Whatever you do, don’t attempt to do something for the government which might mean a member of Congress won’t get credit or have the ability to funnel money into their home state.

Sadly, members of the DOD are also complicit in this disgraceful behavior.

That is exactly how I felt after reading this:

Retired Glenwood Springs car dealer John Haines’ hope of donating a giant chunk of snow -white marble to the federal government to replace the cracked Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery is stalled again.

Haines’ hoped-for donation, which has sat outside the Yule Quarry near Marble since it was cut for the tomb in 2003, didn’t even rate a mention in a 34-page Department of the Army report to Congress this week on replacement and repair options for the deteriorating tomb.

Haines’ donation creates problems for the federal government because it is free and has not gone through a pricey bidding and specification process. A quarry in Vermont has expressed interest in submitting a bid.

This week’s report — the latest in a string of tomb reports done since Arlington officials decided the marble needed replacing 18 years ago — estimates the cost of replacing the tomb’s marble at $2.2 million — $80,000 of that for seeking bids, $90,000 for buying and transporting the marble and the remainder for sculpting.

Haines made the final payment for his $31,000 piece of marble last week. He also has lined up donated transport for the rock on a flag-decorated flatbed truck. He did all that after receiving a letter from an Army major general five years ago thanking him for his “most kind and generous donation.”

This is absurd. As the Tomb falls further into disrepair, government officials fiddle.

I certainly understand these sentiments as expressed by Mr. Haines:

“I understand how the government works,” Haines said. “But there comes a point when you just say ‘to hell with it.’ ”

What a generous man offering for this remarkable donation for one of our most revered National Monuments. Shame on those who are balking at accepting his kindness.

HT:Blackfive

When one sets aside their own chance at personal wealth and seeks no notoriety for their accomplishments, they qualify as a special individual in my humble opinion.

Kaziah Hancock has used her talents to comfort those who have suffered a terrible loss.

To me, not just an incredible artist, but a wonderful, selfless person.

Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids helps needy disabled children of Iraq by providing high quality pediatric wheelchairs, each sponsored by individual and corporate donors. Sponsors receive a picture of the disabled children as they are placed in their wheelchair for the first time! This is a unique opportunity, as families around the world have the opportunity to directly impact the life of an Iraqi family with a very real need in a big way.

Here’s Michael Yon’s post on the above topic, complete with photos.

While visiting Mr. Yon’s site you might want to also take a look at his most recent post.

Many Iraqis seem eager to reconcile. Iraqis, to my knowledge, do not talk of partitioning Iraq, as many folks thousands of miles away used to think was inevitable. The negotiations in Baghdad are grinding and frustrating, but progress is occurring, although it never will occur quickly enough for either Iraqis or for us.

It has taken me until today to find that feel good story which I look for every week. This one has to rank up there among my favorites.

ENCINO, CA. - Operation Gratitude founder, Carolyn Blashek, and Director of Operations, Charlie Othold, traveled 9,000 miles to surprise an unknowing Soldier with the keys to a 2008 Jeep(R) Liberty at Forward Operating Base Warhorse in Iraq on January 22. The gift of the Liberty was in celebration of Operation Gratitude’s shipment of 300,000 care packages to troops deployed overseas.

Spc. Michael Gallagher, of Company A, 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division from Fort Lewis, Washington, was the recipient of Operation Gratitude’s special care package.

The Jeep(R) was donated by the Jeep brand. In a letter addressed to an “American Hero”, John Plecha, Director -Jeep Marketing and Global Communications, said it was an honor to do something special for both a great organization and for the troops in Iraq.

“As the recipient of the 300,000th Operation Gratitude care package, the Jeep brand is delighted to award you a Jeep vehicle of your own as a symbol of our appreciation, as you represent all those who bravely go in harm’s way in service to our country,” Plecha’s letter continued.

While we often thank those who protect this nation, it is individuals like Ms. Blashek and so many of the generous businesses here in the US who often go without notice. In most cases, I am certain that is the way they would prefer it to be.

