Posted on 07/22/2005 7:20:18 PM PDT by King Prout
Through the old soldier grapevine, my father received the following bit of information. He thought I would like it, and as I don't recall it being posted on any news site I thought y'all would like it as well:
--- Sent: Saturday, 04 June 2005 9:24pm Subject: Fw: NEEDS WIDE DISTRIBUTION
Forwarded in the hopes that you all will give this info maximum distribution.... Suject: Denzel Washington Subject: Brooks Army Medical Center
Don't know whether you heard about this, but Denzel Washington and his family visited the troops at Brooks Army Medical Center, in San Antonio, Texas (BAMC) the other day.
This is where soldiers that have been evacuated from Germany come to be hospitalized in the States, especially burn victims. They have buildings there called Fisher Houses. The Fisher House is a hotel where soldiers' families can stay, for little or no charge, while the soldier is staying in the hospital. BAMC has quite a few of these houses on base but, as you can imagine, they are almost completely filled most of the time.
While Denzel Washington was visiting BAMC, they gave him a tour of one of the Fisher Houses. He asked how much one of them cost to build. He took his check book out and wrote a check for the full amout right there on the spot. The soldiers overseas were amazed to hear this story and want to get the word out to the American public, because it warmed their hearts to hear it.
The question I have is why does Alec Baldwin, Madonna, Sean Penn, and other Hollywood types make front page news with their anti-American crap, and this doesn't even make page 3 in the Metro section of any newspaper except the base newspaper in San Antonio?
ping
Having been stationed there once upon a time...this is where
the most gravely wounded come for rehab and care..
Where visiting is greatly needed
If Mr Washington did this ..he has a great heart indeed..
imo
Check google, he didn't write a check then and there, he wrote one months later. Still a classy guy.
What Denzel Washington Really Did at BAMC
(SAN ANTONIO) -- Officials at Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio are among the thousands of Americans getting deluged with Internet hoax e-mails claiming actor Denzel Washington 'pulled out his checkbook on the spot' and made a huge donation to help wounded soldiers during a 'recent' visit to wounded soldiers being treated at Brooke Army Medical Center, 1200 WOAI news reported today.
"I just delete them," post spokesman Phil Reidinger said.
The Internet hoax, which is often combined with sarcastic comments criticizing the media for 'not reporting' the non-event, have been headache for the Army, but provide a publicity windfall for Fisher House, a public-private partnership that builds housing for the families of wounded soldiers on the grounds of military and Veterans Administration hospitals nationwide.
The urban legend e-mail, which has picked up steam in the past two weeks, claims Washington was so impressed with the Fisher House efforts that he 'pulled out his checkbook on the spot and wrote a check large enough to pay for construction of a new Fisher House at BAMC.
The e-mail, which incorrectly refers to the hospital as "Brookes" Army Medical Center, also claims that Washington made the donation because his son is a soldier serving in Iraq.
The problem, according to Fisher House President David Coker, is that while Washington did make a 'sizeable' donation to the program, the e-mail claim is almost entirely bogus.
"Denzel came to visit with the soldiers and Marines being cared for at Brooke Army Medical Center last December 17th," Coker said. "He visited with them and told them how much he respects their service. He also toured one of the two Fisher Houses at Brooke Army Medical Center."
Washington told Coker at the time he would like to make a commitment to support the work of Fisher House.
"Denzel did not take out a checkbook and write a check on the spot,"Coker says. "He seldom carries a check book with him."
Coker said Washington did in fact make a sizeable donation to Fisher House several months after his visit to BAMC. He declined to comment on the size of the donation, but it was not enough to build a new Fisher House.
He said while largely incorrect, the e-mail has done much to raise awareness of the Fisher House program.
"We often find that people aren't aware of the services that the Fisher House provides," he said.
He said the fact that Washington, 49, did not write a check 'on the spot' does not diminish his contribution to the Fisher House and his support 'for the men and women who serve our country.'
Washington is also well known as a philanthropist, he has donated $1 milllion to the Children's Fund of South Africa, and $2.5 million to the Church of God.
For the record, according to his official biography, Washington and his wife actress Pauletta Pearson, have two sons. One, John David Washington, is an actor and student at Moorhouse College in Georgia, and the other, Malcolm, is 14 years old.
Denzel is one cool customer...and, from the several things I've read, a great guy all 'round. Wish there were more like him in Hollywood.
bump!
thank you for the corrections.
Dude better Cover his butt.
The NAACP and the Jesse and AL dog and pony show will all claim that he isn't really Black.
and thank you for the corrections.
I wasn't trying to be a smart ***. It's just I keep getting these in my email, constantly. It's such a great story. What a class act.
no, no - I'm serious: I loathe being incorrect, loathe spreading falsehood, and hate being misinformed, so I truly and sincerely thank you for correcting me.
Having said that, I saw John Q and easily understood it to be a blatant press for National Health Care /w occasional hosts at gun ownership.
I can only hope that Denzel was intellectually ignorant of the movie's real motives.
Thanks for the clarification!
side note: it is a sad commentary on the culture of the day that people so commonly bristle when corrected that most cannot easily credit their senses when someone actually thanks them for correcting an error.
Denzel is definately a cool customer....and extremely easy on the eyes.
You're right. I always try remember there are actual people behind the screen name. It doesn't do anything for people to be rude and nasty.
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