E-mail I wanted to share

[Bruno]

I got this E-mail from a friend and wanted to share this with the great people on EO. Thanks Bernieh for the e-mail.



Proud to live about 7 Miles From Luke AFB
Frank & Jan Pino

AMEN to this. This is outstanding.. -----


Luke AFB is west of Phoenix and is rapidly being surrounded by civilization that complains about the noise from the base and its planes, forgetting that it was there long before they were. A certain lieutenant colonel at Luke AFB deserves a big pat on the back. Apparently, an individual who lives somewhere near Luke AFB wrote the local paper complaining about a group of F-16s that disturbed his/her day at the mall.

When that individual read the response from a Luke AFB officer, it must Have st ung quite a bit..

The complaint:
'Question of the day for Luke Air Force Base:

Whom do we thank for the morning air show? Last Wednesday, at precisely 9:11 A.M, a tight formation of four F-16 jets made a low pass over Arrowhead Mall, continuing west over Bell Road at approximately 500 feet. Imagine our good fortune! Do the Tom Cruise-wannabes feel we need this wake-up call, or were they trying to impress the cashiers at Mervyns early bird special?

Any response would be appreciated.

The response:

Regarding 'A wake-up call from Luke's jets' On June 15, at precisely 9:12 a.m., a perfectly timed four- ship fly by of F-16s from the 63rd Fighter Squadron at Luke Air Force Base flew over the grave of Capt. Jeremy Fresques. Capt Fresques was an Air Force officer who was previously stationed at Luke Air Force Base and was killed in Iraq on May 30, Memorial Day.

At 9 a. m. on June 15, his family and friends gathered at Sunland Memorial Park in Sun City to mourn the loss of a husband, son and friend. Based on the letter writer's recount of the fly by, and because of the jet noise, I'm sure you didn't hear the 21-gun salute, the playing of t aps, or my words to the widow and parents of Capt. Fresques as I gave them their son's flag on behalf of the President of the United States and all those veterans and servicemen and women who understand the sacrifices they have endured..

A four-ship fly by is a display of respect the Air Force gives to those who give their lives in defense of freedom. We are professional aviators and take our jobs seriously, and on June 15 what the letter writer witnessed was four officers lining up to pay their ultimate respects.

The letter writer asks, 'Who m do we thank for the morning air show? The 56th Fighter Wing will make the call for you, and forward your thanks to the widow and parents of Capt Fresques, and thank them for you, for it was in their honor that my pilots flew the most honorable formation of their lives.

Only 2 defining forces have ever offered to die for you.....Jesus Christ and the American Soldier.
One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.

Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr.

USAF

 

[CharlesD]

It turns out that this story is indeed true. The account was published in the Arizona Republic in 2005. Here is a follow up letter that the original complainer wrote after receiving the letter from the USAF officer.

I read with increasing embarrassment and humility the response to my
unfortunate letter to The Republic concerning an Air Force flyby ("A
wake-up call from Luke's jets," Letters, June 23).

I had no idea of the significance of the flyby, and would never have
insulted such a fine and respectful display had I known.

I have received many calls from the fine airmen who are serving or have
served at Luke, and I have attempted to explain my side and apologized
for any discomfort my letter has caused.

This was simply an uninformed citizen complaining about noise.

I have been made aware in both written and verbal communications of the
four-ship flyby, and my heart goes out to each and every lost serviceman
and woman in this war in which we are engaged.

I have been called un-American by an unknown caller and I feel that I
must address that. I served in the U.S. Navy and am a Vietnam veteran. I
love my country and respect the jobs that the service organizations are
doing.

Please accept my heartfelt apologies.

Tom MacRae, Peoria

 

[chefdennis]

"Salute" to Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Bruno]

I went to Rittman Ohio where Roger Hunt was laid to rest on Firiday. My father was laid to rest their in Jan of 2002 and the place has filled up really fast with Veterans. The USA has a nice service for those who was in the service. I go up every so often to where my father was put to rest at, and always see another soldier coming home to be with his brothers and sister. Hearing the sound of taps is so sad, but I know somone has came home also.

 

[Turtle]

A couple of things. One, quote about Jesus and the American soldier was not a part of the original letter. Some Internet goober added that, then passed it along (as if somehow The Colonel's letter couldn't stand on it's own).

The other thing, Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr. was never a commander at Luke Air Force Base. Nor was he ever stationed there. He was an Army officer and is retired and living in Alabama.

