A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....11-10-03....Military Monday

Billie

[ST.LOUIE1]

Afternoon, Cal. : )

[Billie]

Good afternoon, Dansy. Thanks for the prayers you offer each week on our Military Mondays. Will be flying our stars and stripes proudly tomorrow, as we do (almost) every day! (Lately, it's been drizzling and nasty out, so the flag hasn't been out in a few days)

[Calpernia]

Well look who is here! Big hug to you! I know what you are going through with your knee. I injuried mine back in Jr. High School. I remember the discomfort well.

[ST.LOUIE1]

I know Billie will be happy. With your absense, she has even been more grumpy than usual and I didn't think that was possible. :-)

Ding! Ding! Ding! I got it! All this time I couldn't quite put my finger on the reason for your animosity towards me....you're jealous of the wolfie. LOL

I don't think a three legged wolf is anything to be jealous of. LOL

[Billie]

:(

We'll keep saying a little prayer for you until you find it.

[Diver Dave]

Afternoon FR's Finest... and all my fellow Veterans.

From today's Modesto Bee...

'Forgotten war' vets remembered in ceremony

Earl Bass, 82, of Ripon was a surgeon's aid during the Korean War. He was among 100 veterans honored by South Korea. DREW FLEMING/THE BEE

Korean War veteran Jay Erwin, 72, of Ceres, with his son Greg, waits for the medal ceremony to begin. Erwin remembers to the day his length of service in Korea: three years, nine months and 25 days. DREW FLEMING/THE BEE

Nicole Coburn, 10, with her grandmother Charlene Francis, waits to accept a medal honoring her grandfather, Donald Gene Coburn, who served in the Korean War. Coburn's medal was one of 13 given posthumously by a representative of South Korea on Sunday in Stockton. DREW FLEMING/THE BEE

By KERRY McCRAY
BEE STAFF WRITER

STOCKTON -- Nicole Coburn, 10, popped out of her seat to take her place in line among the Korean War veterans. There were some 100 men who had served in Korea, most in their 70s and 80s, inching toward a podium to receive medals from the South Korean government.

Then there was Nicole, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, eager to accept a medal on behalf of her grandfather, Donald Coburn, an Escalon native who was a private in the U.S. Army.

He spent at least three years in Korea, much of it aboard a tank. He died in 1980, well before the South Korean effort to honor those who fought the battle against communism half a century ago.

"I'm very proud of my grandpa," said Nicole, a fifth-grader at Golden West Elementary School in Manteca.

The event, held Sunday at the Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium, was one of many throughout the nation recognizing the 50th anniversary of the war, which ended in a stalemate that divides South and North Korea to this day.

Veterans from Gustine to Lodi attended with their families and friends. About 700 came.

Byung-jae Cho, a deputy counsel general from South Korea, gave out medals and certificates. Retired Maj. Gen. Daniel Helix of the U.S. Army spoke, as did Scott DeCarillo, a Marine who recently returned from Iraq.

Stuart Long of Ripon, a Vietnam veteran who helps organize such events throughout Northern California, said the 100 veterans receiving medals was the most he's seen at one ceremony. Nationwide, 163,500 veterans have gotten medals, he said.

Jay Erwin of Ceres got his medal at the Stockton ceremony. The 72-year-old was a gunner's mate in the U.S. Navy. He knows exactly how long he was in Korea: three years, nine months and 25 days.

Erwin, who has Parkinson's disease, accepted his medal in a wheelchair. But he stood when it came time to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner."

"He's very proud of the time he spent in the service," said his son, Greg Erwin, also of Ceres.

So is Joe Cordova, 72, of Modesto. He was an airman, first-class, in the U.S. Air Force, helping transport the wounded.

He pointed out that Americans call Korea "the forgotten war" because it falls between two notable events, the Allies' victory in World War II and the Vietnam conflict.

"To me, these medals mean a lot," he said.

Ted Reeves of Merced also values his medal. The 75-year-old was a corporal in the U.S. Army and served as an "observer" on the front lines. He watched the enemy through binoculars, then reported what he saw.

Reeves also vividly remembers what he saw.

"They never said Korea was a war, they called it a police action," he said. "I saw guys that were stacked like cardboard. To me, that was war."

