Posted on 02/23/2005 9:15:31 PM PST by Former Military Chick
WIESBADEN, Germany President Bush praised thousands of troops and their families during a Wednesday afternoon pit stop at the Wiesbaden Army Airfield during his three-country European tour.
Before heading off to the Slovak Republic, the president and other White House officials stopped to thank war-weary troops and give them a bit of entertainment for a job well done.
Laura and I were in the neighborhood, thought wed drop by and say hello howdy, said the militarys commander in chief to cheering troops and family members. Bush had spent most of the day meeting with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Mainz.
Just before Bushs arrival, the Frankfurt Galaxy cheerleaders performed and American Idol runner-up Diana DeGarmo and the Gatlin Brothers sang.
Bush said he wanted to give the troops a taste of home after their yearlong deployment to Iraq.
Today I bring you a message from back home: The American people are grateful to you. Your communities are proud of you. And as you defend the cause of freedom, America stands with you.
The crowd, made up mostly of 1st Armored Division soldiers but including select 1st Infantry Division soldiers, as well as troops from all services, were all key players in helping America fight the war on terror, Bush said.
The 3,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines and their family members here today represent the more than 100,000 men and women of the United States European Command forward deployed and active in the global war on terrorism both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Theyre also great Americans and willful ambassadors for the United States who work hard every day to enhance our relationship with our European allies, said Maj. Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, 1st AD commander, just before the president spoke.
Though this was the second time Bush visited 1st AD troops, reminding soldiers that he was the guy serving turkey at 2003s surprise visit to Baghdad on Thanksgiving Day, he made it clear that the services made up one team.
Petty Officer 1st Class Zsolt Vecsernyes, an ordnanceman who was stationed on the USS Kitty Hawk off of Iraq and Afghanistan, said the president hit the nail on the head.
Im impressed how he recognized every troop who contributed to the fight, Vecsernyes said. I believe everything he believes in. He has to be one of the best presidents, coming right behind Reagan.
Bush noted how each unit made up an important piece of the overall mission in Iraq and Afghanistan and how thats changing the world.
The sacrifices you have made will change the world for decades to come. By fighting terrorists in places like Baghdad and Karbala and Tikrit, you are making sure we do not face those enemies at home. By helping captive peoples gain their freedom, you have made a critical contribution to the history of liberty. And that means the world will be more peaceful, and our children and grandchildren will be more secure, Bush said, as the crowd burst into applause.
Your challenges were unprecedented, and so was the outcome.
The presidents passionate speech served to inspire some soldiers.
He kind of gave me motivation to go back downrange again, said Spc. Chen Sheng, a combat engineer with the 16th Engineers out of Giessen, Germany.
Ending his 30-minute speech with the same gratitude White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice began their speeches with, the presidential party left the troops as the sounds of the 1st AD band kicked up.
It cant get any better than this, said a smiling 1st Sgt. Garnett Brown of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Division Support Command. Its the boost that every soldier needs.
President Bush waves to the crowd after his speech Wednesday at Wiesbaden Army Airfield, Germany.(Raymond T. Conway / S&S)
President Bush shakes hands with soldiers after a speech to U.S. servicemembers Wednesday at Wiesbaden Army Airfield, Germany. (Raymond T. Conway / S&S )
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice poses for a photo with troops. Bush and Rice stopped in Wiesbaden as part of their European trip, during which the president is hoping to solidify ties with Western leaders, some of which were weakened by the U.S. invasion of Iraq. (Raymond T. Conway / S&S )
President Bush addresses the troops Wednesday at Wiesbaden. (Raymond T. Conway / S&S )
President Bush makes a point during his speech at Wiesbaden. (Raymond T. Conway / S&S )
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First lady Laura Bush speaks to the Kaiserslautern military community Tuesday morning in an Air Force hangar at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (Russ Rizzo / S&S )
By Russ Rizzo, Stars and Stripes European edition, Wednesday, February 23, 2005 RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany First lady Laura Bush thanked servicemembers and families who serve without a paycheck, during her first visit to Ramstein Air Base on Tuesday morning.
Calling the Kaiserslautern military community a testament to the partnership between Germany and the United States, Bush told the crowd of about 1,500 people that troops are delivering freedom across the globe.
Each of you has a greater impact than you can ever imagine on people that you will only know for a brief time, Bush said from a stage set up inside an Air Force hangar. And all of you are delivering the greatest gift theyll ever receive by sacrificing your own comfort, your own safety and your own lives.
About 30 handpicked spouses of men and women who were deployed to, or had recently returned from, Iraq sat in chairs in front of Bush as she spoke. Others sat beside uniformed soldiers on stage behind the first lady.
All of those who serve in our military deserve our utmost respect, Bush said. And so do those who serve without a paycheck and well behind the front lines: our military families.
I know a little bit about having your life turned upside down because the person you love wants to serve the country he loves.
The first lady is accompanying President Bush on his four-day tour of Europe. After her stop in Ramstein, she traveled to Wiesbaden to meet with Department of Defense Dependents Schools teachers, students and their parents.
Before giving her speech at Ramstein, she visited about 20 injured servicemembers at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center who were wounded in combat in Iraq, hospital spokeswoman Marie Shaw said. Media access was limited to NBC cameras, Shaw said.
After the speech, Bush ate a roast beef lunch at Ramsteins General Cannon Hotel with a group of military spouses.
It wasnt just a canned speech of, Rah-rah, look what weve done, said Stasy Shipman, a key spouse for the 86th Maintenance Squadron based in Ramstein. You really got the sense she knows what were going through.
Still, Shipman and the squadrons other key spouse, Lynda Davis, said they had hoped Bush would address ways the government would ease the child-care problems that military families face. Davis said she had difficulty finding summer and after-school programs for her 13-year-old daughter.
Maj. Kathy McKaig, a nurse in the 328th Combat Support Hospital Reserve unit out of Salt Lake City, said she had hoped to meet Bush at Landstuhl, where the first lady was scheduled to meet with the family of one of her patients. But McKaig had the day off, so she went to Ramstein to meet Bush.
At the end of the event, McKaig posed for a picture with Bush and then fumbled through her purse for something for the first lady to sign.
In black cursive writing, theLaura Bush now adorns the back of McKaigs bus schedule.
A transcript of Laura Bushs speech is available at:
www.whitehouse.gov/firstlady.
"Bush always looks so enlivened when he addresses the troops. They really buoy him up."
And vice versa, I am sure.
The troops love GW.
My wife's Godson (nephew) is a Major at Ramstein. Her niece bundled up her twi-year-old and three-month-old and drove to the base -- had trouble getting past the German Police and pushed a stroller through the snow, arrived late, but they took pity on her w' the kids in the snow and let her in. They saw Laura, then she had to feed the baby. Laura Bush then came out and came right up to her -- they got pictures with her and spoke a bit! My niece is kicking herself for forgetting to tell Laura that her and her husband are both Texans and Aggies though!
I watched this on TV today. Lots of big HooAhh's.
Love this poster!
How exciting for her! What a moment she will never forget. If you get some of those pictures you should post them.
Oh that must've been something. I bet the troops went nuts!
I think that is echo talon's work. I steal from everybody. I have no shame.
He played the part of "little Dick".
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