Watch your emails for the Date of our Annual Troopathon 8 Live Event!
We are excited for our upcoming Troopathon 8 Live coming this summer, we will share the date once we have confirmed. Please join us as we broadcast live over the internet for packed with great guest speakers sharing their stories and offering support to the brave men and women serving far from home as we remember and honor their sacrifices.
Troopathon 8 Live will kicked off with returning host Melanie Morgan and her co-hosts. We’re still in the process of lining up this year’s guests, but you can be sure there will be some great names past year’s guest list which included Oscar nominee Gary Sinise, Bill Whittle, Dennis Miller, legendary Coach K of Duke University and syndicated radio host Roger Hedgecock, and radio host and best-selling author S.E. Cupp.
We will be sending out emails, posting on Facebook, and Tweeting to keep you posted as we line up this year’s exciting guest list, so if you haven’t already, add us on Facebook and Twitter now. And as always, thank you for standing behind our troops and offering them the support they deserve!
Hats Off to You Super Mom!
Many of our Deployed Mom’s celebrated Mother’s Day with only the hopes of an email, card from home or for the lucky ones a chance to chat with their families via the internet as they serve far from home this year. Of course, they accept this separation dutifully as part of their commitment to our nation, and they do so proudly. But let’s all make certain that those serving in part to protect their children and everyone else’s are looked after too!
If you missed out on the chance to send a package to one of our dedicated deployed moms, why not take a moment to send your thanks now with our new Beat the Heat care packages? 
They’re not just for moms either, any of our troops would welcome al the heat busting goodies, including sunscreen, lip balm, Ohh Ahhs alcohol free wipes and more designed to keep out soldiers cool as temperatures rise!
To all our supporters who did take the time to send a Mother’s Day package we say thank you for supporting our troops!
Our Troops Truly Appreciated your EggCeptional Easter Support!
Thanks to your generous support, Move America Forward was able to send over $25,000 of packages to our troops. Time away from loved ones and friends is always difficult especially during a holiday. Spending Easter away from family and loved ones was just a little bit easier this year for grateful troops knowing that there were people like our supporters thinking about them!
So thank you to supporters like Lucia U. , David W., Howard U., Brenda D. and Diana C. among many others who stepped up to make sure our troops received Easter care packages!
THANK YOU HIGHLIGHT
“Nothing like the comforts and tastes of home!”
We are always thrilled to hear from the soldiers who receive packages though Move America Forward. Sometimes we receive cards or letters back and sometimes we hear from the soldier directly via email.
This thank you note was an email from a unit of soldiers who received a whole group of support packages to share.
As you can see, they really special receiving the packages and if you haven’t heard back directly from a soldier you have supported, who knows, your package just may have been among this special shipment!
Memorial Day: Fly your Flag to Honor those who Gave All!
Monday, May 25th, 2015 is Memorial Day. It is seen as a great opportunity for a long weekend of barbecues and a chance to catch a baseball game or hang out with friends, but we at MAF know that Memorial Day means so much more.
Memorial Day was established as an occasion to honor and celebrate Union Soldiers, who died in service to our country during the Civil War. After the end of World War I, Memorial Day was expanded to include all American men and women who died serving their country in any military action or war.
Originally called Decoration Day and celebrated on May 30th traditionally, the current name of Memorial Day came into use following WWII and with the passage of the 1968 Uniform Holidays Bill Memorial Day was officially moved to the last Monday in May.
As our way of honoring those who gave all, we are also asking all of our supporters to fly their flags proudly on Memorial Day, and for those who have flag poles to remember to fly your flag at half mast.
Please take a moment out of your day to remember those who sacrificed their lives in service to the United States of America.
Calling all Troops!
Signing up to receive packages is easy!
If you are deployed or have the address of a deployed military member, you can click here for our Military Sign Up Center to sign them up to receive one of our great care packages loaded with plenty of the TLC our soldiers need to remind them that people back home support their mission.
If you prefer, just copy this link [ http://www.moveamericaforward.org/soldier-sign-up/ ] Once the soldier has registered they’ll be eligible to receive packages and messages of support from caring Americans like you
Our Monthly Smiles Club Keeps Morale High Year Round!
Here’s an easy way to keep those smiles coming all year long – join the Move America Forward Monthly Smiles Club. Simply provide us with your monthly budget, and a little information from you and we do the rest. That’s all there is to it. Then you’ll know each month you’ve put a smile on a soldier’s face.
We can also set up programs that send packages out for all the different holidays through the year. We have members who send out packages for Easter, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and others who send out packages every other month or even quarterly. We’re here to help with whatever you or your company, group or organization wants to do to support the troops. There’s no obligation, and you can stop sending packages at any time.
If you have a question or would like additional information, contact Lisa Baron, our Monthly Smiles Director at LisaBaron@MoveAmericaForward.org.
