|
Randy Cassingham's BlogHistorical Details and Author's Notes from This is True®
|
Operation Iraq Hell
Last year, I ran a letter that came in with an order for GOOHF cards from a U.S. Army captain; he said the cards were for his men being shipped off to Iraq. I noted that I threw in some extras, and several of you wrote to ask if you could send some extras too. Then other readers asked if they could send books for the soldiers, rather than cards. Yes, and yes: all told I got contributions from 216 people who enabled me to send 21,260 GOOHF cards, 827 sheets of GOOHF stickers, and $2,376 worth of (discounted) This is True books to soldiers serving in Iraq in all branches of the U.S. military. This page tells the whole story, with several letters from the captain, Charles from Ft. Riley, Kansas.
I heard from him last night. He writes:
Free Weird Newsletter
"I don't know if you remember me, but I'm the guy who distributed your Get Out of Hell free cards in Iraq. On the 21st of June, I was blown up by an [Improvised Explosive Device]. I suffered severe trauma to my arms and legs, lost my hearing (not permanently), lost a finger, and generally ended up in a bad way. I would like to say that your issues of TRUE kept me going, but that would be a lie, as I did not have access to the Internet. Recently, an organization called Soldiers' Angels helped my wife and mother (who have been here as non-medical attendants) secure access to a computer with Internet access. Since then, I have been reading through your back issues and getting caught up. I really hope laughter is the best medicine, because I have been chuckling every day reading issue after issue. Thank you for keeping me smiling, and I hope to get back to Iraq and pass out more of your cards as soon as possible. Getting out of hell wasn't free for me, I guess I should have used one of your cards. --Chuck"
I certainly do remember you, Chuck! Sorry to hear you got whacked, but very glad to hear that you're fighting your way back. I'm happy to hear your wife and mother are there with you. If True is helping you in any way, too, I'm very gratified. Keep in touch! And remember, you got the last laugh: you were able to give the insurgents the finger.
Upon reading the above, several Premium subscribers asked if they could upgrade Chuck's subscription to Premium. I replied that he was already a Premium subscriber. So a couple "renewed" his subscription, so he's set -- he'll be getting it to at least 2008. Thus I'll ask that if you are moved to help, send a contribution to Soldiers' Angels instead, the organization Chuck mentioned that was helping him and his family. They're doing a lot to help our soldiers, and they deserve recognition for that. (If you're from outside the U.S., I'll bet your own country has a similar organization that you can seek out and help.) And thanks!
RSS