USO Canteen FReeper Style Bluesagewoman's Sister Loretta .... October 25,2002

FRiends of the USO Canteen FReeper Style ~ Bluesagewoman and Snow Bunny~

[Snow Bunny]

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The USO Canteen FReeper Style
Delivering a Touch of Home

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A Touch of Home

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This is how I think of the USO Canteen 
Freeper Style. It is like a cottage down a road,
a place where a weary veteran can spend the night. 

Since it opened, it is magical how so many
Freepers who post here, feel it too. 
It has been so dear how the Freepers
kept making it a cottage - a home-type of 
place that had a huge living room
for them to visit in and a dance floor, 
a library, etc. 

Many Veterans have written to me, 
saying that the Canteen is like home
to them for the first time since they 
served. 

This is your Canteen -
a respite from our busy 
and sometimes troubling world. 
Make yourself at home.

Snow Bunny

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If you know a Veteran, someone in your family, 
friend of the family, neighbor, who served their  
country, take a brief moment of your day to thank 
them. 

Thank them for the sacrifice they made
for the better good of their country.

We at Free Republic, and the USO Canteen FReeper 
Style, are thankful for every service member 
in our military, who has served our great nation.

So, to the men and women who answered the call,
In both times of war and peace, thank you.

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Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

John McCrae 

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The USO Canteen Honors FReepers
who have served, or are now serving their country.

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You may have a loved one who has served in the past.
We at the FReeper USO Canteen would like to honor each and every one.

Loretta was born November 30, 1946 in Hannibal, Missouri,
a river town steeped in folklore and Mark Twain.
Her family owned orchards and truck farms.
Loretta spent hours playing in the orchards,
eating the most delicious peaches in the world,
and helping care for her “baby” brothers.

Her family was very large, and Loretta
was the first grandchild, but soon she had
many cousins, as well as siblings, to play with.
Loretta learned to mother at a very early age.

A bird with a broken wing,
or, an orphaned kitten to nurse
with a baby doll bottle was usually
included in the family on a regular basis.

More siblings were to follow.
Her Mom had to start working full
time at a publishing company to
help support the family.Loretta’s Dad
was a hard worker as well.

Her parents would take the family
camping on overnight fishing trips.
A field trip to the local rock quarry to
collect rocks for the garden, or, catching
tadpoles for an aquarium was common
entertainment.

Most important to Loretta was the piano
set up in the plumbing shop office for her
to play. She had taken lessons for several
years and was by age 10 performing for
school concerts, or playing an old pipe organ
at the Church during Sunday Masses.

There were Catholic churches and the
two were later consolidated into one parish.
Loretta attended both churches and played
at both places, sometimes three Masses or more
on Sunday and possibly a wedding too. Sometimes
she would literally run the half mile between the
churches to get to the next Mass.

She often stuck Bluesagewoman, under the organ
to pump the pedals to the pipes of the organ at
Blessed Sacrament, her legs were too short to reach.

Loretta was in the convent in Nerinx, Kentucky.
Dad was lifting her up to kiss the angel

Loretta decided she wanted to become a nun.
So after graduation from school, she entered the
Loretto Convent in Nerinx, Kentucky. The family
would make a “vacation” out of the drive to go
see her at the convent. However, after a couple of
years, she left the convent before taking the final vows.

This “leaving” would become a pattern
of Loretta’s behavior, which was enhanced
by her tremendous sense of adventure and
lack of fear. But maybe what folks termed
"leaving" may have actually been "going"
toward something new, exciting and different.

Loretta entered Southern Illinois University
that fall and moved to Illinois.

Loretta won a scholarship as an exchange student.
She immediately packed up and moved to Luxembourg.
She lived in a drafty old castle and made side trips on
the weekends visiting Spain, Germany, France, Holland,
and several more countries.

One of her stories to she shared from her experiences
was about the pipe organ in a hallway at the castle in
Luxembourg. The organ was hundreds of years old,
extremely ornate, and had a massive pipe system.As
she would play the organ the Count of the castle would
sit on the other side of the door and listen, apparently
enthralled with the music and Loretta.It was such a
romantic story.

Loretta was always the best storyteller.
Her animated face and creative word choices made for many pleasurable evenings spent as
a family enjoying those things that are free:
stories, popcorn, and laughter.

