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Posted on 04/02/2003 5:34:32 AM PST by SAMWolf
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans.
Where the Freeper Foxhole introduces a different veteran each Wednesday. The "ordinary" Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine who participated in the events in our Country's history. We hope to present events as seen through their eyes. To give you a glimpse into the life of those who sacrificed for all of us - Our Veterans.
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The many battles and lives lost during World War II are now a matter of record. Future generations can appreciate the fact that the freedom we now enjoy did not come without a price, the blood of our nation’s young heroes. After all of these years, many veterans have passed on. However, thanks to them, our country is one of the freest nations on earth.  This photo was taken on July 27, 1945, the wedding day of the author, Brother Leo J. Ghirardi, 32°, with Beatrice "Dolly" Saben, his British "blind date." Their wedding ring was bartered from a German prisoner of war for one cigarette At the time of the Battle of the Bulge, December 16–26, 1944, I was for a short while in Paris. Having been in the Armed Forces since 1940, I felt the need to ask for front-line duty. At that time, I did not have a fear of dying in battle. However, when I arrived in Belgium during the worst blizzard in recent times, I had second thoughts. Of course, it was too late. I was now near the heat of battle, and it was time to do my part for my country. When I arrive at Elsenborn Ridge, I was assigned to L Company 394th Infantry of the 99th Division. The first orders I had as a sergeant were to set up a defense out in the snow. I asked the commanding officer about the men who were to be assigned to my platoon, and he said, "Sergeant, you are the platoon." Time passed, and we were walking across the Cologne Plains in Germany. Luck was with our unit because we were following up in the rear of one of our regiments that was fighting miles ahead of us. In the distance we could see the steeple of a church and what remained of the city of Cologne, Germany, on the Rhine River. Night was falling quickly as we turned to the east of the city, which followed the banks of the Rhine. To prove to our division commander that we had really reached the river, one of us filled a bottle of water from it and presented it to him.  Our regiment was in the area of Neivenheim-Gohr on March 7 when, unknown to us, the dramatic message came through from division: "Corps to G3-9th. Armed capture RR bridge at 6520. In good order and convertible. They have one and a half Bn of Infantry across the Rhine River." We had no way of knowing about the captured bridge as we walked most of the night along the banks of the river. However, as we approached the bridge at Remagen, the Germans were firing their 88s over to our side of the river. I feel that it is only fitting to record here the words of a medic, T/5 James Johnson, who wrote an account of what happened: "The war is moving plenty fast and furious; my hands have been literally steeped in the blood from the wounded. It is pitiful to hear four or five wounded men screaming, ‘Medic! Medic! I’m bleeding to death!’ It is bad enough during the day, but at night a wounded soldier is terrified by the utter separation in the pitch blackness lit only by bursting shells (whether he be German or American). There may be a hell in another world, but this one is sure putting up some stiff competition. Compare ‘fire and brimstone’ with twisted steel and bodies, spattered chunks of brains and intestines, shambled buildings, the screams of shells and the cracks of bullets, the stench of death, the earnest soul-searching prayer of the dying. The longer this war lasts the greater toll and hole this living hell will be cut into humanity."  I wasn’t alone when I felt the fear of death as those 88s kept coming in so near to my platoon. I will never forget jumping into a ditch of water and soft mud in an attempt to get away from them. There I was, covered with mud from head to foot. That I could live with. But when I discovered my M1 rifle filled with mud, I knew I had to find a clean one and fast. I got one from a Jeep driver as we crossed the river. I was still afraid that I would not be able to hit a target with it because I had never zeroed this rifle in. After that eventful dip in the ditch, we soon were approaching the embankment that led to the rail line. Believe it or not, I thought we would make a mad dash across the bridge, but our company commander gave orders for us to walk across and to be sure to keep our distance. Try to imagine having a migraine headache all day and then finding you have to cross a bridge like this under heavy fire. To relieve my backpack, I dumped most of my equipment except for some ammo, hand grenades, and rifle. Those truly brave men who tried to keep the bridge in one piece deserve the credit for getting us over to the other side of the river on March 7, 1945. I have often wondered how many of those boys lived to tell their story. From what I remember of the heavy fire as we crossed the river, I doubt that many of those young men survived.  As we approached the other side of the river, we saw the train tunnel which gave us courage to continue on. We thought we could take cover in the tunnel, but instead we turned eastward and walked along the river to find a city that was on fire. After we crossed the river, we advanced and took more German prisoners. From our vantage point, we could see P38 fighters chasing the German planes away from the bridge. We watched the Ludendorff Bridge as it collapsed on March 17th and saw its crumpled remains in the Rhine River. The medic James Johnson lived what he wrote. He was at Remagen as the enemy peppered it with high explosives as the 394th walked across. Shells came at the rate of one every 30 seconds that night. The 394th Regiment was one of the first units to cross the Rhine River, and they are an example of the individual heroism of men risking their lives to keep traffic flowing across the bridge as they treated and evacuated casualties and rallied the shell-shocked soldiers.  I hope that this essay will be kept as a record for future generations. I have heard and read about how brave soldiers are in combat, but, honestly, I was scared as never before or since, and being only human, I was afraid to die on a foreign battlefield. I am writing this account of the crossing of the Remagen Bridge while my mind is still clear. Age is taking its toll on me. I am now almost 84 years old. I crossed the bridge when I was 29.
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Thank God Jessica Lynch was rescued, but the b@stards broke both her legs and one arm. She didn't have those injuries when she was captured.
2003
US 3rd Infantry
at the Euphrates River
Rowlett family adorns neighborhoods with yellow ribbons
04/02/2003
ROWLETT – Brenda Campagna hopes everyone will tie a yellow ribbon around a tree – even if it's not, as the popular song goes, "the old oak tree."
