Just thought I would mention...

[KelRel]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:00pm

that my brother in law just let us know that he is in Kuwait, awaiting transportation to his new home in Iraq. He will be stationed there for the next year or so. Any good thoughts, prayers, etc... would be appreciated. All political bickering aside, regardless of whether we should or shouldn't be in Iraq, our soldiers are there, and I want all of them to come home safely.

[shira467]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:02pm

I do hope he will be safe! Best of luck to him and tell him THANK YOU!

[One Song Glory]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:24pm

I wish him luck as well.

[gavrochegirl]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:26pm

I wish him the best of luck! I hope he stays and comes home safe!

[Beergoggles]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:28pm

I'm sending good positive vibes you way... you know where i am if you need me matey!

[NYadgal]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:48pm

I wish him ALL the best, and I send my thanks to him, and to his entire family.

My best thoughts and prayers are with you all!

[Glebb]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:49pm

Please thank him again for me.

[theatrebabe]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 6:52pm

Best of luck to him. I am sending good thoughts you're way.

[Elphaba]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 7:08pm

Kel, may he come safely home when he is done.

[Broadwayboobs]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 7:56pm

Kel...I'm sending good vibes to him and your entire family. I pray he returns safely.

[mominator]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 7:59pm

Many good thoughts and prayers.

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 8:02pm

I hope he comes home safe and sound.

Thank him for his service.

[Patronus]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 8:44pm

I have the highest respect for your brother.

Next time you speak to him thanks for all of us.

Good thoughts.

[KelRel]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 10:14pm

Thanks guys, I will let him know next time I hear from him.

[ikmbway]

Posted: 10/3/05 at 10:54pm

Send my prayers and good hopes.

[Racetrack]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 12:45am

I have a cousin in Iraq right now and he's been stationed there for almost a year now.

[KelRel]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 8:35am

My best to your cousin Racetrack and to your family too. *hug*

[NYadgal]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 10:00am

I am going to make it a point to keep this thread at the top of the page.

My thoughts and prayers continue to go out to the men and women who are stationed overseas, and I want KelRel and Racetrack and the other members of our BWW family to know that they have my thanks.

[SorryGrateful]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 10:05am

Luck, Kel. I'm sending good thoughts.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 10:08am

he's in my daily prayers, kel.

[KelRel]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 10:42am

Here is what he posted on his blog- this is the last we heard from him. I just thought I would share.
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I arrived at the Indianapolis International Airport international arrivals terminal around 3:30 AM, they had coffee and other beverages waiting for us, and our instructions were to wait in the terminal while the plane was prepared. I ended up falling asleep on the baggage claim station for about an hour. By 6 AM we were lined up in order with our carry-on baggage waiting to depart the airport; the chaplain got on the PA and read a little poem about soldiers through the ages, it was a very moving tribute and it really connected the dots of American soldiers throughout history. Shortly thereafter we began filing out the door, each soldier shouted out his/her name at the door. We filed out to the plane which was waiting on the tarmac with the stairs pulled up to it. I shook the chaplain's hand and told him "see you in a year." As I climbed the staircase I stopped and looked back at Indianapolis fully conscious of the fact that the US soil I was gazing at would not be in my view again for a year. I bid my birth nation a fond farewell as I turned again, adjusted my M16A2 rifle slung on my shoulder and entered the ATA Boeing 757. I filed down to my seat, stowed my belongings (placing the rifle at my feet, something I've never experienced before--flying with a weapon) and adjusted my seat belt. Shortly thereafter the flight crew sealed the door, the staircase drove away, and the flight attendants began their safety briefing. It felt a little surreal as I listened to the standard explanations of the flotation devices and oxygen masks; I chuckled when they uttered the line "if you are seated next to small children, put your mask on first before assisting them with theirs" knowing, as they did, that there were definitely no small children aboard. The captain came on and explained our flight route and talked about how much of an honor it was for them to be transporting us. Slowly the plane began to taxi out. This would mark the third time that I have flow out of Indianapolis, but this flight was without question very different from the previous two. The big engines on the 757 began to rev up and before I knew it we were racing forward down the runway. Perhaps my perceptions were askew, but it certainly felt as if the plane rolled down the runway a little longer than normal, when suddenly we were airborne.

