know what a difference you have made!
George announced he would retire from the program this year but
since returning home, he has arranged for even more
laptops! You are the BEST George and may God Bless and Watch Over
you and your lovely wife! Please folks, donate to this worthy
project at
http://gatheringofeagles.org/. Even the
smallest donation can make a difference.
Of those 100 laptops, The Band of Mothers donated 15 and I wish I
could say we donated more. The Band of Mothers do not take
donations so I am grateful to my husband and Sons for their support
of this Project. I am extremely grateful to Soldiers Angels, an
outstanding organization whose support of the Laptop Program and our
troops is exemplary! I had the honor of meeting Dawn West of
Soldiers Angels at our Ft. Bragg Laptop presentation and what a
wonderful woman with a beautiful heart.
To all the organizations and individuals who have supported George
and his Laptop Project over this last year, thank you so very very
much. My special thanks to Chad Longell, a Soldier who returned
from Iraq in April and who, while deployed, purchased a laptop for
his Brothers! Special thanks to Teresa Belmonte, a nurse from
Chicago who accompanied us to Walter Reed and who carried a laptop
donation with her from the Nurses she works with. Thanks to Jim
Bancroft, Jim Holmes, Mike Blankenship, Snooper, Pastor Ed and Annie
B, Twana and everyone who came to Walter Reed on September 10th.
A special heartfelt thanks to Concrete Bob. Bob has been cooking
for the troops at Malogne House for a long time and I know of no
Veteran with a bigger heart who can cook sausages better than
Concrete Bob! Bob has stood by our troops and supported them in so
many ways and he is a beloved member of the troops support
movement. God Bless You Bob and thank you for all you do. Folks
can read Bob's BlogSpot at
http://dcprotestwarrior.blogspot.com/
To the Great Patriots, Free Republic, who stand out in front of
Walter Reed every Friday night to greet these Warriors when they
come back from dinner, God Bless Everyone of You! September 10th
marked the 282nd week that these relentless Patriots have stood up
to the disgraceful and traitorous behavior of the Code Pink freak
show! Every Friday night, through rain sleet and snow, they have
been there for our Warriors! We all owe Phil and Heather and all the
members of Free Republic a debt of gratitude for all they have done
to step up, stand up and stick up for our troops! I love you all
and I am forever grateful for all you do!
Lastly, Capt Larry Bailey, Chairman of the Gathering of Eagles, and
John Wagner of Warrior Legacy Foundation, set-up a fund to help our
Navy Seals when they were brought up on outrageous charges
recently. Thanks to Capt Bailey, John and all of America for
contributing and standing by our Navy Seals. Capt Bailey recently
was instrumental in transferring what was left in that fund,
$15,000, to the families of the Leavenworth 10. Once again, The
Band of Brothers never leaves their brothers behind! I've known
Capt Bailey since 2007 and his personal contributions to the troop
support movement are generous and commendable, to say the least.
When my Son was deployed, Capt Bailey, Chris Hill and all the
members of The Gathering of Eagles always stood by this mother's
side on that Cannon Bldg Corner and I truly believe, through all our
efforts, Madame Pelosi and her left wing cronies never succeeded in
cutting funding to our Heroes in harm's way. So thank you with all
my heart to Capt Bailey and The Gathering of
Eagles for always standing by our troops!
Please keep Cpl John Peck in your prayers. The Band of Mothers
donated a voice activated laptop to this Warrior from Antioch,
Illinois, who has lost all his limbs. He desperately needs our
prayers and our donations. Please consider a donation to the Cpl
Peck Fund.
You can mail
donations to:
State Bank of the Lakes,
440 Lakes St.
Antioch, IL 60002
God Bless Our Wounded Warriors and God Bless and Watch Over
Our Troops Until Every One of them Are Home Safe! It is because of
all of you that we live free and safe!
With A Mother's Heart,
Beverly Perlson
The Band of Mothers
www.L10freedomride.com
www.thebandofmothers.com
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