U.S. Army Medic Spc. John M. Dawson,
killed in Afghanistan on Apr. 8,2015. (DoD)
Spc. John M. Dawson, 22, of Whitinsville, Massachusetts, died April 8, in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when he was attacked by small arms fire while he was on an escort mission according to a statement issued by the Department of Defense.
Dawson was assigned to 1st Squadron, 33 Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, deployed out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel.
Dawson, an Army medic, who enlisted about a year after high school in 2012 was shot in an apparent insider attack by an Afghani soldier in Jalalabad, a city about 90 miles east of Kabul.
Dawson is the first soldier killed since December, 2014, the longest period of time without a causality since the September 11, 2001 attacks. His awards include the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Ribbon, the Combat Action Badge and the Air Assault Badge.
Dawson is survived by his parents, Rhonda Dawson and Michael Dawson, both of Whitinsville, Mass. His funeral was held on Monday, April 20, in Upton, Mass.
TROOP TWEETS
If you don’t have a Facebook or haven’t had the time to check in with us lately, we thought we’d share a few of our recent posts:
I believe it is important to share the stories of our services members, which is why I reached out to one of our Twitter followers, Cy Wagner, with whom I had exchanged a few notes and photos regarding our dad’s time in service during WWll as both our fathers had served with the legendary First Marine Division and both had survived some of the bloodiest battles of WWll including Guadalcanal and Peleliu.
After a few exchanges I approached Cy about sharing his dad’s story with you all here in my column. Although Cy’s Dad, Lester is gone now, I am happy to have a forum to share some of Lester’s story and in doing so shine light on the sacrifices made by this remarkable man during his rather extraordinary life.
Lester’s Story
Lester Dale Wagner was one of 15 children born to Grover Wagner the mayor of Carey, Ohio a sleepy village in Wyandot County knows for its limestone quarries and close knit families. Even being one of eight children, my mind boggles at the idea of raising fifteen children… fifteen children!
Cy said his mom Kate was “one tough but loving lady” and I can only imagine his grandmother must have been equally so to have raised such a gigantic brood!
Like many men of Lester’s generation, when his country called, Lester did not hesitate in joining the fight to protect his home, his family and his way of life. Lester, as well as his brothers served during WWII. According to Cy, “I know we had an Uncle Woody or Woodrow who served in the Army Air Corps and Eugene who served in the Navy.”
Lester left behind a young wife, who, in his absence, gave birth to their son she named Larry and whom she raised for four lonely years without a complaint before Lester would return home and finally meet his son. “She is the last of a breed of women who stayed home raised kids- never drove- back then the doctor would come to the house. She really hung in there while dad was away.” Said Cy with clear admiration for him mom.
Half a world away in the Solomon Islands, Lester’s missions with the tough-as-nails 1st Marine Division took him into the Battle of Guadalcanal then on to Bougainville to help the Allies wrestle control of the island from the Japanese forces. As a member of a tank crew, Lester fought in some of the most brutal conditions in the stifling heat of the Pacific Theater. In one day alone during the Bougainville campaign, Lester and his incredibly brave tank crew knocked out over 120 Japanese pillboxes at and 10 pillboxes more at Cape Gloucester.
Lester moved on to Peleliu where the 1st Marine Division was nearly decimated by the brutal fight they encountered with the Japanese troops as the U.S. troops attempted to take a strategically located air field on this tiny coral island. The U.S. command had estimated they could take the island in a four day fight; however, the Japanese had heavily fortified the island, digging tunnels and hideouts which led to a two month bloody campaign with the highest casualty rate of the Pacific Campaign during WWII.
Although Lester and his tank crew fought bravely, they were not to be spared from the devastation. According to Cy, “My father would be severely wounded and the only surviving crew member from an artillery round that hit them while fighting on Bloody Nose Ridge on the island of Peleliu.”.
Lester, injured and fighting for his life was transported to a Navy hospital ship with devastating injuries to his legs. While onboard Lester was awarded a Purple Heart. “The wounds he sustained caused him to have one short leg and he had to have special shoes to compensate.”
The injury led to Lester’s discharge for medical reasons where he was lucky enough to return home to Kate and his young son Larry but not before spending a year recuperating in a VA hospital.
Lester and his wife Kate were both quietly proud of the sacrifices they, and many of their great generation made to save the world from tyranny.
I am honored that I was able to share the heroic story of Sgt. Lester Dale Wagner, U.S. Marine and his family with you. Special thanks to Lester’s son Cy Wagner for taking the time to share it with me and with all of you who are reading this.
I hope you enjoy reading my column and I would love to hear your thoughts and stories as well. If you have served or have family members who have served I would encourage you to allow me to share your own story so I can help tell all the wonderful stories about our brave troops that deserve to be heard.