Music was also a passion in the family.
One brother played classical guitar and the
two little sisters played guitar, but not nearly
as well. They had a banged up piano sitting
around. Somewhere along the line a banjo,
mandolin, harmonica, drums, bongos, violin,
clarinet, combs, spoons, anything that could
be bought cheap or scrounged up were
introduced, and whomever could handle
the instrument, played it.

Bluesagewoman said ,"I am sure much
of what we called music was really just
noise. But Loretta thought it all sounded
glorious to her and encouraged us."

She taught for a short time, then joined the Army

She was last at Ft. Lee, Virginia doing computer programming and logistics.

When she joined the Army she
was 31 or so years old. Loretta
just called her family up one
day and told them she had enlisted.

They had assumed, since her box
of grits, toothbrush and travelling
underwear were gone, she was out
camping again.The boys in the
family had missed being drafted for
various reasons, and here Loretta
runs off and joins up.Who woulda
thunk? Loretta’s Mom was
absolutely stunned.

Bluesagewoman said.......
"My sister Loretta once told us a few years
later in a rare minute of lucidity, that it
was one of the smartest things she had
ever done, to leave the convent and join
the army; they had better insurance."

Life in the Army was very difficult
for a woman at that time.The smallest
boots they had were way to big and
they destroyed her knees and flattened
her feet running many miles in training.
She studied and worked hard, eventually
working logistics. She was put to work
on computer projects for the Army.

She was also a royal screw-up, driving her
drill sergeant nuts, going left for right,
messing up the cadence destroying
the marching choreography.She was
notorious for walking into the men’s
restroom by mistake, once walking in
on a multi-starred general in all his glory.
Her sense of humor got her through it all.

However, after only a few years in the army,
Loretta started having seizures. The problem
eventually caused the Army to discharge her
on medical disability. Seizures were not
conducive to army life and the potent
medication used to control them was
unacceptable for a soldier to use. Her
last post was at Fort Lee, Virginia.

Loretta bought an old house in Petersburg,
Virginia in the Colonial section of town.
The house was run-down, but belonged to
the period. She started to fix it up, taking
great pleasure in its antiquity. The houses
on both sides of her house had been
completely restored and were beautiful
enough to be in Better Homes and Garden
magazine. Loretta loved that house, and
had used every penny of her Army pension
trying to pay for it and fix it up. Loretta
dreamed the whole family could one day
move there.

Loretta’s Dad became ill about the
time Loretta bought the house. Loretta
took him to her home and she and one
of her sisters nursed him until he died.
Her Mother died from a heart attack a
few months later. Loretta often took
people in who were poor, mentally ill,
or hungry. Sometimes renting out rooms
in the house. Bluesagewoman said they
called her "the wing-under-taker."

The money from renting rooms was
not enough so she took a job in
Alaska teaching Eskimo children
music, math and computer. She left
a friend in charge of her house in
Virginia and moved to the tundra.

In Alaska she lived in a log cabin with an
outhouse, and a fireplace for heat. She
loved the Eskimo children but the
life on the brutal and frozen tundra was
becoming too hard for her. She often had
little or no food. Finding and chopping
firewood was a constant chore.

A while later Loretta began having problems
and was transferred to the Salem VA hospital
where they discovered that she had probable
Alzheimer’s. It make it difficult to care for
her properly for her best care so she was taken to a nursing home.

They retired her about 1987 or so, on disability.

Loretta’s old personality would emerge
from time to time. She infrequently
realized she was sick and those times
were the most heartbreaking, when
she would ask,"What is wrong with
me?"and desperately try to go "home"
not knowing even where home was.

She had an almost childlike fascination for
flowers, trees, cats, babies and music, all
that she loved when she was a child.Her
lack of fear often made it difficult to
keep her out of trouble. Her physical
strength made it hard to keep her from
wandering, and really far. When she
would look for home all we could do
was take her outside, say “home is
that way,” and try to keep up; let her
walk herself to exhaustion then tuck
her into bed.

But the same lack of fear had always
caused her to explore life to the limit.
I can only think of the saying “Places
to go, People to meet, Things to do” as
being coined especially for Loretta.

