Posted on 11/17/2006 4:17:06 PM PST by SandRat
HUACHUCA CITY — U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Bruce Baze’s parents received a scary phone call at 4:30 a.m. Sunday.
His mother, Becky, remembers the conversation word for word: “He said ‘Hey,’ and I said, ‘What happened?’ He said, ‘Mom, I don’t want you to freak out.’ ” Bruce suffered a grade III concussion when the seven-ton truck he occupied passed over an improvised-explosive device, often called a road-side bomb.
“That’s (the truck) what saved his life. If he’d have been in a Humvee, he wouldn’t be calling,” his father, Hal, said.
Bruce is with the 3rd AABN Delta Company, which arrived in Iraq about 45 days ago. He graduated from Tombstone High School in 2005 and signed up for the corps on the delayed-entry agreement at the beginning of his senior year.
“The day he turned 18, he went down and signed up, of course against our will,” his mother said. “And we’re proud of what he’s doing.”
The parents visibly swelled with honor when asked if they were proud of Bruce.
Since his unit’s arrival in Iraq about 45 days ago, he has had his 20th birthday. And of course, his family loves him and misses him dearly.
“That’s said every phone call, every letter,” his mother said.
With a supply of free, flat-rate shipping boxes from the U.S. Postal Service, Becky and Hal Baze keep the letters and care packages streaming into the Middle East — so much so, their son had to ask them to restrain themselves somewhat because the contents of all the care packages were starting to pile up.
They typically send their son jerky, baby wipes and trail mix.
And on www.Motomail.us, they send him letters via the Internet, which reach him in 24 to 48 hours instead of seven to 10 days, as would a postal letter.
“I figure it can’t be all that bad, because he was talking to me,” his mother said. “If he was on his way to Ramstein (Air Base in Germany), he wouldn’t be using the phone.”
The truck Bruce was in passed over an IED that was triggered by a pressure-plate mechanism.
“When you drive over, it arms the bomb, and when the rear axle rolls over it, that detonates it,” Becky said. She got that from a Marine Corps gunnery sergeant’s explanation of the incident, she said.
Bruce and his fellow Marines suffered mostly concussions and superficial abrasions. None were killed or injured seriously.
The incident occurred about 8:30 p.m. Saturday in western Iraq, or about 10:30 a.m. Saturday local time.
“Matter of fact, he called us today and he said his back was still bothering him,” his father said.
He and the other injured members of his platoon are on light duty with their unit for seven to 10 days, he told his family.
When they deployed, the plan was for them to be in Iraq for six to seven months, but such things can certainly change, he added.
Unlike when Hall served in Vietnam, his son trained and came up through boot camp with his fellow men in the platoon, Becky said. These Marines know one another, and their strengths and capabilities, and that is a very positive thing.
Hal and Becky are U.S. Army veterans.
“It makes no difference really how we feel about the reasons we’re there (in Iraq) — the politics and whose in office. We just hope that this will remind people that our men and women are over there, and they still need our support as a family, a community and country,” Becky said.
Regardless of politics of this war, all Americans should support the men and women in service during this war because it is a very real for the U.S. service men and women who have to fight it, Hal said.
“We are so thankful that he has both arms, both legs, both eyes,” Becky added. “Even though the concussion is serious, we’ve got a lot to be thankful for.”
herald/review reporter Gentry Braswell can be reached at 515-4680 or by e-mail at gentry.braswell@svherald.com.
Wounded Warrior in the WOT
?
"..... “It makes no difference really how we feel about the reasons we’re there (in Iraq) — the politics and whose in office.
We just hope that this will remind people that our men and women are over there, and they still need our support as a family, a community and country,” Becky said.
Regardless of politics of this war,
all Americans should support the men and women in service during this war because it is a very real for the U.S. service men and women who have to fight it, Hal said.
......."
And all the Democrats can do is strengthen the Military,
or not.
These folks seem to have a decent sense of what to do,
when the Troops are " over there ", support them.
Democrats didn't win the Presidentcy,
but who could tell the difference,
Democrats and the press have acted, as if,
they would be in charge,
and now that the war continues,
it's obvious Democrats lied to get elected.
With a supply of free, flat-rate shipping boxes from the U.S. Postal Service, Becky and Hal Baze keep the letters and care packages streaming into the Middle East
I wonder is someone donated those....I send priority and boy is the postage adding up.....but, got to keep my kid supplied with all his fav junk food...lol
Prayers on the way that he be healed quickly and completely.
The priority boxes are free, flat rate postage is $8.00, no matter how much the package weighs.
I was in my local post office on Wed. to send a package to my son and there were two other moms shipping to their sons in Iraq. I almost started to cry seeing the pride and fear for their sons on their faces.
Prayers for the family and friends.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.