A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....04-05,06-03....Week in Review

Billie and Mama_Bear

[Mama_Bear]

A Few of FR's Finest.....
......Every Day

FR is a Treasure Trove of talented, compassionate, patriotic, wonderful people who gather every day to discuss the latest news and issues; salute and support our military and our leaders; tell a few jokes; learn a new word; write poetry; pray for those in need; and congratulate those who are deserving. Thank you, Jim Robinson, for giving us the vehicle in which we can express ourselves.

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997. I can remember lurking when there were only a few regulars who posted, and now there are over 60,000 who have registered for posting privileges. The forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest November 11, 2001

So many people have written me since my original Veteran's Day Tribute, asking how they, or a loved one, could be included in that tribute. Since I can no longer add the photos to the body of the thread, I've been including them in additional posts as I received enough to make another collage.

Still that doesn't seem to be enough. I think there's never been a better nor more appropriate time to keep the faces of our own Veterans and Active Military in front of FReepers--every day! That's why I wanted to do yet another Daily Thread .....ABOUT FReepers .....and FOR FReepers. But not only about our Military FReepers; for all FReepers! Wouldn't it be nice to get to know a few of the other FReepers as well? That's why, in addition to seeing FR's Finest Military Personnel every day, I thought it might be fun to feature a different FReeper (or FReepers) each day. If you would like to be pictured, or know someone who would, please FReepmail me and we'll turn the spotlight - on YOU - for the day!

And do let me know if you'd like your picture added to the groups of Veterans/Active Military below. I will keep this page updated, and continue to add them to the comment section of the original Veteran's Day thread as well.

TOP: Q6-God, Scan59, Mama Bear and JKPhoto's son, ofMagog.
MIDDLE: Big'ol_freeper, JustAmy's great uncle, Prodigal Son.
BOTTOM: JustAmy's husband, JustAmy's brother-in-law, JustAmy's brother.

TOP: dakine's wife, MeeknMing's dad, Auntbee's nephew, MilitiaMan7, AlasBabylon.
BOTTOM: Joe Brower, Temple Owl, Temple Owl's wife, dutchess' dad, Aomagrat.

TOP: ladtx #2 son; DiverDave's twin Don; petuniasevan and husband
poorman; Mustard; ladtx #1 son;
BOTTOM: AlamoGirl's brother Floyd; AG's dad; AG's brother Jim (inset);
WVNan's husband; ladtx Aunt Eva.

We now have eleven groups of veterans/active military; we will post each group of three or four twice a week, with thumbnail/links of the remaining seven or eight groups on each thread. Click on any of the thumbnails below to see the group full-size.

GROUP 1A: TOP: Logos, SwedeGirl's hubby, Neil E Wright, FallGuy, 1John, Sneakypete MIDDLE: T'wit, COB1, LadyX, Dick Bachert, 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub BOTTOM: YankeeinSC, Delta21, JoeSixPack1

GROUP 2A: TOP: Bosniajmc, AFVetGal, Archy, A Navy Vet MIDDLE: 4TheFlag, Aeronaut, 68Grunt, Xinga BOTTOM: Codger, AAABest, Clinton's A Liar, Duke809, dcwusmc

GROUP 3A: TOP: mc5cents, Norb2569, LBGA's son, VanJenerette MIDDLE: Jim Robinson, KJenerette, davidosborne, KG9Kid BOTTOM: gwmoore, Equality7-2521, SAMWolf

GROUP 4A: TOP: porgygirl, Phil V., MudPuppy, NorCoGOP MIDDLE: RaceBannon, OneidaM, rdb3, jwTexian BOTTOM: USMC Vet, TheMayor, Vineyard, rhododogma

GROUP 5A: TOP: spectr17, RightOnline, SERE_Doc, Tet68. MIDDLE: FutureSnakeEater, RightOnline's wife, CIApilot, Clamper1797. BOTTOM: usmcobra, onedoug, DiverDave, Joe6-pack.