Loretta will always be thought of for
being a marvelous sister, caring
and loving . The water fights she
would instigate, giving the younger
kids water pistols, then, she’d
show up with the garden hose,
or a 5-gallon bucket. (Yes, she
managed to fool them repeatedly
into trusting her that this time, no,
she wouldn’t cheat.) Loretta was
always there with wise words to
guide the siblings, stunts to distract
them, and she had all the answers to
their questions on religion, life and love.

Loretta currently resides in a Veteran's Home
in Missouri in the final stages of Alzheimer's.
She is 56 years of age

She held their hands through sickness,
sorrow and celebrated in their joys.
She shared their families, though she
had none of her own, and was delighted
to have nephews and a niece.

“ Loretta’s treasures were love,
adventure, diversity, and humor.
The little, pesky details may have
gotten lost in her mind, but will
never be truly “forgotten” no matter
the progress of the disease. Even
though this was not the way
she intended for things to be, she’s
made one hell of impact on the
world, her family, and we’ll never
know how many others. The world
bent to suit her, not the other way.
Loretta was an incredibly strong-willed,
generous and courageous woman.".......

Loretta was never firmly rooted to this earth.
One day God will be taking her back
Loretta is one of his favorite angles.

Thank you Loretta. And thank you
Bluesagewoman for sharing and letting
us get to know your sister Loretta.

You fought this battle well my friend 
...........until the very end 
An enemy you could not see 
until one day .... you were set free 
Like a solider in a battle, you fought with all your might 
some stood all alone .... no loved ones left in sight 
but onward you marched until the very end 
the silent enemy lurking at every single bend

Yes, you held your head up high until you could no more 
and then one day you saw it...the gleam on a distant shore 
While holding on to loved ones hands 
you reached out to the one who stands
Upon the other side.

As gently as a dove 
He guided you along .... giving you his total love 
The enemy was lost .... the battle you have won 
When you reached out and took the hand of God's only son!

Your name is written in his book 
you have now regained all that the enemy took 
You fought the battle well my friend 
For you see .... you really won in the end.

You were our mother, father, sister or brother 
A good friend, a spouse, a son or even someones daughter 
We will not forget you as we hold you in our heart 
For not even this silent enemy can keep our souls apart

Upon this wall we etch your name with LOVE 
So others may have hope as you watch now from above 
You are an unsung hero who fought the battle well 
And now stand on heavens shore where forever you will dwell

[Kathy in Alaska]

ROTFLMAO here in my cubicle. That is so BAD, Jinxie. I love it. I can't stop laughing, and I sure did need it this mixed up Friday morning at work. I will be sure to keep an eye out for the bear and do my part if I see him. LOL!

And now I am redoing this because I lost it when FR went down. ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

Thank you for sharing today, bluesagewoman. Loretta sounds like a remarkable woman who has spent her life caring deeply for others.

The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.
- William James (1842 - 1910)

[Kathy in Alaska]

[Radix]

Today in Anchorage, Alaska:


Sunrise 9:10am
Sunset 6:15pm



Yikes

I am afraid of the dark and Halloween is right around the corner.

I am afraid, I am so very afraid

[Jen]

Special Dedication
To our Military Members and Veterans
for Protecting and Defending our Country
and Especially Bluesagewoman's Sister Loretta!

"Hero" by Mariah Carey

MIDI version

MP3 version


And then a hero comes along with the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside and you know you can survive
When you feel like hope is gone, look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth - that a hero lies in you!

[tomkow6]

did I win anything? Um, would you like one of my old burkas?

[tomkow6]

Random thoughts from my "voices":

Of two evils, I pick the one I haven't tried before.

I spilled Spot remover on my dog. Now he's gone.

I don't believe in superstition - it brings bad luck.

It's not an optical illusion it just looks like one.

Comedy, like medicine, was never meant to be practiced by the
general public.

I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.

I am learning that criticism is not nearly as effective as
sabotage.

Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory.

Have you ever noticed that anybody going slower than you is an
idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?

[tomkow6]

Random thoughts from my "voices":

Of two evils, I pick the one I haven't tried before.

I spilled Spot remover on my dog. Now he's gone.

I don't believe in superstition - it brings bad luck.

It's not an optical illusion it just looks like one.

Comedy, like medicine, was never meant to be practiced by the
general public.

I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.

