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WASHINGTON — The Justice Department asked a federal judge Friday to extend the court mandated deadlines for reuniting nearly 3,000 migrant children who were separated from their parents while crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. Attorneys for the U.S. government claimed the court mandate for returning all children under age 5 to their parents by July 10 and all other children by July 26 does not account for the time required to verify and vet each parent. "The government does not wish to unnecessarily delay reunification," lawyers for the Justice Department said in their response to the court. "At the same time,...

Would need some help in finding a friend of my dad that he would like to re-unite with. He hasn't seen this buddy in over 40 years. All we know is that he was in the navy and is old enough to receive social security. Can't find him in Facebook. Would Social Security admin assist in finding someone? Would Veterans Affairs? If they could help what offices should be contacted? Any help from anyone who has ever tried to find someone they want to re-connect with would be really appreciated. Many thanks.

BAGHDAD -- Darkness falls as a Chinook helicopter descends to the rocky landing pad inside a U.S. Army camp south of the Iraqi capital. As passengers exit and walk down a ramp, two sergeants peer excitedly into the darkness, impatiently searching the faces coming off the aircraft. Then they both lock onto one shape coming toward them."Whoop!" one of the Soldiers cries out as they both attack the person. All three grin from ear to ear as they exchange greetings and bear hugs. The three Soldiers are brothers who are all currently deployed here. Yet this is the first time...

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Heath Wieseler chats with his sister, Sgt. Andrea Wieseler, in a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter on COB Speicher Aug. 13. Heath and Andrea spent a few days together here after not seeing each other for more than two years. Photo by Rich Kemp, Multi-National Division – South. COB SPEICHER — Deployments usually separate servicemembers from their families. However, for one U.S. Soldier here, it provided the chance to reunite with her brother. Sgt. Andrea Wieseler, a telecommunications sergeant with the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division, hadn't seen her brother, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Heath Wieseler, in more...

7/17/2009 - MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan (AFNS) -- The special effects and streaming lights on the stage were not as bright as the smiles that illuminated the faces of audience members during the Tops In Blue's debut of the 2009 "To Dream" tour July 10 at the Transit Center at Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan. The group's performance was a dream come true for deployed Tech. Sgt. Patrika Boone; not because she hadn't seen the group perform before, but rather she was seeing her husband perform on stage for the first time. Staff Sgt. Wendell Boone Jr is a lead vocalist...

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster are giving it another shot. E! News can confirm that the Hollywood heavyweights, who last costarred in a movie together 15 years ago in Maverick, are set to join forces again for The Beaver. A quirky comedy drama along the lines of 2007's indie hit Lars and the Real Girl (or, depending on your humor, South Park), the Kyle Killen-penned script follows a down-and-out man (Gibson) who finds comfort wearing a beaver hand puppet. Foster will not only play his wife, but she'll also helm the film, marking her first...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters Life!) - The Grateful Dead, the San Francisco cult rock band that has played at political events since the 1960s, will reunite on Monday for the first time in four years to rally support for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, a spokesman said on Friday. Band leader Jerry Garcia died in 1995. Surviving members have played together occasionally since then, most recently in 2004. On Monday, original members Mickey Hart, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir will play at a San Francisco theater a day before California's primary. "They have agreed to reunite for this one-time-only event in...

11/27/2007 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- The night before Thanksgiving, Staff Sgt. Malik Calhoun, 380th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron, K-9 handler finished playing his last flag football game and hurried over to the phantom center just before midnight. There, a new team of Airmen who had just arrived were in-processing, and there Sergeant Calhoun saw his little brother Airman 1st Class Dandre Bufford for the first time in more than two years. The reunion was a surprise for Airman Bufford who deployed from the 52nd Security Forces Squadron, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany and arrived here Nov. 21. "I was in...

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Sept. 17, 2007 — Two lieutenant colonels with the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing bring the words "once a wingman, always a wingman" to life, showing how Air Force ties transcend barriers of time and distance. "The relationships you develop while deployed will help you later in your Air Force journey. Building these bonds helps us get the mission accomplished and is what makes us the best Air Force in the world. We have a history. This is what it's all about -- and that's how we roll." Lt. Col. Kelly Goggin Proving the Air Force is getting smaller,...

5/2/2007 - FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. (AFNEWS) -- Applause, cheers, hugs and tears of joy awaited 44 returning warriors as they walked off of a KC-135 Stratotanker to be greeted by a crowd of more than 100 military family members, fellow Airmen and local media crews here April 30. After the welcome on the ramp next to the plane, the families and returning Airmen were driven to the Airmen's Center of Excellence for inprocessing. "Separation can be a very stressful time for all families and loved ones," said Lt. Col. Michael Gaal, the 92nd Operations Support Squadron commander. "Taking...