Once we reached cruising altitude I caught my last view of American soil before we slipped above the clouds. The flight crew then began their breakfast service. Shortly after eating, I adjusted my Bose Quiet Comfort II headphones, leaned my seat back, and closed my eyes. I awoke several hours later to the sight of more clouds out the window as the flight crew was passing out small ham sandwiches and snacks. The pilot was talking about how much longer it would be before we landed in Ireland. I faded in and out of sleep as the television screens showed the movie Madagascar in front of me. Suddenly out the window the clouds broke and I caught a sight of waves breaking in the ocean, the pilot was explaining that we would soon be starting our descent into Shannon Ireland. I adjusted my seat, checked my seat belt, and prepared to, for the second time in my life, set foot on European soil. The Irish country side was extraordinarily green and picturesque as we descended to the familiar tarmac (all airports look the same from the runway); I even saw sheep grazing in the meadows. The pilot was explaining that we would be there for about 2 hours and where the duty free shop was as we rolled into the gate. The Irish ground crew pulled the jetway up the middle door on the plane and the flight crew bid us a farewell since there would soon be a crew change.

The door opened and an Irish man stepped on and spoke over the PA explaining that we were to take boarding passes at the end of the jetway and that we had to leave our weapons on board the plane. At the end of the jetway a friendly Irish woman handed me a generic plastic blue boarding pass, and I began to peruse the corridors of Shannon International Airport Ireland. En route to the duty free shop an older man asked me in his Irish accent, "Where are you chaps off too?" I explained that we were heading to Kuwait, he wished me a good journey and hustled off to his own waiting plane. In the duty free shop I was greeted with familiar and unfamiliar items, I purchased a few simple gifts and some Irish cream fudge. I then went to the snack bar in the terminal and purchased a bottle of apple juice for US $2.40. I sat in the terminal and relaxed as I contemplated my surroundings. About an hour and a half later I found myself once again progressing down the jetway for the second leg of my trip. The new flight crew greeted us and repeated the sentiments about being honored to serve us. We taxied out into the darkness and accelerated down the runway.

Less than three hours after landing in Ireland I was airborne again, having seen nothing more than the Irish airport. After our dinner meal, the flight crew struggled with the video player (which was experiencing audio/visual problems) as I drifted in and out of sleep. I awoke several hours later to a dark landscape below dotted from time to time with the lights of homes and cities. Before too long the sky began to lighten in the east and I could start to make out shapes on the ground below. It was very clear that I was not in Kansas anymore as the landscape which opened up beneath us was unlike anything I have ever seen in my life. Vast expanses of brown broken up only by occasional roads and one of the two major rivers in Iraq winding its way to the horizon. The sunrise was unlike any I had ever see either as the entire horizon was visible while the young sun quickly poked its head out. The desert below had many strange lines and features cut into it, some of them man-made and others simply windswept. The flight crew began handing out simple breakfasts and the pilot told us that we would be landing in Kuwait in about an hour. It was 5AM Kuwait time, 10PM Eastern time, and 9PM as far as my body was concerned. Before long I had to close my window as the new sun was blinding in its intensity. About 45 minutes later I felt the plane bank so I opened the window again, the Persian Gulf was unexpectedly blue after the dingy browns of the desert; I saw many vessels in the water, and many oil rigs operating as they pumped their dark, often blood-stained elixir from deep within the earth. The plane made its turn around and began descending into Kuwait. As we approached the ground I was suddenly shocked to realize that the brown tones of the desert floor were actually accentuated by very brown-looking shrubs and growth.

The Kuwaiti airport looked eerily similar to any other airport. When we touched down I noticed some buses and a tractor-trailer lined up beside the runway, somehow I knew they were waiting for us. We finished our landing and taxied over to them. After a brief moment, some stairs were driven up to the plane and an American with the letters MCT (Movement Control Team) embroidered on his shirt boarded the plane and gave us instructions for deplaning. Before long I was descending the staircase and mounting a KIA bus with Korean writing on the inside and an extremely Arab-looking man behind the wheel. He fired up the air conditioning and we sat waiting while the luggage was unloaded. "Welcome to Kuwait" I told myself as the reality where I was began to settle in.

I was in Kuwait ... more to follow.

[Di2]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 11:10am

After reading that blog entry all I can say is...WOW..

I wish him well and will keep him in my thoughts and prayers..

[NYadgal]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 11:21am

Kel, thank you for sharing that. I am truly moved.

[kissmycookie]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 11:32am

KR: Prayers, gratitude and good thoughts for his safe stay there and for a safe return soon, in addition to all else who are there.

[BT]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 12:03pm

It is hard to imagine exactly what these women and men feel as they embark on their tours of duty, but it was so interesting to follow along with your brother-in-law. Happy thoughts to him and to your family. Thanks for sharing with us.