I am learning that criticism is not nearly as effective as
sabotage.

Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory.

Have you ever noticed that anybody going slower than you is an
idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

LOL - well, since you were so nice to get it for me, uh...sure. Thanks, Tom. ; ) (Don't be offended if I don't wear it, okay?)

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

Gee, I answered this, but it didn't post. Weird!

Well, I said: Since you went to all the trouble of getting it for me, Tom, uh...sure. : ) Thanks. That's very, uh, sweet of you. (Don't be offended if I don't wear it, okay? It's not my color.)

[Jen]

Thanks for the lovely flowers and the evening fires in the fireplace. {{{HUG}}}

[Kathy in Alaska]

I've lost my reply three times now, so maybe the 4th will work. We lose almost 5 minutes of daylight a day til mid December.

[bluesagewoman]

FR is not working properly from here. If I get bounced again, please know I am thinking of you all. Thank you for today!

[radu]

T.G.I.F!!! Good evening all.

Hello and Thank You!! troops, veterans, and allies. You're efforts and sacrifices are greatly appreciated. God bless you all!

What a beautiful thread today about Loretta. Thank you for sharing her with us today, Blue. Such a tragic turn in the life of such a free spirit. Your love for her shines through in her life story today.

hehe! I've been trying to get onto the Canteen all day and now that I finally have....I'm starved! I haven't eaten all day. I'm going to grab a bite to eat and I'll be back with y'all. See you soon!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Finally, I can post (I hope). Girlz, I saw these things this morning, but couldn't share. They are going to be so much fun. And the water will keep us all wide awake. Right, Kid? Radu, will you be needing Dramamine? Duchess, you can be the Capt'n! LOL! Don't forget the spit and polish before we return them. Beamer will be wanting to go, so we can take turns. Try to keep him in the boat. He gains 20 pounds when he gets wet. And it will take Snow Bunny hours to get him dry. And since we didn't get to play today, I'll bet we don't need to get them back til morning. Have fun!

[SAMWolf]

The Battle of Surigao Strait

Halsey was right in one respect; the battleship would have her day – or, perhaps, her night. For sailing eastwards towards Surigao Strait on the night of the 24th was Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura, and the battleships Fuso and Yamashiro. Accompanying them would be the heavy cruiser Mogami, the destroyers Shigure, Michishio, Asagumo and Yamagumo. Following close behind would be a second force sailing from Japan under the command of Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima. This second force would consist of two heavy cruisers, one light cruiser, and four destroyers. Unfortunately for Nishimura and Shima, the Americans would be perfectly deployed and anxiously waiting for all of the Japanese ships to sail into their trap.

Vice Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid had a pretty good idea where the Japanese were headed and what they planned to do when they got there. And, although the carrier attacks throughout the day had been unable to sink the Japanese force, Kinkaid had with him Rear Admiral Jesse B. Olendorf, and a collection of old battleships. Among them were the West Virgina and California – both of which had been officially "sunk" at Pearl Harbor nearly three years earlier. But they had been recovered, rebuilt, and redeployed to exact a measure of revenge from the Japanese. Armed with the latest radar and fire control systems, they waited. Along with these two were the Maryland, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania, also veterans of the Pearl Harbor attack (these three were all damaged but not sunk) and the Mississippi which had managed to avoid damage during the Pearl Harbor attack only because she had not been there at the time. The battleships and cruisers of the Seventh Fleet formed the final immovable wall in a layered defense deployed by the Americans. In order for them to come into play, the Japanese would first have to run a gauntlet of PT boats and destroyers.

As the Nishimura’s force transitioned from the Sulu Sea to the Mindanao Sea on the way to Surigao Strait, they came under attack from squadrons of PT boats hidden among the Philippine Islands. The PT boats, less than 100 feet long and made largely of wood, made valiant runs at the Japanese force. These little boats would speed towards the Japanese warships in a desperate attempt to launch their torpedoes in the hopes of sinking several Japanese ships, or at least slowing down the Japanese force. In the end, they accomplished neither. As the PT boats approached, they were illuminated by Japanese searchlights, and riddled with concentrated fire from the much larger opposing destroyers. In one attack, PT-152 made a run at the Japanese and was hit by gunfire from the destroyer Shigure. One man on board was killed, and three were wounded, as the forward part of the boat erupted in flame. Just when it appeared that PT-152 was doomed, a near miss sent a huge column of water into the air which fortunately rained down on the boat extinguishing the flames of the prior hit. And so PT-152 ran a slalom between the columns of splashes in an attempt to evade the Japanese shells and searchlights. Although none of the torpedoes launched by the heroic little boats found their mark, the PT boats reported Nishimura’s progress through the Mindanao Sea as they headed straight for the trap that the Americans had laid.

