Posted on 09/01/2005 7:08:40 PM PDT by RaceBannon
2 Years ago, I had the honor of being involved with a noble cause, that of supporting our troops through a sporting goods drive that Freepers assisted in.
Below is the original story, edited some here, to tell of what and why the Sporting goods drive occured. Because of the efforts of a 12 year old boy mentioned below, the town of Plymouth Mass is going to hoor a fallen Marine from Plymouth, along with veterans of all wars and their families, including the war we are in right now to preserve our freedoms from Islamic terrorism..
Here is the origin of this upcoming rally.
I want you all to hear of a human-interest story involving an 11-year-old boy and his cousin, Marine LCpl Jeffrey Burgess, who died in Iraq on March 25, 2004.
There is a young man in Plymouth, Mass., Alan Burgess, whose cousin, Marine LCpl Jeffery Burgess, died in Iraq in March. Alan admired his cousin, and called him a hero. Alan wrote to his cousin when he could, and one thing he remembered his cousin saying was that once the Marines were done for the day patrolling, they would go back to their base and were bored and wanted some way to relax--something like throwing a baseball back and forth, or a football. Alan sent in a couple of gifts to the troops, including his cousin's friends. Alan admired these Marines, and wanted them to feel that the people back home supported them, and he did all he could to let them know he did not forget their efforts.
Alan's cousin, Jeffrey, died as a result of combat wounds he suffered in Fallujah. (2003)
LCpl. Jeffrey Burgess died a hero in the eyes of his family, and in those of this 11-year-old cousin, Alan.
Allan chose to honor the memory of his cousin by donating sporting goods and toys to the troops in Iraq, and collected 12 boxes full!
Alan did a great thing, and wanted to do something even larger. Now, in order to expand on the efforts of this young man, a friend of mine who was on his cousin's burial detail spoke with the young man, Alan Burgess, and agreed to work with him to arrange a larger sporting goods drive for the troops and the Iraqi kids that visited the Marine camp daily to talk with and occasionally play with the Marines.
Thanks to contact with some Marines on active duty, a VERY SENIOR 1st Marine Division officer, who once served with some of the people involved in making this Sporting Goods drive happen, has been in touch with people who are now working on providing an aircraft to fly over what can be collected for the troops and the Iraqi kids!
And that is no exaggeration!
This young man's story is what I think we should all tell. He has shown more patriotism than most adults do in their lifetime, and he is only 11 years old. Because of his dream to honor his cousin's death, Nationally now, some old Marines got off their chair to help him succeed, and even got a VERY SENIOR Marine to chip in and fly the sporting goods and toys to the troops and Iraqi kids!
Alan's dream is for the troops to have things to amuse themselves with on off-duty hours. This SENIOR MARINE wants us to send stuff for the Iraqi kids too, so we hope to do both! But in keeping with Alan's original goal, we need to concentrate on the sporting goods for the troops first.
On June 23, 2004, the Marine Corps League of Orleans, Massachusetts, honored this young man with a ceremony, awarding him a Certificate of Appreciation while the Marine Corps Silent Drill team performed at Orleans in Massachusetts on Cape Cod.
Enclosed are some pictures of the event, with some pictures of the young man.
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/JamesBancroft/all+175.jpg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/JamesBancroft/all+162.jpg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/JamesBancroft/boat+004.jpg
The Sporting Goods drive went quite well, we had radio and television coverage, a small amount, and then I spent a weekend driving down to Cherry Point to deliver the collected items with the assistance of dedicated Freepers Doctor Raoul and BufordP.
The town of Plymouth Mass will be holding a formal ceremony on Sep 9 through the 10th and the formal mentionings are included below.
The Charity set up below is a formal tax deductible charity, all donations are deductible.
TAX DEDUCTIBLE Cash donations can be sent to: Jeffrey Burgess Recreational Fund Plymouth Savings Bank 36 MAIN STREET BOX 3506 Plymouth, Massachusetts, 02361 Phone: 508-746-3300
America's Home Town Salutes the First Annual Home Front Hero Rally & Armed Services Expo, Friday September 9th and Saturday September 10th at Memorial Hall, 83 Court Street, in downtown Plymouth Massachusetts.
Hosted by Suzanne Tonaire of Cape Cod's Rock PIXY 103, Friday night at Memorial Hall we pay tribute to all Veterans and their families. At 4:30, have a bite to eat next door at St. Peters Parish, then come on over to Memorial Hall and listen to some of the areas hottest bands, bid on some great auction prizes and write a special greeting card to someone you love overseas!
There's a 50/50 raffle at the door -- Proceeds raised from auction & raffle items will be donated directly to our featured registered non-profits:
Homes for Our Troops,
Cape Cod Cares for Our Troops
The L.C Jeffrey C. Burgess Recreational Fund
and VFW Post 1822 package to troops program.
Rockin the Main Hall: Kristin Fonseca Band, the Evan Goodrow Band, Oneal Armstrong and Third Left. Rockin the Blue Room: Bill Downes, Sara Leketa and Mad Session.
This is an all ages event! Although we have plenty of wine and beer on tap, you must have a Valid ID and wristband to drink. Memorial Hall closes at 11pm. The Armed Services Expo is Saturday from 10am -5pm. Hosted by WATD in Marshfield, Veterans and families will gain on the spot immediate access to private counseling, job placement, financial assistance and more!
This is an important day full of valuable information for Veterans and families everywhere, so if you know someone who needs assistance, please help them get to Memorial Hall.
This whole event is meant to help Veterans and families from ALL wars, not just the most recent! Civilians, it's your chance to be Home Front Heroes. Please help support the package to troops programs -- Military displays and entertainment in the back parking lot for the whole family.
Visit www.homefronthero.org for a list of auction items and Expo attendees today.
We hope to meet you & everyone you know September 9 and 10th!
All the best, Your Home Front Hero Street Team
Lance Cpl Jeffrey C. Burgess, USMC The Department of Defense announced on March 26 the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
LCpl. Jeffrey C. Burgess, 20, of Plymouth, Mass., died March 25, due to enemy action near Al Fallujah, Iraq. He was assigned to Marine Wing Support Squadron 373, Marine Wing Support Group 37, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif.
A true hero
Above is a photo of a ORIGINAL oil painting done by Freeper FlightLine, my friend who served with me in HMM-165 off Iran for the Hostage Rescue Attempt.
This painting is a donation for the Rally and will be used for promotion of the event.
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/JamesBancroft/Plymouth+print.jpg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/JamesBancroft/HeroRallyPoster.jpg
I am going to try to attend! This is great-a pro troops rally in the belly of the beast (Massachusetts) There are a fair number of us Massachusetts Freepers...we should be able to get down there!
Please ping all the massachusetts Freepers!
And Rhode Island Freepers!
BUMP!
Many thanks, my friend!
How do you like the painting? That is an original!
Tim used to do our Squadron artwork, he can do some funny stuff sometimes, too.
I got the private showing at his house one day, good stuff.
Excellent painting! Good to see the eagle, globe, and anchor take center stage!
Semper FI.........flight line
Nice work, Leatherneck! My best wishes for a huge turnout. We'll be turning out for the military in the D.C. area as well.
Can I qualify for an Associate Membership? My family has had a place on Widgeon Pond since the 1920's.
Currently in Iraq
Currently un Uraq??
Will your Family be there?
Please Freepmail me if you want on or off my infrequent Connecticut ping list.
Please bump the MASS Freepers!
And the Rhode Island Freepers, too!
BUMP!
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