An Opportunity to Help Our Wounded Servicemen and Women

Self | April 21, 2004 | Brad's Gramma

[Brad’s Gramma]

Freepers, I have been sent an email from someone stationed in Iraq regarding an urgent need by our wounded servicemen/women. For security reasons, the whole email can NOT be posted here. Read on, please.



Today I went to visit the military hospital here in the Green Zone. Yesterday my boss (a Marine) had gone to visit some of the Marines brought here from the Fallujah fighting. When he asked one of the wounded Marines if there was anything he could get for him, the Marine requested a razor so he could shave and be within standards again before he was discharged from the hospital. My boss also found that the hospital basically was lacking phones for the patients to be able to call home and talk with their loved ones. I think they only had one that the chaplain carried with him and let the patients use when visiting them. We were able to scrounge up a few razors and got a couple of our cell phones signed over to the ward. I took the items back today along with some candy folks gave me and spent some time talking with the patients.

Afterwards, I talked with the ward personnel and they gave me a list of items they can always use. Our hospital is the largest surgical hospital here in Iraq so most of the patients are evac'd here for their initial care until they can be stabilized and evac'd to Germany or returned to duty (although it is not a big hospital-more like a clinic sized unit).

Of course most of the wounded come in with only what they were wearing in most cases. As such, they don't have things like toothbrushes, etc. A lot of you are always asking if there is anything you can send me. There really isn't anything I need, but these folks could use some things for the wounded. It really is humbling when you think about these young men and women who have been wounded, some of them terribly, and they are really excited about getting a razor or some chocolate candy. So, following is the list of things the ward personnel said they could really use for their patients.

On the hygiene items (toothpaste, shampoo, etc.), they are interested in the travel size products because the wounded are normally only here for a short period of time before they are transferred out to bigger hospitals that have better supplies of these items, or back to their units where they have access to their stuff. If you would like to donate any of these things (or start a drive for these things) just mail them to me. My office will sort the items and make sure they get to the hospital. If you would like to send food items, we'll need individually wrapped or single serving items. And, chocolate is okay if it's mailed soon before it gets too hot (but to tell the truth, we've been known to lick it off the wrapper when we want it bad enough!).

Razors
Shaving Cream
Toothbrushes
Toothpaste
Dental Floss
Mouthwash
Soap
Shampoo
Feminine Hygiene Products
Underclothes (male and female)-okay this may sound like a strange item, but remember they normally only come in with the stuff they are wearing and normally those are ruined
Slippers/FlipFlop type of things (in large sizes-apparently the things on the local economy are pretty small)
Hospital PJs
Candy
Crackers
Snack Items
Anything else you can think of

Additionally, we like to go out and give our young Marines pulling post duty candy/cookies, so we can always use that type of stuff. We had a great time delivering our Easter candy stash Sunday and we left a lot of Marines grinning from ear to ear.

* * * * * * *

MoJo20001's husband's division is going to be collecting the items and sending them via transport to the hospital in Iraq. IF you feel so inclined, and the need IS urgent...please let one of us know.

We also are coming across names...MANY MANY names of servicemen who need care packages, a letter, sometimes depending upon the branch of service, an email. If you can commit to being faithful with the correspondence, PLEASE let us know about that, too.

[MoJo2001]

Dear Diva "married to glock rocks",

We greatly appreciate your support and generosity.

Anything you would like to send is greatly appreciated. Toiletries, candy, cookies, books, lotion, and so on.

Thank you very much.

By the way, if you would like to allow glock rocks to shop by himself please let me know. I would really like a Ferrari Enzo.

Thank you,
MoJo2001

[deadhead]

"The above items will be mailed out tomorrow."

Wow, this is awesome! Thank You MoJo2001, The Sailor, Brad's Gramma and all the wonderful, generous Freepers!
XtreMarine and The Sailor, Thank You and God Bless you for serving our great country.
Prayers for our Troops and Veterans. I know what Freedom is because of your sacrifices.

~~Colleen~~

Love the plane graphic, Brad's Gramma :-)

[MoJo2001]

MoJo to Senior Chief: "Remember the man that sent a huge box that you thought was an equipment box?"

Senior Chief to MoJo: "Yes I do".

MoJo to Senior Chief: "He and his beautiful Diva would like to say thanks to you".

Senior Chief to MoJo: "No! Tell them THANK YOU FROM ME. No! I am the one that should be thanking them. Not the other way around".

MoJo to Senior Chief: "No! They want to tell you thanks. Please just take the compliment and go on".