As the Japanese entered the waters of Surigao Strait itself, Nishimura ordered his ships into a single column to navigate the narrow waterway. On both sides of the strait the American destroyers lay in wait. Dashing out from the darkness, they launched a total of forty-seven torpedoes at the Japanese column from both flanks. Six torpedoes found targets and detonated, and this was only the first wave. By the time the Japanese had completed running the gauntlet posed by the American destroyers, the Yamashiro was broken in two, and the destroyers Asagumo, Yamagumo, and Mishishio were either adrift on their way to sinking or already sunk. Nishimura’s force was down to the lone destroyer Shigure, the cruiser Mogami, and the battleship Fuso.

Admiral Olendorf called off the American destroyer attacks, for he did not want friendly ships fouling the range being calculated by his "heavies" – the cruisers and battleships of the Seventh fleet. And so the destroyers moved away, and this final phase of the battle was fought using tactics centuries old, with Olendorf "capping the T" of Nishimura. At 3:51AM, Olendorf ordered the cruisers Louisville, Portland, Minneapolis, Denver, Columbus, Phoenix, Boise and HMAS Shropshire to commence firing, followed by the battleships two minutes later. The Japanese suffered a terrible beating. The West Virginia fired 93 rounds of 16" armor piercing (AP) ammunition, while the Tennessee and California added another 132 rounds of 14" AP. The other three battleships did not have as sophisticated fire control radar, and were therefore slower to join in the mauling being delivered. The Maryland picked up the splashes from West Virginia’s rounds on radar, and soon added 43 rounds of her own to the mix. The Mississippi fired a single salvo, and the Pennsylvania never had a chance to fire at all.

But it didn’t matter. The Fuso was burning red-hot. The Mogami was a shambles. And the little Shigure was running away as fast as she could manage with no working instruments at all. When the helmsman of the Shigure cried out that he no longer had control of the rudder, she too came to a full stop dead in the water. Into this confusion, a new column of ships was steaming from the south. It was the second wave of the attack – two cruisers and four destroyers under Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima, following about an hour behind what had once been Nishimura’s proud force.

Shima’s lookouts sensed disaster as they sailed northwards, as they passed the silhouettes of two adrift and burning Japanese battleships. In reality, they were seeing two separate halves of what used to be the Yamashiro. The Fuso was being mauled further ahead. Finally, the lookouts spotted a friendly ship that was not aflame, and Shima signaled "I am Nachi" to which the friendly destroyer gave the less than complete report of what had just happened "I am Shigure – having rudder difficulties." With the Shigure being all that appeared to remain of Nishimura’s column, Shima ordered his force to reverse course to avoid a similar fate. All would have gone flawlessly if not for Shima’s flagship, the cruiser Nachi, colliding with what remained of the Mogami. Shima was able to escape, along with the now all alone Shigure. The Mogami would be sunk the next day by American aircraft as she tried to make good her own escape.

And thus ended the Battle of Surigao Strait. Two Japanese battleships, one cruiser, and three destroyers became the final victims in history of classic battle line tactics. It is perhaps fitting that this fight would take place among ships a quarter of a century old, given one final curtain call to fight in the manner of centuries of naval engagements.

[tomkow6]

Random thoughts from my "voices":
Of two evils, I pick the one I haven't tried before.

I spilled Spot remover on my dog. Now he's gone.

I don't believe in superstition - it brings bad luck.

It's not an optical illusion it just looks like one.

Comedy, like medicine, was never meant to be practiced by the
general public.

[Snow Bunny]

Hi Jen, thank you for your Hero post for Loretta. It is good to see you. I hope you are feeling better.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Hi Kiddo, I'm a tad tired, but the weekend is coming. yippee. But all my replies have disappeared. Maybe this one will show up. LOL!