GROUP 6A: TOP: g'nad, AgThorn's son Justin, SLB, AgThorn's son Brett. MIDDLE: fish70, razorback-bert, CheneyChick, Leroy S Mort, Mark17. BOTTOM: Terry's Take, Taxman, DinkyDau.

GROUP 7A: TOP: ValerieUSA's son Grant, SK1Thurman, kd5cts, RangerVetNam, dansangel and .45man's son-in-law Tony.BOTTOM: rangerX, Old China Hand, Trish, Howlin's dad, Mustang.

GROUP 8A: TOP: ohioWfan's son, MamaBear's father-in-law, MamaBear's dad, ladtx. MIDDLE: The Mayor's niece, M.Kehoe, Beach_Babe's son-in-law. BOTTOM: deadhead's dad, HiJinx, Severa's hubby, viligantcitizen's granddad.

To Our FReeper FRiends: We hope you've been having as much fun as we have with our spotlight on various FReepers. We thought we'd kick back on the weekends and simply review those who've been featured during the week. If you missed seeing them and want to say hello to them now, feel free to click on the link to that particular thread. If you'd like to drop in and out of this thread today and tomorrow, please feel free to do that also. One of us will always be around to see the welcome mat is still out, and maybe even put fresh flowers on the table. :)

"Getting to Know You"

THIS WEEK'S THREADS


03-31-03 "Thank You!" ....A SALUTE TO OUR MILITARY

04-01-03 "Courage" ........................................LADTX ESSAY

04-02-03 "The Exclusive Inquisition" ..........................TATZE

04-03-03 "John's Two Cents" ........................JOHNHUANG2
"What our fighting men and women are really all about. "

03-14-03 "The (More er Less) Honorable Billybob" ...............
CONGRESSMAN BILLYBOB






Strangers are just friends waiting to happen

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~ Mixer

[Mama_Bear]

[Mama_Bear]

We are headed out of town for the weekend,
but I've put the coffee on and opened the doors.



If you would like to be added to or removed from the Finest ping list, FReepMail me.

[SpookBrat]

Good morning!

[Iowa Granny]

Thanks for this week in review. I don't always have time to check in during the week, so I really appreciate this feature.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Mama

[LadyX]

Was up early to watch the troops roll into Baghdad - love the front row seat, watching History in the Making...

Unfortunately, one of the first things I learned hit home.
In the article below, the very first name is from this small town.

8 Bodies Found in Raid Were U.S. Soldiers

.c The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Eight of the bodies found during the rescue of an American POW in Iraq this week were members of her ambushed Army maintenance unit, the Pentagon announced Saturday.

The eight soldiers were with Pfc. Jessica Lynch when their unit, the 507th Maintenance Company, was ambushed near Nasiriyah on March 23.

The U.S. commandos who freed Lynch from a hospital in Nasiriyah this week also found 11 bodies, nine of which were believed to be those of Americans. The nine bodies had been returned to a forensics center at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware for identification and investigation of how they died.

The Pentagon issued a statement early Saturday morning saying the status of the eight soldiers had been changed from missing to killed.

The soldiers were:

Sgt. George E. Buggs, 31, of Barnwell, S.C.

Master Sgt. Robert J. Dowdy, 38, of Cleveland.

Pvt. Ruben Estrella-Soto, 18, of El Paso, Texas.

Spc. James M. Kiehl, 22, of Comfort, Texas.

Chief Warrant Officer Johnny Villareal Mata, 35, of Amarillo, Texas.

Pfc. Lori Ann Piestewa, 23, of Tuba City, Ariz.

Pvt. Brandon U. Sloan, 19, of Cleveland.

Sgt. Donald R. Walters, 33, of Kansas City, Mo. All were members of the 507th Maintenance, an army unit based at Fort Bliss, Texas.

Five members of the unit remain listed as prisoners of war. Shortly after the unit's ambush, the five were shown on Iraqi state-run television being questioned by their captors.

Iraqi television also showed footage of at least five bodies. After viewing that footage, Pentagon officials accused Iraq of executing prisoners of war.

There was no immediate word from the Pentagon Saturday on whether the soldiers were killed in the ambush or afterward.

