Saturday, February 16, 2008
Beverly and Ohlen Baird
Ohlen struck up a conversation with a young man at breakfast this morning. The young man was wearing a Michigan sweatshirt, and Ohlen asked him if he was from Michigan. He said no, but his wife was from Port Huron. Tony and his wife now live in Malvern, Arkansas. They had just come from Greenville, Texas where they attended a celebration and parade over the weekend for the return of Tony’s troop from Iraq six weeks ago. Tony is part of 952nd Eng. CO CSE. His company built the bases in Baghdad and Andaconda. Some 157 troops had gone and 155 came home. He said a lot of the members of the 952nd showed up for the celebration, but the two that didn't come home were heavy on their minds. He said for the most part they were being treated well. We thanked him for his service and gave him your cards, just in case he should ever need any help from Project SALUTE.
We stopped for lunch in Belton, Texas, just north of Austin. Sitting at a table were two men who wore caps indicating they had served in the military. The oldest of the two was in a wheel chair with oxygen and had on a cap that said WW II Veteran. The younger one had a cane and was wearing a cap that said Vietnam Veteran. They had seen the MMV and were curious. Al—the younger of the two-- said he was very familiar with the Veterans Administration and had been treated very well, never had a problem. He told us that Uncle Lawrence—the WW II veteran--was living in Missouri and didn't have anyone to fight for him so, they decided to move him to Texas so they could get him help. Al told us they were on their way to the VA that afternoon as they both had doctors’ appointments. Al said, "I know the system very well. The best thing I can say is don't give up."