Archive for the 'The Gratitude Wave' Category
January 26th, 2010 by Anna Redding
Just wept when I saw these… so you people at work, better grab some tissue fast! This morning more NC National Guard troops arrived home and in their family’s arms. Today’s homecoming Lincolnton, NC.
- Father and daughter reunited
First hug just hours ago in Lincolnton, NC
NC National Guard soldier embraces his child Tuesday morning
The little things so easily taken for granted like taking a family picture
January 25th, 2010 by Anna Redding
Check out this story by FoxCharlotte, and this one by WSOC capturing the homecoming! Not to spoil the joy here but I searched the Charlotte Observer and WCNC and WBTV websites and couldn’t find stories about this homecoming.
I know WBTV was there. WSOC went live at noon Saturday. WCNC was close enough to walk there and chose not to. Can’t tell you how disappointed I am in my alma mater.
Okay, enough rant. Let’s jump out of the gutter and onto the joy train with some more photos of the homecoming here in Charlotte. Oh! A reminder to SASTP Nation: If you’re having a soldier homecoming in your town, send us some pictures with names, we’ll post them here! Also, if you missed yesterday’s post “When Johnny comes marching home,” check it out! Once again, to #5 (you know who I’m talking about) for the incredible photographs.
Children who haven't hugged daddy in along, long time!
The waiting is the hardest part...
April Blasky starts to mildly freak out as busses pull into view!
Let the hugathon begin!
Cody and Leah Fowler reunited!
When Harris Teeter found out the troops were coming home, they sent cupcakes for the party! 3000 cupcakes!
Enjoy these images today and we’ll make our big SASTP announcement tomorrow! We are bringing a new sponsor on board. You’re gonna like him!
Peace,
MR
January 17th, 2010 by Mike Redding
Welcome Home!
After many months in Iraq, more than a year away from their families, thousands of our NC National Guard soldiers are home. It will take a few weeks to get them all back here but the planes have started arriving. Sunday chartered planes full of our soldiers landed in Savannah, Georgia. Some of the first pictures are coming in… and special thanks to SASTP unpaid employee #5, photographer extraordinaire, Brian Christiansen.
Touchdown!
A Chartered plane carrying NC National Guard soldiers arrives in Savannah, Georgia
The first stop: Soldiers will spend several days in Savannah, Georgia’s Ft. Stewart until they are reunited with their families.
Hard to hide this smile!
Welcome Home Chaplain Tommy Watson!
Chaplain Tommy Watson (left) and Specialist Timothy Gilbert return home.
A sight that will bring tears to our eyes every time: a stream of courageous men and women returning home after sacrificing so much for our country.
Chaplain Tommy Watson
NC National Guard Soldiers on U.S. soil again...
USO Volunteer Angela Hines, arms outstretched, hugs our soldiers home!
USO Volunteer Angela Hines welcomes home a hero
And they just keep coming! What an incredible sight. Soldiers home from war.
This is the line between terror and security
January 15th, 2010 by Anna Redding
The larger groups of our North Carolina soldiers headed home should start hitting the tarmac today! As soon as we have pictures, we will post them. Please keep these men and women and their families in your thoughts and prayers. Some of the very people you’ve come to know right here on Stopandsmellthepeople.com will soon be reunited with their families. People like Cody and Leah Fowler, Chaplain Tommy Watson and his family, April Blasky and her husband Danny will soon be back together in the Tarheel State! Many of the troops’ first stop is Savannah, GA. As you know, honorary unpaid employee #5 is on the ground and snapping shots for us. He’s Brian Christiansen, the talented man who brought us so many memorable shots from Arlington National Cemetery this summer.
Of course, it bears remembering that we’ve also come to know some who will not be coming home, soldiers like Sgt. Carlos Baldeosingh. Our thoughts are with his wife Rebecca and their three daughters. I know many of you would like an update on how she and the girls are doing. We hope to have that for you soon. Check the site for updates throughout the weekend.
Also, on Monday, I have a salacious and tawdry announcement for you! So get excited…. it’s part of a promise, a proclamation, a..uh..can’t think of another word to put here. But, bottom line, you don’t want to miss it.
Also, very much on mind is the plight of the children in Haiti. I am searching for the right way to help. I’ll let you know what I come up with. In the meantime, I feel like I can’t pray enough.
Okay, Crowley is calling! He’s busy trying to walk! Which mean I am busy chasing him down : )
One last thing. Just want to give a shout to our sponsor, Andy Bovender of The Bovender Team. He and his team are a part of the solution and are helping us bring you relief from a cynical world. If you haven’t had the chance to tell Andy what you think of his support of StopandSmellthePeople.com. Just click on his ad on the right site of the page.
Peace from Smellville,
Anna
November 26th, 2009 by Mike Redding
According to data from our website the Gratitude Wave was far less compact this time around. In August GW1 was powerful but very compact, concentrated mostly in the Southeastern United States. GW2 was bigger than GW1 in the Southeastern footprint, but it also saw significant numbers in Texas, California, Washington DC and New York. That’s remarkable for only two waves. On a side note, SASTP is now getting regular traffic from 48 nations around the globe. On a side note to the side note, Russia is in our Top 10. I’m serious. So here’s a shout out to all my comrades in Moskva!