So thanks to every volunteer and proprietor who has helped make the life of a member of our fighting forces just a bit easier. It is gratitude well deserved.

HT:Lucianne

On December 15 at 12 noon, there will be a wreath laying ceremony across the country at the graves of those who have given all for this country.

2007 will mark the 16th anniversary of holiday wreaths being sent from the State of Maine to Arlington National Cemetery. Each year the folks at Worcester Wreath Company make and decorate wreaths that will adorn over 5000 headstones of our Nation’s fallen heroes - in what has become an annual event coordinated with the Cemetery Administration and the Maine State Society.

Arlington will not be the only location for the wreath laying.

If you are interested in volunteering to help, there is a link in the piece referenced above which will provide you locations in every participating state seeking extra hands.

I would be remiss in closing this post without thanking the Worcester Wreath Company and its employees for this most generous contribution to those who deserve to be honored not only at Christmas but every day.

HT:Redstate

This post will remain bumped to the top throughout the weekend so those who may have missed it will have the chance to participate in this text support. Have a great weekend.

Quick, easy and I am certain these messages would be much appreciated!

THE ASY THANKS CAMPAIGN
This holiday season, America Supports You is giving you a new way to send your thanks to the troops - by text message! When you send your message of thanks to 89279 (TXASY) between November 17th and 22nd, you’ll receive a special thanks in return. Also, we’ll be displaying those messages on our ASY Thanks widget far and wide across the internet. Just another way that you can support our brave military men and women around the world.

A very touching story. A wise person once told me each living thing is only allowed so many breaths and so many heartbeats. I hope this little boy is granted many.

J, I love you my dear sister and wish that there was something I could say to make you feel better. Maybe this will help.

God saw you getting tired, And a cure was not to be.
So he put his arms around you, And whispered, “Come to me.”

With tearful eyes we watched you drift. We watched you fall away.
We couldn’t bear to lose you. We couldn’t ask you to stay.

A golden heart stopped beating. Shining eyes at rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us that he only takes the best.

Isn’t this one of the cutest things you’ve ever seen? Scroll to view.

Here’s the story:

Mike Underwood, boating enthusiast and animal lover, didn’t expect to hatch an egg in retirement. But in his new role as mama duck, he’s having a blast.
Chipper — the duckling Underwood hatched from an abandoned egg three weeks ago — faithfully tags along at his heels. If Underwood breaks into a run, Chipper picks up the pace after him. If she can’t see him, she chirps loudly.

“I don’t know if she’s got me or I’ve got her,” chuckled Underwood, 75, a retired locomotive engineer who dotes on his duckling. “I just think the world of her.”

It all began after Underwood, who owns a houseboat at The Lake Club Marina on Lake Wylie, watched a mother duck build a nest behind the boat’s passenger seat. The mother duck deposited six eggs there.

“I’d talk to her all the time,” he said. “She got where she didn’t mind me.”

Three weeks ago today, Underwood visited his houseboat and saw the mother perched on her nest. The next day, he found the remains of five hatched eggs. The mother was gone, leaving one last, unhatched ducking.

The abandoned duck egg had a tiny pinhole in it. Underwood picked it up and carefully peeled off the shell. Inside, he found a small, weak duckling.

“She didn’t have the strength to bust the shell off,” he said. “I pulled it off real easy. I didn’t think she was going to live.” He wiped off the membrane and dried the new duck with a towel.

“She couldn’t raise her head,” he said.

Underwood put the duckling on his chest, under his shirt, to keep it warm. “Every hour, she got a little better,” he said. “She bonded to me right away.”

Read the rest.

Please excuse the quality of the photos but I cut them out of the local newspaper.

With millions of people world-wide going hungry and being malnourished, it’s hard to get my arms around the reasoning CARE is using to decline $45 million a year in federal financing.

They say it hurts the people it’s supposed to help because the farmers can’t sell their products when competing with subsidized U.S. farm products. HUH?

CARE’s decision is focused on the practice of selling tons of often heavily subsidized American farm products in African countries that in some cases, it says, compete with the crops of struggling local farmers.