[dutchess]

Oh WOW...our wolfie is back! We've missed you so much!!!!!

(((((((WOLFIE)))))))

[dutchess]

Good afternoon Billie. You have email!

[ST.LOUIE1]

Well look who is here! Big hug to you!

Thanks, Cal. And a big ((((((((Cal)))))))) to you! : )

I know what you are going through with your knee. I injured mine back in Jr. High School. I remember the discomfort well.

This knee thingy is wearing on my nerves. It seems to be a bit better though. The doctor said I must be patient. : (

[dutchess]

Goodafternoon finest sistahs and finest friends...Happy birthday and a salute to our marines....You've done us proud! Military monday prayers for our deployed men and woman and their families...Busy day so must run...

[Diver Dave]

Afternoon, Louie.
Great to see ya' back.
Guess that Rams victory last night had some healing qualities for ya, eh?
Seahags still lead the division, though. :)

[Calpernia]

>>>This knee thingy is wearing on my nerves.

It did take a long time for my knee to be 'normal' again. I was on crutches for quite a bit.

I did a few things against medical advice that improved my knee. I don't advise it for you 'cause I don't know your whole situation. But I started leg lifts (with weights) with my bad knee. I strengthened the muscles which took pressure of the damaged cartilage.

I am very pro holistic approaches. But they don't fix everything. Hence is why medicine does exist.

[dixie sass]

Hi Billie. No, I didn't get to see the Lynch story. Wasn't all that much interested. To much is going on in the Senate right now.

I am concerned though with the stories that are coming out about S. Johnson, the other female captured and held. I have just found out that she was shot in the legs. Also the young men that were being held.

No one seems to care about them and it bothers me to the extreme and in fact is down right depressing. I guess you have to be beautiful and look like a movie star to get anything.

I think Lynch was a "wag the dog" for the skeptics in America, appealing to their emotions.

It is the others that we should be celebrating not her. I know that sounds spiteful, but just think about the ones that have gotten no recognition, no movies made about them, no ticker tape parades nothing. There were four or five young men and another young woman and they were forgotten and shoved to the side because their story wasn't pretty enough.

I will never forget the looks on those faces when they showed the films of them, especially that of Johnson. The stories that we have heard about the way that they treat women must have had her terrified. Lynch doesn't deserve what she has gotten in the way of riches and largesse unless it is shared with all of the men and women of the Armed Forces and their families - every penny of it.

[dixie sass]

Amen.

[ST.LOUIE1]

Afternoon, Louie. Great to see ya' back.

Hi, Diver! Nice to be back.

Guess that Rams victory last night had some healing qualities for ya, eh?

Not really.....UGLIEST win I've ever seen. LOL

Seahags still lead the division, though. : )

We're even. And the Rams WILL win the division. More and more of our injured players are returning.

[dixie sass]

Hugs and Happy Birthday. Couldn't check out the new picture, 'cause I got this message.

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The requested object does not exist at the specified location. The link you followed is either outdated, inaccurate, or the server has been instructed not to let you have it.

[ST.LOUIE1]

This knee thingy is wearing on my nerves.

It did take a long time for my knee to be 'normal' again. I was on crutches for quite a bit.

My crutch has been tossed but am still using a cane, the kind with the square bottom.

I did a few things against medical advice that improved my knee. I don't advise it for you 'cause I don't know your whole situation. But I started leg lifts (with weights) with my bad knee. I strengthened the muscles which took pressure of the damaged cartilage.

The doctor said I'm not ready for exercize yet. : ( Sounds good though. : )

I am very pro holistic approaches. But they don't fix everything. Hence is why medicine does exist.

True. I've read a bit about the holistic approach, makes sense to me.

Thanks for the info, Cal. : )

[dixie sass]

lol, being an ex-marine wife! You marry the Corp, not the man! You know what though? You can divorce the man, but not the Corp!

GOD bless those Marines - gotta luv um!

[dixie sass]

A salute to all the Marines on their birthday Chesty and especially to one of my favorite Marines, Semper-fi!

[dixie sass]

WOLFIE!!!! You're back. Again! Someone needs to bake you some upside down cake. I would, but, well, it just never comes out right!