U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Johnnie UpshurU.S Air Force Airman 1st Class Jonathan Upshur Father, Son Reunite in Iraq By Spc. Chris McCann2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Moutain Division CAMP STRIKER, Iraq, March 15, 2007 -- When deployed, most soldiers spend almost a full year away from their families, communicating by e-mail and telephone except for two weeks of leave. Chief Warrant Officer Johnnie Upshur, the engineer technician for the Army's 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, prepared for the same when he deployed to Camp Striker, Iraq, August 2006. But in January, his son, Airman 1st Class...

WASHINGTON – With their control of Congress ended decisively by voters coast to coast, Republicans of all ideological stripes wasted no time last week pointing fingers as they began jockeying for position to remake the party. Conservative leaders spent the days after their defeat racing to TV studios and microphones to insist that the Republican Party – and not conservatism – is to blame for what President Bush ruefully called a “thumpin'.” Pat Toomey, president of the Club for Growth, complained that the party had strayed from its goal of limiting government's growth and argued that the election “was not...

U.S. Army 1st. Lt. Michael Miller, platoon leader, 2nd Platoon, Company D, 1-8 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers, and his father Lt. Col. Jack A. Miller, provost marshal for Victory Base Complex in Baghdad, share some time together atop an M1 Abrams tank at Forward Operating Base O’Ryan. U.S. Army photo U.S. Army 1st Lt. Jack Miller Lt. Col. Michael Miller Father, Son Reunite in Iraqi Desert By Pfc. Paul J. Harris 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team BALAD, Iraq, June 2, 2006 — Being separated from family is...

U.S. Army Sgt. Liam Vernon and his wife, Spc. Naomi Rodela, were reunited in Baghdad after Rodela volunteered to stay an extra year in Iraq to be with her spouse. Both soldiers work in Company B, Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Talon Anderson U.S. Army Spc. Naomi Rodela Soldier extends service in Iraq to reunite with husband By U.S. Army 1st Lt. Talon Anderson Brigade Special Troops Battalion 1st Brigade Combat Team 10th Mountain Division CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq, May 16, 2006 — How far would you go...

FORT HUACHUCA — The side door of the Barnes Field House was about to be opened by two soldiers when “Who Let the Dogs Out” began to play over a loudspeaker in the gym. For those sitting in the bleachers, it was a sign that the cable dogs of the 69th Signal Company were about to enter. Family and friends of the 142 men and women of the unit would soon reunite, ending a yearlong deployment of the soldiers. As the GIs entered the gym to some of the song’s “woof, woof, woof” words, those in the bleachers were on...

U.S. Marine Cpl. Tavonne Douglas, left, poses with his former senior drill instructor, Gunnery Sgt. Alvin Bassfield at Jalalabad Airfield, Afghanistan. Douglas, from Harlem, N.Y., is a food service specialist with Headquarters and Service Company of the1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. Bassfield, from Crewe, Va., is the company gunnery sergeant for B Company.  U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Joe Lindsay U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Tavonne Douglas Gunnery Sgt. Alvin Bassfield Former Drill Instructor, Recruit Reunite in Afghanistan By Marine Sgt. Joe Lindsay Task Force Lava Public Affairs JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, April 13, 2006 — The expression “It’s a...

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (Mar. 21, 2006) -- It may sound crazy, but Marine First Sgt. Steven P. Crawford was looking forward to deploying to Iraq. After all, it’s not often a father gets to reunite with his daughter in a combat zone. Crawford was reunited with his stepdaughter, Lance Cpl. Beverly A. Thornhill, at Camp Fallujah where she spent the past seven months. Crawford had a chance to see his daughter and what she had accomplished when he went to visit a detachment of his Marines there earlier this month. Thornhill, a 20-year-old embarkation specialist assigned to Combat Logistics Battalion...

David Ahlstrom (left) and his son, U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Alex Ahlstrom, take advantage of the opportunity to spend time together during the airman's deployment to Afghanistan.  Mr. Ahlstrom is employed as a civilian contractor for Management Technologies, Inc. Airman Ahlstrom is deployed from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. Photo courtesy Combined Joint Task Force 76. David Ahlstrom and U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Alex Ahlstrom Airman, Dad Reunite in Afghanistan By U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Sasha A. Schmidt American Forces Network Afghanistan BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Jan. 24, 2006 — Call it luck. Call it...

TAL AFAR, Iraq (Army News Service, Dec. 29, 2005) – As a career infantryman, 1st Sgt. Matt Splechter has missed four Christmases away from family due to deployment overseas serving his nation. He figured his current deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom would be no different, but on Christmas Day in a land far away from home, Splechter was proven wrong. The 21-year Army veteran assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, was reunited with his son, Airman 1st Class Josh Splechter in Tal Afar, Iraq. Josh, who volunteered to come to Iraq, serves as...

12/26/2005 - BAGHDAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT and BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq , (AFPN) -- Two different families deployed at two different places in Iraq have reunited over Christmas. The first article, written by Sergeant Mitchell, is about a mother and son who made it a point to visit one another during Christmas even though they were stationed in different locations. The other, written by Sergeant Moore, is about a father and son reunion. Mother and son Some families go through a great deal to spend time with loved ones on Christmas, but rarely do they deploy to the desert to do...