And residents who have no tree, she said, should tie their ribbons around anything that stands still.
Mrs. Campagna and her supporters will even provide the ribbon, assuming they can acquire enough. They have cleaned out some suppliers.
"Just show your support for our military!" said the Rowlett resident, whose stepson, Marine Cpl. Kevin Campagna, is serving in Iraq.
Mrs. Campagna started the yellow-ribbon campaign March 21 with the help of her husband, Tony Campagna, and children Jake and Lindsey Smith and Amy Campagna. The response, she said, has been amazing, with more than 1,000 ribbons distributed the first weekend.
"It just gets bigger," she said. "Now we have the support of the city. Basically, it's just going crazy. This is a 'Pass it on, everybody can play.' "
Others in the area have begun similar displays of support.
The city of Grand Prairie's marketing department handed out yellow ribbons to employees, and students at South Grand Prairie High School have begun covering their campuses with the bright-colored reminders.
At Beaver Technology Center in Garland, students decorated an oak tree and the fence surrounding the school's courtyard with yellow and navy ribbons.
Use of yellow ribbons as symbols of hope was inspired by the 1973 hit song "Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree," recorded by Tony Orlando and Dawn.
Although the song referred to a man coming home from prison, yellow ribbons became a popular symbol of support in 1980 when Americans were held hostage in Iran. They were also used during the 1991 Persian Gulf War as a way of showing support for U.S. troops.
Mrs. Campagna said a lack of support from the media motivated her to show the soldiers that America cares about them. She calls herself a "second mother" to Cpl. Campagna, a 2000 graduate of Rowlett High School.
"When the bombs went off, I got very angry and decided I needed to do something," she said. "All I saw from the media was demonstrations against the war. It wasn't like the support that was shown after 9-11. ... I just had to do something."
The drive began on a Friday night. The Campagna family and some neighbors worked from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. cutting 2-yard-long ribbons, which they left on people's doorknobs.
Since then, Mrs. Campagna said, "we've even received thank-you notes."
"It's just overwhelming, very tearful," she said. "It doesn't matter if you agree or disagree with the politics. It's support for our troops – that's what America is all about.
"People really are patriotic; they just don't know how to show it."
Last week, Mrs. Campagna and her supporters were "doing as much as we can as fast as we can" for the campaign, which has experienced one problem: Many stores and suppliers are sold out of yellow ribbon.
During the first weekend, Mrs. Campagna said, nine children and three mothers distributed 1,000 ribbons, exhausting their supply. They obtained 3,500 more yards of ribbon with the help of the city of Rowlett, CC Carpet, McShan Florist and several families.
Brenda Sheetz and her children, Leah and Evan Allen, were the first family outside the Campagnas' Toler Bay II neighborhood to join the campaign, Mrs. Campagna said.
"We were just very, very touched by the ribbon on the door," said Mrs. Sheetz, who was instrumental in getting 800 yards of ribbon donated by McShan.
She and her children have distributed ribbons in several Rowlett neighborhoods after school and on weekends.
Leah, 15, and Evan, 11, were concerned about the safety of the soldiers before they got involved in the ribbon campaign, Mrs. Sheetz said. Then they learned that the Campagnas' 20-year-old son was in Iraq, and the war was brought home for them, Mrs. Sheetz said.
Others joining the Sheetz family include Cpl. Campagna's mother, Grace Whitman of Rowlett, and Cheryl Fitzgerald, a volunteer who provided ribbon and also the flags at the entrance to Toler Bay II.
Rowlett Mayor Shane Johnson is also a supporter of the effort. He invited the Campagnas to Tuesday's City Council meeting to receive a proclamation of support.
"I think they're doing a wonderful job," Mr. Johnson said.
"They are really rallying community support. People have called thanking us for the campaign, thinking it was a city project. It makes it even more special that it involves families of the military."
Mrs. Campagna has learned a lot about her hometown during her campaign.
"If anyone ever questioned the kindness of the human race, they haven't met the wonderful citizens of Rowlett," she said. "We can't wait to show Kevin the support and prayers we have received.
"It is my hope that citizens throughout the nation take action to place symbols of support for the military in their neighborhoods."
This story also appears in the Rockwall-Rowlett Morning News.
E-mail jevans@dallasnews.com
Isn't that a sad commentary on our Country's press.
To nobody's surprise there were protesters today in DC, they attempted to disrupt the metro system and block the Key Bridge, a leading artery into DC from Northern Virginia. I got hosed twice because I come in from NoVA on the metro and it is raining hard which makes traffic worse any way. My commute was long and arduous and only caused further resentment fo protesters (but that isn't the point of this thread).Anyway, I'll get to the point. I got off the train in Rosslyn because I had to use the bathroom and the train was moving quite slowly. When I was getting back on the train, there were protesters on the train platform handing out pamphlets on the evils of America. I politely declined to take one. An elderly woman was behind me getting off the escalator and a young (20ish) female protester offered her a pamphlet, which she politely declined. The young protester put her hand on the old woman's shoulder as a guesture of friendship and in a very soft voice said, "Ma'am, don't you care about the children of Iraq?" The old woman looked up at her and said, "Honey, my first husband died in France during World War II so you could have the right to stand here and bad mouth your country. And if you touch me again, I'll stick this umbrella up your a** and open it." I'm glad to report that loud applause broke out among the onlookers and the young protester was at a total loss for words.
on to Bagdad they go, with guns high and low, keeping their eyes to the front
all the prayers have been said, the battle ahead, keeping our eyes to the front
leaders have spoken, no will has been broken, keeping their eyes to the front
with Godspeed they go, into murderers row, and all of our hearts at the front
click the graphic to view the complete Victory Series
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