Posted on 11/15/2008 7:04:28 PM PST by SandRat
WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2008 As ghostlike Capitol Hill workers scurried through a cold, misty fog early yesterday evening, a nearby group of wounded warriors cosseted in a warm room broke bread and shared stories about far-away lands and future hopes.
Five years ago, Koster began providing free steak dinners to injured troops returning from Afghanistan and Iraq at his Fran OBriens Stadium Steak House, until the restaurant closed in 2006. Afterward, he said, wounded-troop dinners were held at several local eateries as well as the Capitol Hill Club, which holds a monthly dinner for the wounded warriors. Troop dinners also have been hosted by the Italian, Australian and several other embassies here, he said. Koster manages the Aleethia Foundation, which funds the dinners. The entire country has been behind these troops and its unfortunate whats happened to them, said Koster, an Army Vietnam veteran. Its been an absolute pleasure for me to meet them. I wish that I had met them under different circumstances, but thats looking back and thats not the direction theyre going theyre going forward. The wounded troops provided a service to this country the least we can do is buy them a dinner on Friday night, Koster said. There are a lot of organizations doing good things for the troops. Our focus has been on the newly-injured; to try to get them out of the hospital as soon as possible. The dinners are mostly private affairs, Koster said, in deference to the feelings of the injured troops and their families. Former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz, he said, is a staunch supporter of the dinners and attends as many as he can. We keep these dinners in closed rooms so that they dont have to be out in the general public, Koster said, so as to foster the troops natural camaraderie and conversation flow. When injured troops are first healing, they dont want people to see them, for example when theyve lost an arm and cant cut their food right its not as difficult to ask your buddy next to you to cut your food if your buddy is missing both legs, Koster explained. At the Capitol Hill Club last night, Army Staff Sgt. Anthony Maschek, 26, and his 25-year-old wife, Angela, praised the troop dinners. Maschek, a 10th Mountain Division infantryman from Twin Falls , Idaho , was shot 11 times causing two broken legs during a February 2008 firefight near Kirkuk in northern Iraq . He credited the ceramic plates in his armored vest for saving his live. Maschek, an outpatient living at Walter Reed, is a veteran of many such troop dinners. He plans to obtain a medical discharge next year and go to college to study business. Its really nice, Maschek said of the dinners and other events conducted for wounded troops. So many people come in and talk to us and do things for us. Anthony has been positive right from the get-go, Angela Maschek said of her husbands outlook for the future. She also praised the great medical staff at Walter Reed. The dinners are a really nice place to share some time with friends, she said. You get away from the hospital environment and the steak is great. Army Sgt. Marco Robledo, 22, served in Iraq as a combat engineer with his Arkansas National Guard unit. In May 2007, Robledo was riding in a HUMVEE about 20 miles north of Baghdad when a roadside bomb exploded, causing him to lose his left arm and leg. Robledo, who hails from Clarksville , Ark. , has been at Walter Reed for almost a year-and-a-half and hes expecting to receive a medical discharge soon. I feel better now; I should be home by January, hopefully, he said. The people at Walter Reed and the care overall has been wonderful. They gave me my life back. The dinners are a good way of getting off of the Walter Reed post and join others company and just forget where you are and have a wonderful dinner, Robledo said. Everybody appreciates us so much; it kind of makes you feel good, former 3rd Infantry Division soldier Cpl. Todd Bishop said. Bishop, 23, lost his lower legs to a roadside bomb that detonated under his HUMVEE during a patrol southeast of Baghdad in May 2005. He was medically discharged and now lives in Interlachen , Fla. Bishop had traveled up to Washington to have some metal bracing removed from his legs and to care for an infection. Regarding his future plans, Bishop said he likes to draw and has been in contact with a few buddies about being an architect, going back to school and getting a degree in architecture. Besides a social gathering place, the dinners also function as a healing process for the wounded warriors, Koster said. Coming to these dinners is getting back on the horse, but its walking the horse, not galloping the horse, Koster said. They can start off slowly; they can learn to cut their food and eat their food in an environment where they dont have to feel threatened. We just try to help them get through that initial phase, he said. |
Related Sites: Special: Warrior Care |
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God bless the defenders of freedom and those who care for them.
Indeed.
Where was code pink? Stealing from the hospital while they were gone?
Ping!
For those who have not heard of these events please take the time to visit this link to the most recent report and peruse the reports of many past demonstrations of respect and gratitude to these great men and women of the American armed forces.
Walter Reed - Week 187, November 14, 2008, Veterans Day Week
God bless our wounded troops! And those who are helping them.
Thanks for the ping!
Thanks for the ping Albion Wilde, I would have never read this great story. It has made my day!
You are most welcome!
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