The letter was actually written by Lt. Col. Scott Pleus, commander of the 63rd Fighter Squadron at Luke. How those names got mixed up, only the Internet goober knows for sure. Colonel Pleus was the one tasked with driving to Yuma to inform Capt. Jeremy Fresques' parents and his widow of the news of his death.

While the above letter appeard in the newspaper four days after the funeral, there was a more immediate response, after the Air Force was asked by the paper for a response. It appeared in the next day's paper, from Col. Robin Rand, commander of the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke.

The "wake-up call" witnessed the morning of June 15 was a formation of F-16 jets from Luke Air Force Base lining up for a memorial service in Sun City at the gravesite for Air Force Capt. Jeremy Fresques, an officer assigned to Air Force Special Operations. Fresques gave his life in defense of our country while serving in Iraq.

It is unfortunate that at a time when our nation is at war someone would believe we have less than honorable and professional reasons for such a mission.

The commander of the fighter squadron was given the difficult duty of informing the family of Capt. Fresques on Memorial Day that the officer, a husband, son and Arizonan, had died in Iraq.

On behalf of the men and women at Luke Air Force Base, we continue to keep Jeremy and his family in our thoughts and prayers.

Col. Robin Rand
Luke Air Force Base

So, except for the added lines in the one letter (which have also been erroneously attributed to Tony Blair), and the name on that letter, it's all true.

 

[Bruno]

Thanks for sharing that with us, either way it's a great story. Thanks again Turtle

 

[bernieh48]

Well sorry Turtle for the name mix up but it was only a forwarded email to me and I really didn't know it was going to be posted on here. I did not in any way change the names or the story whatsoever!

 

[Turtle]

I know you didn't change the names. It's changed like that all over the net. How the names got mixed up, I have no idea. It's really not all that important to the story as a whole, wrote wrote what and all that, but I figured I might as well point it out, since there's so much made up stuff attributed to made up people on the Net as it is. This one's true, so we might as well get it right.


Just for additional background, because it's important...

On Memorial Day 2005 Jeremy Fresques, along with fellow Air Force Academy 2001 classmate, Derek Argel were both promoted to Captain immediately after being briefed on that day's mission. Only a few cadets from each Air Force Academy class are selected to wear the red beret of the Air Force's Special Tactics unit. They're called combat controllers, a dry term for shock troops trained to land in hostile territory, set up and protect landing fields, and direct aircraft into them. Today's mission was to scout possible emergency landing sites. Winds were calm, visibility unlimited. The new captains weren't even wearing captain's bars, no time for the ceremony. Their minds are focused on a classified mission, though officially a training mission.

In Fort Walton Beach, Fla., Capt. Argel's wife, Wendy, sits down at the computer as their 10-month-old son, Logan, plays on the floor. She wants Derek to have an e-mail from her when he gets back. The television shows scenes of parades and cemetery services. In the e-mail's subject field, she types, "Memorial Day." Derek will never receive the e-mail.

In nearby Destin, Fla., Capt. Fresques' wife, Lindsey, also an Air Force captain, joins the annual "Gate to Gate" road race at Eglin Air Force Base. She and other runners drop carnations at the base Veterans Memorial as they jog past. Most usually drop a single carnation. For some reason, on that day, Lindsey dropped five.

Fresques was disqualified by eyesight for flight school, so he became a communications officer, and then applied for elite special ops unit after deciding that he'd go crazy sitting at a desk. He excelled in special ops. He plans to leave the Air Force in 2006, maybe go into real estate.

Derek Argel, who's grandfather was a career Marine who fought in World War II, was a rising star in Special Tactics who set so many records in commando training they made him lug a hunk of driftwood as handicap, has decided to make a career of it. Both are assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Florida. Both will finish their tour in a month and go home.


In the early afternoon, a holiday rooted in wars past is transformed by news from war today:

Four U.S. airmen and an Iraqi Air Force pilot were killed when their light plane crashed and exploded into flames 80 miles northeast of Baghdad. The plane went down about an hour after takeoff from Kirkuk. The single-engine, prop-driven Comp Air 7SL light aircraft, which seats six, was donated to the Iraqi Air Force by the United Arab Emirates in 2004. The cause of the crash is under investigation.



Wendy Argel is on an errand when she gets a call from her mother at home with little Logan. There are soldiers there to see her. Wendy's father was an Air Force pilot. She knows what that means.