I hope I gave you something to smile about, so pour yourself a nice cup of coffee, or in my case a tall icy glass of sweet tea, count your blessing and have a great day!
Lisa
I would love to hear from you, even on our darkest days we all have blessings and I would love to share yours. Contact at lisabaron@moveamericaforward.org and use the subject line Count Your Blessings.
Did You Know?
May 2, 2011 – U.S. Special Operations Forces kill Osama bin Laden during a raid on his compound in Pakistan. The raid ended a decade-long manhunt for the terrorist leader of al-Qaeda which was behind the September 11, 2001 attacks.
May 7, 1915 – Germany torpedoes the British ocean liner Lusitania off the coast of Ireland, with 1,100 lives lost, including 114 Americans on board. The U.S. had previously remained neutral; however, the public outcry hastened America’s involvement in World War I.
May 8, 1942 – The Battle of the Coral Sea began, marking Japan’s first defeat during World War ll. The battle ushered in a new era of naval warfare as this was the first time two opposing naval forces fought engaging aircraft alone without the ships sighting each other.
May 11, 1969 – The Battle of “Hamburger Hill” began during the Viet Nam War. After U.S. troops engaged in a 10-day siege marked by bloody hand-to-hand combat with the North Vietnamese and finally taking the hill, American military leaders soon abandoned the position which was quickly retaken by the North Vietnamese.
May 14, 1942 – During World War II, an Act of Congress allowed women to enlist for noncombat duties in the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC), the Women Appointed for Voluntary Emergency Service (WAVES), Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS), and Semper Paratus Always Ready Service (SPARS), the Women’s Reserve of the Marine Corp.
May 20, 1862 – President Lincoln signed the Homestead Act opening up the West to settlement to “homesteaders” who could acquire up to 160 acres by living on the land and cultivating it for five years, paying just $1.25 per acre.
May 24, 1844 – “What hath God wrought?” with this simple statement telegraph inventor Samuel Morse ushered in the dawn of the wireless communication era as he sent the first official telegraph message from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore.
MAF Sends Extra-Special Gift to the Biggest 49ers Fan in Uniform
Earlier this year, Move America Forward sent an extra-special care package to a very dedicated football fan serving on the front lines. Inside this care package was a one-of-a-kind 49ers football and today we received confirmation that this timeless piece of pro-troop NFL memorabilia made it into the hands of this deserving troop!
Good Morning Sir/Ma’am!My friend and I here in the middle east sent you a request for a care package a few months back and I am emailing the pictures back to you of the wonderful gift I received!
I truly appreciate the care package that was sent. It is organizations like yours that make this strenuous and stressful time away from family and loved ones a lot easier and I can’t thank you enough. Your gift will be cherished for generations.
Go NINERS!!!
Sincerely,
TSgt Shawn S.
F-16 EFS Munitions Specialist
We are very glad to help troops deployed overseas, especially with such an extra-special gift like this. But don’t forget there are still tens of thousands more troops still serving overseas and they need our help too!
IRAN SAYS THEY WILL PROTECT “AID SHIP” TO YEMEN
Weeks ago there was a showdown with Iran after the US sent our aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt to the Gulf of Aden to monitor incoming traffic to war-torn Yemen. One convoy of up to 9 Iranian ships that seemed bound for Yemen turned around and went back to Iran once the US fleet was in their path. We don’t know what those ships contained but clearly they did not want the US to know what was in those vessels.
Now Iran is saying they plan to send a new fleet to Yemen with humanitarian aid and that they will escort this fleet with Iranian warships to protect them from possible US intervention.
These ships are purported to contain 2,500 tons of aid supplies, but we should be highly suspicious of that claim. A tactic that Iran has used before, claiming to be noble humanitarians sending aid, but secretly mixing guns and bombs into the supplies to help arm the insurgency.
Don’t forget last year when Israelis Defense Forces raided a fleet of ships headed for the Gaza strip, supposedly to deliver “humanitarian aid”. What the IDF found aboard those ships were bulletproof vests, knives and ranged weapons hidden under a few boxes of medical supplies.
Due to their past behavior we have every reason to suspect that Iran will try again with this new fleet, to smuggle weapons to the Houthis. We hope that the US works with Saudi Arabia to blockade this fleet until every box is inspected to make sure Iran is not doing it again!
Yemen remains in chaos with half the country under the control of the Houthis, a group of militant Islamic extremist rebels who ousted the government and are fighting to for control of the rest of Yemen. Since the Houthis are supported by Iran, it has long been suspected that the Iranians are providing military and financial aid to the rebels who have been killing with as much ruthlessness as ISIS in Iraq/Syria.
The post May Newsletter 2015 appeared first on Move America Forward – Military Donations & Soldier Care Packages.