The charity says it will phase out its use of the practice by 2009. But it has already deeply divided the world of food aid and has spurred growing criticism of the practice as Congress considers a new farm bill.

“If someone wants to help you, they shouldn’t do it by destroying the very thing that they’re trying to promote,” said George Odo, a CARE official who grew disillusioned with the practice while supervising the sale of American wheat and vegetable oil in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.

Under the system, the United States government buys the goods from American agribusinesses, ships them overseas, mostly on American-flagged carriers, and then donates them to the aid groups as an indirect form of financing. The groups sell the products on the market in poor countries and use the money to finance their antipoverty programs. It amounts to about $180 million a year.

But then we read this in the article:

The Christian charity World Vision and 14 other groups, which call themselves the Alliance for Food Aid, say that CARE is mistaken; they say the system works because it keeps hard currency in poor countries, can help prevent food price spikes in those countries and does not hurt their farmers. Not least, they argue, it also pays for their antipoverty programs.

And then this example of how CARE has helped people:

The experiences of Walter Otieno, a grizzled Kenyan farmer in mud-stained pants, illustrate the paradoxes of paying for rural development through sales of American farm goods.

Over the years, he had watched 4 of his 12 children die of measles, which is more often fatal for the malnourished. He has had difficulty growing enough to feed his family. “My children were skinny, and their skin was dull,” he said.

Then last year he began growing a small patch of sunflowers on a hill sloping down to Lake Victoria in the village of Malela, with help from a program that CARE finances through the sale of American farm goods here.

A CARE extension worker, Rosemary Ogala, taught him and dozens of farmers in his group where to buy sunflower seed, when to plant it, how to space the rows and when to harvest.

CARE has also connected them to a ready market: the Kenyan company Bidco Oil Refineries, whose managers say they could more than quintuple the amount of sunflower seed they buy from Kenyan farmers to process into vegetable oil.

The profit Mr. Otieno earned from the crop rescued his family from dire poverty. Now, with his new earnings, he is able to play with his sons and daughters, who are plump on eggs and milk, at the family’s general store, a tiny shack stocked with goods financed by the sunflower sales.

It appears the well-fed and well-nourished people overseeing CARE don’t see the forest for the trees and are hurting the very people they are supposed to be trying to help.

Those of us who have grandchildren are happy to hear them tell us how much they love us or get one of those wonderful hugs only they can give.

I cannot begin to imagine the range of emotions which ran through this man when considering an unusual request from his Grandfather..and how he will feel when his labor of love actually serves it purpose.

His first wooden box measured 18 inches long and 9 inches wide. Its base was painstakingly secured with dovetail joints in lieu of nails, beneath a delicate two-tiered handle. It’s just an ordinary toolbox, but its 28-year-old creator, Brandon Harris of St. Paul, has reason to call it “a pretty neat design.”

Harris’ second wooden box is a pretty neat design, too, also with dovetail joints. But it’s larger — in many ways. It is a Jewish burial casket made from solid cherry. Harris built it for his grandfather.

What an extraordinary task for a Grandson to undertake. What devotion not only to his Grandfather but also his Grandmother. What an absolutely heartwarming story.

Saw these pictures and just had to share.

Check out the little one in the shades..what a prize winning shot that is!

HT:Don Surber

I may have missed this (as it occurred in April), but I do not believe it was widely publicized.

Via Jules Crittenden:

Copperas Cove man to give president his Purple Heart

COPPERAS COVE – History will be made today when Copperas Cove resident Bill Thomas and his wife, Georgia, present President George W. Bush with a Purple Heart at the Oval Office.

Thomas said he and his wife came up with the unprecedented idea to present the president with the Purple Heart over breakfast one morning a few months ago as they discussed the verbal attacks, both foreign and domestic, the commander in chief has withstood during his time in office

“We feel like emotional wounds and scars are as hard to carry as physical wounds,” Thomas said

I can only imagine the reaction of the President when he received such a personal and meaningful gift. When you face all of the criticisms associated with being the occupant of the Oval Office I would think it is moments like these you cherish forever.