04/05/03 01:00 EST
================================================== Pausing this morning to pray for these fallen, and for their families and friends and communities...

SpookBrat hailed me to the narrative, after I'd heard it on television, and the article speaks of two of the men having accepted Christ; one earlier and one just before the battle.

Yes, Spooky - blessed assurance indeed, able to rest in His arms.

[humblegunner]

Good morning, Mama Bear!
Thanks for the coffee. We are gearing up for a show of support
here in Houston today.. hopefully I'll have some pix later!

[LadyX]

Good Morning, Aeronaut.

Always reassuring to see friendly folks flying the friendly skies!

Since Billie is not here yet to offer you your beverage of choice,
allow me to have this ready when you land:

Industrial Strength Brews

Good for whatever ails ya!

[MeekOneGOP]

Mornin', everybody !! Happy Saturday !

57 degrees as I post this, headin' for ~76 today . . .

Have a cup while you FReep !

For those who prefer hot chocolate.....

[LadyX]

Greetings, Noble Warrior of The Right...:))

{{{{{ Send-off Hugs for hg }}}}}

[Aeronaut]

Aaaaah, coffee. Thanks Lady.

[xp38]

Prayers for the troops. Battle of Baghdad Day.

[jwfiv]

Good morning to our Hostesses, and to all Freepers on this fine Saturday morning.

I'm on the road for a few days, but, to my great delight, I'm still wired.

Freepo ergo sum.

[jwfiv]

Good morning, LadyX...)

[LadyX]

Aha! I see the sun rises in Arizona as well as over the East!

Snoopy Rock?? it is asked!

[LadyX]

More - - -

Snoopy Rock, in the Sedona Red Rock desert area. It looks like Snoopy laying on his back,
on the roof top of his doghouse . . . . doesn't it?
Someone needs to find the Woodstock rock close here.
Near Sedona, Arizona

[LadyX]

Yes - the (re)search goes on...:)))

[SpookBrat]

LadyX, I got this in my email this morning. I'm nervous about passing on e-mails because I like to find out if they are true or not before doing so. I though this went a long with our conversation this morning.

CNN live interview with Martin Savidge on Sunday, 30 March 2003:

Martin Savidge of CNN, embedded with the 1st Marine battalion, 1st Marine Division, was talking with 4 young Marines near his foxhole this morning live on CNN. He had been telling the story of how well the Marines had been looking out for and taking care of him since the war started. He went on to tell about the many hardships the Marines had endured since the war began and how they all look after one another.

He turned to the four and said he had cleared it with their commanders and they could use his video phone to call home. None of these Marines had been able to talk with their families for many weeks. The 19 year old Marine next to him asked Martin if he would allow his platoon sergeant to use his call to call his pregnant wife back home whom he had not been able to talk to in over a month. A stunned Savidge, who was visibly moved by the request, nodded his head - yes.

The young Marine ran off to get the sergeant. Savidge recovered after a few seconds and turned back to the three young Marines still sitting with him. He asked which one of them would like to call home first? The Marine closest to him responded with out a moments hesitation, “Sir, if it is all the same to you we would like to call the parents of a buddy of ours. Lance Cpl Brian Buesing of Cedar Key, Florida, who was killed on the 23rd of March near Nasiriya. We would like to see how his folks are doing and let them know their son died bravely.”

At that Martin Savidge totally broke down and was unable to speak. All he could get out before signing off was, “Where do they get young men like this?”

[jwfiv]

I've seen that Snoopy rock! Good research you're doing....)

Nice to be home with family...Mom's cat, Pig, is my little charmer...took Barkley the dog for a walk yesterday, we'll do that again in a little while.

Watching the war...we're rolling.

Life is so beautiful, terrible, wonderful, horrible...magnificent.

[LadyX]

It was indeed a true story, Spooky - - there is no question about their devotion to their comrades, placing them before self; and always showing tremendous respect to a fellow Marine no matter where they are in the chain.

That was beautifully apparent the two times in recent years I returned to Parris Island.
I know it firsthand; the recipient of it.