Someone once said, “A man’s bone and skin can be burned away into powder and ash, but what’s left is without form. Courage, duty and honor have no permanent home.”

Those words could not be truer in the case of John (”Johnny”) A. Nichols, Sr. He served our country proudly in the Vietnam war, and over the years afterwards in the Alabama National Guard (167 S.C.), retiring a few years ago with the rank of Master Sergent. Everything I’ve heard of this man over the years told me that he was a man of outstanding courage, duty, and honor, as well as discipline, compassion, and love. I see a lot of that man in my friend, his son, John.

His obituary in The Birmingham News read:

The funeral today was lovely. There were songs, fond memories, and tears shared by all who knew him. As we all stood around the grave site, the 167 S.C. — the men with which he had served — saluted, played Taps, and folded and presented the flag which was draped over the coffin to Mrs. Nichols. The service was beautiful.

I humbly ask that everyone please continue to keep John’s family and loved ones in your thoughts and prayers.

Over on the Bama Angels site, I had posted information about the 1203rd guard unit from Dothan which arrived home today. The following is an article published this afternoon in the Dothan Eagle about their arrival, and includes an interview with US Army National Guard Spec. Cassie Benefield and a couple others in her unit, citing the importance of their serving in Iraq over the past year:

(Emphasis is mine.)

There you have it, straight from those who see it and live it on a daily basis — we ARE doing good over there! It’s not the first time I’ve heard or read that from a soldier … but I’m glad to that I’m seeing more and more of it in print and reported by the media!

My pal Cookie recently informed me of a project he’s been involved with. Working with the TSA, he noticed that “many active Military personnel who had been dropped off at the Airport to catch their flights to whatever duty station they were bound for, sitting in the terminal for many long hours, sometimes overnight.” It became obvious pretty quickly that during these long waits or delays, our fine troops could not even get a bottle of water, soda, or a hot cup of coffee. And certainly there was also NO entertainment (TVs, etc.) with which they could occupy their time. The USO was soon contacted to see about getting a “Military Hospitality Center/Lounge” for military personnel to use in the airport. Unfortunately the USO was unable to help.

Well, never tell a Seabee that something CAN’T be done!

With the Seabee motto, “Can Do” in mind, Loren (Commandant Marine Corps League, Emerald City Detachment), Leroy (US Army Retired) and Cookie (Navy Seabee Veterans of America, Island X-19) set out to change this!

Cookie details so much in his post, so please continue to read about this amazing project there!

Thanks to material donations and assistance rendered from many organizations, the Military Hospitality Room is slated to open July 3rd. I’ve no doubt the Grand Opening will be well-received and GREATLY appreciated by those in the military who have to pass through the Syracuse, Hancock International Airport in Syracuse, NY!

Great job, Cookie! Keep us updated!!

Things have been pretty quiet … or mostly quiet. Jessie’s mother is on vacation, so she’s spending the week with her. I miss her terribly, but I’ve had time to devote to a couple projects that I’ve been wanting to give attention to, so it works out for that.

Sew, sew, sew…

When I was younger, I loved to sew. I used to cross-stitch, make stuffed animals and various clothing items for myself and friends. I haven’t stitched anything in years, with the exception of a couple of costumes that Jessie needed for school about 3-4 years back. I had been wanting to start it up again, but wasn’t sure how or if I would have enough time.

A post on the Soldiers’ Angels blog yesterday has really kicked this need into high-gear. There are several sewing projects on the Soldiers’ Angels site, and several of them are various Blanket teams/projects — the newest being Blankets of Belief.

Now, I know I don’t have the time to commit to quilting or sewing blankets and such by hand, but there was a link on the Blankets of Belief page on how to make a “no-sew” blanket. These are basically fleece blankets that are constructed in such a way that no sewing is involved — if you can tie a knot, you can make one of these!

Sounds perfect!

As soon as I’m able, I’ll be stocking up on materials to make one of these. If it turns out well (read: pretty!), I’ll post pics on here.

Bama Angeling

I’ve been doing a lot of work on the Bama Angels site and have started expanding my “pimpage” to a few social networking sites. So far, it’s up on MySpace, Twitter, Pownce, Facebook, and FriendFeed. I’ve had a LOT of positive response from area Angels and now I need to work on finding information to post to Bama Angels.

I usually get announcements via word of mouth or The Birmingham News, but it would be nice to get all that other Alabama and military related news that gets missed!

If you know of anything, please feel free to send it my way!

Car Update

It’s in the body shop and I was told yesterday that they’ve ordered parts and will begin taking it apart and working on it hopefully today or tomorrow. Realistically speaking, I’ll be lucky if I get it back before the end of this month.

Not thrilled with that, but what can I do? ;P Have otherwise been going back and forth with the insurance company regarding other stuff that’s still unsettled and may need legal handling, but can’t really post about that yet. (will update when able)

I know I’m lucky that we don’t have to pay for all this stuff out of our own pockets (or rather, out of our savings accounts), but honestly, this whole process is enough to drive anyone bonkers!

I talk about Soldiers’ Angels all the time. Anyone who has spent any time around me knows how much my volunteer efforts for this great organization means to me. I’ll happily talk the ear off of anyone willing to endure my pestering. Most everyone listens politely. I figure even if they aren’t interested in joining, I want to at least reach them and convey that no matter what side of the fence they are on, they must realize that our soldiers need our support — whether or not they agree with the reason those soldiers are over there in the first place!

There was one particularly group of ladies I spoke with, one told me that she wished she had my energy. I wished she had my conviction. She wanted to help out, but said she didn’t have the time. I used to think that too. If you truly WANT to help, you find a way, you make time. Helping out in SA doesn’t have to mean you spend a lot of money. Sometimes it’s as simple as sending a postcard or a letter to someone thousands of miles away that is desperately waiting to hear from someone, anyone, back home!

Not everyone can do this, I get that … but there are so many OTHER ways to help out!

Anyways, what prompted this little rant was the following image posted to PostSecret this morning:

Click to enlarge

It absolutely breaks my heart to think of anyone over there feeling unloved, forgotten, neglected. You don’t have to agree with why the troops are over there, but appreciate them and their efforts!