How big the wave got on Facebook and Twitter is not easy to quantify. There were so many different “hashtags” (a device that allows tracking) that I don’t know where to start or stop measuring. On Facebook back in August GW1 lasted about 25 minutes from the first post to the last. GW2 went on for more than an hour. In fact the wave spread out so far and long that there were a smattering of FB posts thanking the troops right through the evening hours.
So it was at least successful in the sense that many more people participated. And you’d probably be surprised at how many people it takes to create a GW.
Unpaid Employees
I’ll start by thanking SASTP staff. And by staff I mean people who give copious amounts of their time to help Anna and I… for free! I call them “Unpaid Employees.” Anna and I are UE1 & 2.
UE3 through 6 are Eric Belongia, Chip Haynes, Brian Christianson and Barbara Mason Van. These people deserve more than I can give them. Of course I give them pretty much squat, so that’s not saying much. And yet they keep helping! Perhaps they have all been sentenced to community service and picked my website as the way to do their time. Whatever the case, I couldn’t do this website or any GW without them.
Media
Media peeps have been very kind to us. The following are my media heroes who selflessly use their influence to promote GW2: Larry Sprinkle and Colleen Odegaard at WCNC-TV. Lindsey Planer and John Hancock of News Talk Radio 11-10. Ainsley Earhart at FOX News. Randy, Marci and John Boy & Billy of “The Big Show.” Jen Byrum and Jim Shafer at AM Carolina on Lite 102.9. Charles Jenkin, Al Gardner and Stacey Simms at Charlotte’s Morning News at News Talk 11-10.
Do you know how many people constantly approach these folks to get stories on air? It touches me that they stopped to help.
SASTP Nation
The readers of this website really take this cause to heart. They hound their family and friends until everyone they know gets on board.
The Reason We Did It
The Troops on the front-lines and all the loved ones left at home worried and wondering. GW1 was a wild idea and it caught on. The idea was if we can get enough people to change their Facebook and Twitter status at the same time, maybe some of our soldiers and some of their family members will feel we still care about them. After Ft. Hood we realized GW2 should take place Thanksgiving week.
To be blunt, all I care about is one person. I care about the one soldier, or that one Army wife who feels forgotten. If because of a Gratitude Wave a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend types out some words of thanks and that one forgotten person reads them and realizes they are not alone, that’s enough for me.
One Last Thing
In my SASTP inbox last night was one unopened e-mail from a woman I have never met. Not sure why I didn’t see it earlier. She asked me to add her thoughts to the wave. As far as I know these are the only words of gratitude which haven’t made it on to Facebook or Twitter of SASTP. Until now.
“Thank you for serving and protecting our country. Be Safe. Be Strong. And remember you are greatly loved and appreciated. Becky Kahle – Virginia”
Have a safe Thanksgiving everyone. As you gather with your loved ones, offer up a prayer for our brothers and sisters standing on that wall so very far from home… MR
November 24th, 2009 by Mike Redding
Anti or Pro war doesn't matter today. What matters is our brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, sons and daughters are standing in the line of fire. Send them your gratitude.
UPDATE #2, 11-24-09 4:50PM: Wow! More later.
UPDATE #1, 11-24-09 11:40AM: The Wave of Gratitude is about to start on Facebook & Twitter. As you can see by the outpouring of comments here at SASTP.com people are hungry to express their deep appreciation for our men and women in uniform, and for their families.
If you need a pick me up or a nice healing hug, start reading through the comments made here. I’m sitting here with tears in my eyes trying to get through them all… MR
If you don’t have Facebook or Twitter you can leave your message to the troops right here. Just click “comments” below this entry and scroll to the very bottom and type away. The floor is yours.
On The Radio Today:
•At 6:40 this morning you can catch me talking about the “Wave of Gratitude” on 102.9 FM’s “AM Carolina” with Jim & Jen.
•At 8:30 this morning I’ll be on “The Big Show” with John Boy and Billy.
If you want to read the story that started the Wave of Gratitude click here.
Let “The Wave” begin… MR
November 23rd, 2009 by Anna Redding
UPDATE 11-24: “Wave of Gratitude” is today at noon. Now is a good time to start reminding your family and friends that at Noon we are all changing our Facebook status’ and Tweeting some simple words of thanks to our military all around the globe… and to the “Silent Rank” (read below).
For those of you who don’t have a Facebook or Twitter account, you’ll be able to make your comments of gratitude to our troops right here. We’ll open up the StopandSmellthePeople.com homepage for your thoughts.
The Silent Rank…
SSG Daniel Blasky with daughter Jackie
“There are many restless nights and lots of tears shed but I would not change it one bit.”
Meet April Blasky. She is a one woman force to be reckoned with, a champion of the ‘silent rank’ made up of all the husbands, wives, children and so many others who are left to carry on when our troops deploy.
She is married to SSG Daniel Blasky, the love of her life, the father of her three children and a U.S. Soldier serving his third deployment in Iraq.
