Active Unit News

What our families are hearing:
Bob Babcock - "Deeds not Words"
President, Americans Remembered, Inc. - http://www.americansremembered.org
President, 22nd Inf Regt Society - http://www.22ndinfantry.org
Past President/Historian - Nat'l 4th Inf Div Assn - http://www.4thinfantry.org
babcock224@aol.com


What Our Families Are Hearing From Their Soldiers in Iraq:
1) For a quick update, my husband is with HHC 2-8 INF and I received a few letters this week. The mail seems to be catching up with delivery times of 2-3 weeks. They just had a "cold front" move through and the temps dropped to a brisk 90-95 degrees!!! He stated that while their mission is difficult, they are making progress and he is VERY proud of the efforts of the soldiers he is with. They are working hard to get things moving with the hope that the quicker things get better, the quicker they can come home. He has been getting packages from me and both of our families, but somehow we all forgot to enclose toilet paper!!! I guess all the baby wipes we keep sending just aren't doing the trick! He also asked for laundry detergent, so they must have somewhere they can wash their uniforms.
2) We received our first phone call this evening from our son.He is with G Troop, 10th Cav in Tikrit. He sounded very tired, said he hadn't slept in 2 days. Other than that he was fine, he has been involved in several operations west and north of Baghdad. We have also adopted his driver and his gunner. They have not been receiving letters or packages from their homes. It is pricey but essential. My son said to keep them coming.It is SO important for ALL our soldiers to know we care.They do have a PX to buy stuff now, but just hearing from us in any way is important.Also to the mom whose son wanted stamps, they will not speed up his mail. The military mail is slower than US mail, I know I work for the postal service.
3) I just wanted you to know that I received phone call from my son who is in Company A FSC 204 FSB 2-8 INF 4th ID on Friday June 13th. He called in the middle of the day so we missed the call but were still glad to hear his voice. He seems to be quite confused on the time change when calling and was disappointed that we were not home. He said that they are just fine living in barracks and even have adopted some cats and dogs! The thing that is needed most is insect repellent, seems that the flies are terrible there. I sent Avon Skin so soft/insect repellent in an earlier package which seems to be really good with this problem, in fact the "Avon lady" said that the Army used to purchase this product sometime ago! Just the voice even though it was a message has helped with the longing to hug him and also helps to confirm that he is alive and well. We also received 2 letters which took 4 weeks to get here!
4) We received our 3rd letter from our son in the 3rd Brigade, A Co. 1-12 Inf out of Ft Carson. It was postmarked May 19, 2003 and we just got it yesterday the 16th of June. We’re hoping his unit is speeding up. There seems to be a desire by many of the soldiers for things to mix in their water for drinks. One of the requests was for powdered Gatorade. I am still looking for a place to purchase it. The seem to mix a variety of things in the water and tea bags is one I wouldn’t have expected.... They hadn’t seen much in the way of problems at that time. It is nice to see the reports from other relatives of 3rd Brigade soldiers.
5) I got my first letter or communication from our son with the 4th 1/8 out of Ft. Carson. YIPPIE!!!!!! His daugher also got one today which was dated in early June and that made her day for sure. Mine was dated 5/9 and stated....he got two packages from us and one from his sister. He stated had had not received any mail from his wife or kids but knows the mail is screwed up and they keep moving.... He ended with saying they should be heading to Kirkuk for peace keeping. They had been in Tikrit and were staying on the Tigris river in one of Sadam's palaces in his home town keeping the looters under control. He said tell everyone I miss them.
6) We finally got a phone call from our son, HHC 2-8 4th ID, on the 16th at 2:39AM. It was wonderful to "hear" his voice. He sounded good although he said he hasn't had much sleep. He said he hasn't had a shower in over 3 weeks and no hot meals since he left Kuwait. He said he was close to the border of Iran and that he has actually seen jungle and there are palm trees and lots of green.....He also said they are trying to set up phones so they can call home more often..... He said he's been shot at, but hasn't shot any thing himself. He also gave us a list of things he needed, powdered Gatorade and bug repellent being top on the list I just wanted to let you know we heard from him and that again I appreciate this forum to share information.
7) I received a letter from my son today which was written on the 6th of June, postmarked on the 8th, and received today. Mail seems to be improving, thankfully. He is with the 1/12 Inf. out of Ft. Carson and reports that they have been in northern Iraq doing "police type work", seizing weapons and disarming groups. He states that it is very rewarding. He has received all my packages and mail and loves getting my letters. He sustained an eye injury from a "weird" insect bite, but seems to be doing well and has a great attitude. He was able to call his wife a couple of days ago. She is also serving in Iraq.
8) This morning on the way to work on the news was the information about the soldier from Indianapolis that was to be layed to rest. My heart has ached for that family. Please keep them in your prayers. While Praying for them I grieved so just to hear my son's voice that I included it in my request... This afternoon he called... He is with the 4th 3rd BCT 1st battlion.(didn't say which Regiment). We only were able to talk for 3 minutes. He hasn't received any of our letters yet or packages.. The items I have read about are the same ones he was requesting and told him they were on their way,,, We expressed our love for each other several times and I asked him If he wanted me to come and get him...ha!! Our soldiers miss us .. be proud of them and keep praying for their safe return.

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