A few miles away, Lindsey Fresques is bustling around her town house getting ready for a barbecue when there's a knock on the door. Four soldiers are standing there.
One is a major who attended her wedding, and the look on his face says this will be the worst day of her life. The carnation she'd dropped earlier in the day at the memorial had been for her own husband.


In Iraq, where an investigation will later rule out hostile fire and mechanical failure, only a few personal items are recovered from the wreckage. They include a silver cross Jeremy had bought in Jerusalem and wore around his neck, and Derek's gold wedding ring.

Most of the human remains are burned too badly for identification. Remains that could be identified were buried separately, but the intermingled ashes of all five on board were buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Iraqi Air Force Captain Ali Hussam Abass Alrubaeye, 34, is the first Iraqi ever buried at Arlington. The five men trained together, went into battle together, and died together, so it is fitting that they be buried together.

Four days after the crash, a ceremony is held in a hangar at Hurlburt Field in Florida, where the four airmen were based. Each is awarded the Bronze Star.

Wendy basically picked up Derek, making eyes at him in a bar on St. Patrick's Day. They were married a year later. Lindsey and Jeremy met when she was his superior officer and instructor in air traffic training school. Taking a cue from Top Gun, she passed him a note inviting him to dinner. Now there's an overwhelming sense of what might have been. Derek was away for about half of his two-year marriage. Jeremy was overseas on his only wedding anniversary. Wendy wears Derek's ring around her neck. Lindsey wears Jeremy's cross around hers.

Staff Sgt. Casey Crate, 26 was also on board. He was a combat controller, as well. He was from Spanaway, WA, just outside of Tacoma. His mother, Linda, works with my cousin. He was not married. He was lost out of high school. Enrolled in Pierce College but mad misrable grades. His mother gave him 4 choices, get the grades up and go to WSU, go to trade school, flip hamburgers for the rest of your life, or join the military. He chose the latter. When his first enlistment was up he could have gotten out, but he stayed in. He'd found a purpose for himself, and he was very good at his job. His deployment to Iraq was his first as a combat controller.

Also on board was Major William Downs, 40, of Winchester, VA. He was born in 1965 at the Rota Naval Air Station in Rota, Spain, where his father was stationed. Downs was commissioned into the Air Force in 1988. In 1999 he resigned from active duty to fly with US Airways out of Baltimore. He also joined the West Virgiania Air National Guard and flew the C-130 Herculues. In 2002 he returned to active duty and was assigned Air Commandos of the 6th Special Operationss Squadron at Hurlburt Field. He was deployed to Iraq in February of 2005 and was serving as an adviser to the Iraqi Air Force and was attached to a multi-national security transition team there. He was at the peak of his combat aviation advisory career, assisting the newly established Iraqi Air Force in classified and dangerous combat missions. While in Iraq he flew more than 90 combat sorties in an Iraqi aircraft, and was directly responsible for capturing or killing 60 insurgents and nine high-value targets. He leaves behind his wife Beth, and their three children, Chandler, Bailey and Elle.


America is at the park, in the water, around the grill. At a walleye fishing tournament in Dubuque, a lawn mower race in Hillsborough, a techno-music festival in Detroit. There are countless sack races, eating contests and tugs of war, endless sales on everything from RVs to bikinis. All patriotic T-shirts are $5 at eight Sears stores in greater Phoenix, while supplies last.

This is Memorial Day to most Americans. But it is a day that will forever have a far more significant meaning for the families of Jeremy Fresques, Derek Argel, William Downs, and Casey Crate. We all read and hear the numbers, 2 dead today in Iraq, 5 yesterday in Afghanistan, but we don't know them. We just don't. But it's important that, at least every now and then, we make an effort to know them.

It's important.

 

[finbar73]

I live near CFB Borden in Angus Ontario Canada,what I find funny about complaints about the military is the ignorance.I am not a military person, but what I realise and other people don't realise is that if it wasn't for the US and allied troops that very mall you go to would not exist.The next time you see military personel rather then complain why not walk right up to them and just say "thank you".I guarantee it will make your day and more importantly it will let them know you care.

 

[moose]

....I am not a military person, ....

so that Bell205 is what ? a news helicopter ?...



Moose.

 

[finbar73]

bell is from 2008 cfb borden air show.I appreciate the question I simply ment that nor me or my family are military.I just make sure my family and kids appreciate what the military does for us