Married some ten years now. April knows a thing or two about sacrifice. “Danny and I have 3 amazing children: Jackie 8, Josiah 4 and Juliana 3. Danny has missed all their birthdays on deployment. He will miss the Holidays and our 10 year anniversary. He misses all kinds events in our lives but my children love their daddy so much,” she says.
SSG Daniel Blasky is currently on his 3rd deployment in Iraq.
“I will not say it’s easy because it’s not.” You have to get used to shouldering the home life on your own, April explains, which can mean acting as a single parent and doing things you never dreamt you were capable of.
So how does she get through three deployments? Simple. April says it’s her mission. It’s the way that she serves our country. The silent rank.
“Its a great honor for me to make sacrifices for my husband to serve our country. It brings me great joy to support him,” she said.
Apparently one mission wasn’t enough for April. She took on another… Continue reading ‘The Silent Rank’
November 20th, 2009 by Mike Redding
GRATITUDE WAVE ALERT: Only four days until the next “Wave of Gratitude.” Noon EST time, Tuesday, November 24. Be part for the wave that washes over our military! All you have to do is at Noon Tuesday change your FaceBook status and send a Tweet with some simple words of thanks to our troops this Holiday season!
I’m way behind and I apologize…
I should have written two amazing stories for this week that I haven’t gotten to yet. They are so worth telling that I’m annoyed with myself right now.
The move has consumed more time than we expected. I’ll carve out time today and this weekend to write these stories for you all.
I need a favor from you, though. I’m concerned the “Wave of Gratitude” is becoming another ho-hum event. I know the media is on it more this time than last, but I can’t tell if we all have spread the word enough. Because that’s what truly matters and makes this work. Can we all go back and re-double our efforts to get our friends and family on board? Don’t let people forget that it’s this coming Tuesday, November 24 at Noon EST,
All people need to do is send a tweet on Twitter or change their FaceBook status to some simple words of gratitude for our military and their families’. It’s such a simple thing to do… and can really impact the morale of the ones who need it most this Holiday season.
So do me this favor. Tell your friends… again. Send them here if they need more details.
Peace to you all in SASTP-Nation!
November 19th, 2009 by Mike Redding
Before I get to today’s disjointed, meandering post I want to send out a big ole reminder: We’re only a few days from the next Gratitude Wave for the troops! For first-time readers, a “Gratitude Wave” is a social media hug from all of us to our military troops and families all over the world.
We pick a time and day and everyone tweets or changes their FaceBook status to say a brief thank you to the troops. The next wave is this coming Tuesday, November 24, 12 Noon EST (7 Pm in Iraq and 8 PM in Afghanistan).
If you want to participate start sending this info to your friends on FB or Twitter and get as many people to join us at Noon EST on Tuesday!
For my Charlotte, NC, peeps I’ll be on Charlotte’s Morning News with Al Gardner and Stacey Simms Monday or Tuesday talking about the Gratitude Wave. Tune in and spread the word! The wave is building…
Now for the meandering, disjointed part… Continue reading ‘What in the heck is going on here?’
November 13th, 2009 by Mike Redding
Mary Wheat and her husband Brian had been planning a vacation to Yellowstone National Park for some time. It was all set… when their world went to hell. Two men showed up at their door to tell them, their son Bob had been killed.
I’ve said this a hundred times before: there is no pain like the pain parents feel when their child dies. It doesn’t matter if that
A woman at a political rally in Chicago holding Bob's photo.
child dies at birth or at age 35, it’s a pain that never goes away.
On June 29, 2009, Robert Bittiker, a soldier and a family man, was killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Baghdad.
Last August I wrote a story about another soldier who died in that same explosion, Carlos Baldeosingh. I hadn’t planned on writing about the other soldiers who died alongside Carlos. Yet here I am, talking to Robert Bittiker’s mother. It’s just an odd coincidence.
So where do you go for healing when your son is killed? Where is there enough comfort to ease your pain? Heaven I suppose.
Mary and Brian struggled through the funeral. After the funeral and burial was a great big nothing. Just quiet, empty sadness. In that sadness they considered canceling their vacation. Why go? We’re a mess emotionally? Why waste a perfectly good vacation on two broken hearts?
They talked and decided that getting away from Eastern North Carolina is just what they needed. Break the routine. Breathe some different air. Wake up in a new place.
Bob's bio and photo end up in Chicago at a political rally.
It was right about then Mary remembered another mom, Patty Dessens, who had lost a son to the war. Patty used photos of her son to create sort of a “living” memorial. Mary wondered if doing something similar would be a way of grieving and honoring her own son at the same time. So Mary wrote down Bob’s bio, attached it to his photo and had a bunch of them reproduced and laminated. On the back of the photo Mary put, “…take this photo and move it someplace special to you…”.
All the way from the Badlands of South Dakota to the Rockies Mary and her husband left photos of Bob. One at the base of a waterfall. One at a lake. He loved to fish. Another at a scenic overlook. Somehow it was healing for them.
But what happened after they got home was truly remarkable… Continue reading ‘Gone… but not forgotten’