Senior Chief to MoJo: "No! It is I that would like to thank them and all the FReepers for their incredible help".

---

I kid you not that is how the conversation would go. Ask Ma (Kathy In Alaska)! She'll thank us a million times and then MoJo won't have a word in edgewise to thank her back. Honestly, I talk fast. However, Senior Chief has me beat in that category. It's a New York thang. LOL!


P.S I will forward your message to her. And the Sailor can do so as well.

[jwalsh07]

Thanks to your sailor and American sailors everywhere. May they keep the wind always at their back....

Especially when nature calls.

[MoJo2001]

Poor Kid!

[glock rocks]

BWAHAHAHAHA!!

Winning hearts and minds, eh, Grammie??

[Brad’s Gramma]

HAHAHA!!!!!

That's the plane I used when I was getting ready to fly to LoganLand last December!

(sniff, sniff...I sure miss holding that little guy)

[Brad’s Gramma]

Especially when nature calls.

No comment. Nope. None. Zip it Grammie, zip it.

[Brad’s Gramma]

OH
MY
GOSH!

LOLOL!!!!!!

[Brad’s Gramma]

LOL! Looks like it. Oh boy.

Ooooooh boy.

[Betteboop]

Brad's Gramma
Here is the article I found on Sgt Lawson when I did a google search.
His name had been given to me so I could send him mail. I sent a letter and six months later I got it back with "Medivac" written across the front. Needless to say, I was stunned---but glad to find an address where I could send a donation to help him and his family.
Maybe we could get more Freepers to send a donation to his fund. How about bumping this post, OK??
Thanks
BB



"Price Of Iraqi Freedom Is Very High For Local Family
Beth Lawson Says Her Husband Was Paralyzed In Iraq

POSTED: 5:40 p.m. PDT April 22, 2003
UPDATED: 6:55 p.m. PDT April 22, 2003

SAN DIEGO -- A Camp Pendleton wife recently received word that her husband was among the hundreds of American soldiers, Marines and sailors who were wounded or injured in the war in Iraq.


The news Beth Lawson got was devastating: Her husband is now paralyzed from the waist down.

Lawson said her husband, Marine Sgt. Eric Lawson, is a good example of the sacrifices being made by the men and women overseas, and that he is recovering at a hospital in Germany.

Beth works as a medical assistant, so she knows that Eric has a long road ahead of him.

She said he was shot in the stomach and the bullet hit his spine and that he will never be able to walk again.

Eric was injured after the fall of Baghdad, which, in retrospect, is painfully ironic for Beth, because she remembers watching the statue of Saddam toppling on TV and thinking that Eric would be home soon.

She's trying to stay positive.

"It'll be a new way of life for us," said Beth. "But he's coming home. He can still be a dad to our son, and my husband, my best friend."

Beth says her husband has had several surgeries already and expected him to be transferred to Bethesda Naval Hospital by the end of the week.

She said that she was trying to figure out a way to see him as soon as possible.

Donations to the Lawson family may be sent to: Navy Federal Credit Union
PO Box 3100
Merrifield, VA 22119-3100
Eric Lawson Fund

[MoJo2001]

LMAO!!

I can't even comment because I can't stop laughing.

Sorry!

I'll go to the corner now.

[MoJo2001]

Yes! Indeed!

Thank you so much for all your help!

[deadhead]

"That's the plane I used when I was getting ready to fly to LoganLand last December!"

God Bless Logan, beautiful baby

[Brad’s Gramma]

I wish I could drive down there, to San Diego, and just hug them all. There's going to be SO MANY stories like this.

Thanks for putting this on the thread.

BTW, are you going to be monitoring that site with their info on it?

[Kathy in Alaska]

Altho MoJo stretches the truth a bit about not being able to get a word
in edgewise, it is the absolute truth that Senior Chief can talk as
fast as MoJo, and is all "thank you's". Trying to thank her was a difficult thing.

[MoJo2001]

I will be at my Navy Federal Credit Union this week. I'll make a donation at my local one. They can send it forward.

Thank you for letting us all know.

God Bless Sgt.Lawson and his family.

[MoJo2001]

Yeah WHATEVER!

I don't talk that much.

Hehehe!

[MoJo2001]

Thank you so much for bumping the thread. We will update as much as possible.

[TruthNtegrity]

This is my branch of NFCU. I'm going to call and make a phone transfer to this account from my checking account tomorrow.

I'm also going to check - I doubt he's still at Bethesda but if he is, I'll visit him on Friday when I 'm heading there to visit some other sailors and Marines.

God love and bless them all.