JB
Honorary Moderator Emeritus
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2001
- Messages
- 45,907
My #2 daughter is a Medical Officer in the Navy Reserve. She has mentioned to me that on drill weekends she has often gone to lunch in uniform and had people come up to her to thank her for her service and even buy her lunch.
I got this in an Email from her today. It is C&P.
The Sack Lunches
>
> I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
> assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. 'I'm glad I have a
> good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap,' I thought. Just
> before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled
> all the
> vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start a
> conversation.
>
> 'Where are you headed?' I asked the soldier seated nearest
> to me.
> 'Chicago - to Great Lakes Base. We'll be there for two weeks for
> special training, and then we're being deployed to Iraq
> ' After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made
> that sack
> lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours
> before we
> reached Chicago, and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the
> time.
> As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his
> buddy if he
> planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money for just a
> sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we
> get to
> Chicago.
>
> His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers.
> None
> were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed
> the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch to all
> those soldiers.' She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her
> eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. 'My son was a soldier in
> Iraq; it's almost like you are doing it for him.'
>
> Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the
> soldiers
> were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which do you like
> best - beef or chicken?'
>
> 'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned
> and went to
> the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate
> from first
> class. 'This is your thanks.' After we finished
> eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest
> room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I want to be
> part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me twenty-five dollars.
>
> Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain
> coming down
> the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he was
> not
> looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my
> side of the plane. When he got t o my row he stopped, smiled, held
> out his
> hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.'
>
> Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the
> Captain's
> hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was a Sol dier and I was a
> military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act
> of kindness I never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was
> heard from all of the passengers.
>
> Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch
> my
> legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached
> out his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five
> dollars in my palm.
>
> When we landed in Chicago I gathered my belongings and
> started to
> deplane.Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped
> me, put
> something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying
> a
> word. Another twenty-five.
>
> Soon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering
> for their
> trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them
> seventy-five dollars. 'It will take you some time to reach the
> base. It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'
> Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their
> fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a
> prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all
> for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals. It
> seemed so little...
> A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life wrote a
> blank
> check Made payable to 'The United States of America ' for an amount
> of
> 'up to and including my life.' That is Honor, MAY
> GOD BLESS THE USA
I got this in an Email from her today. It is C&P.
The Sack Lunches
>
> I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
> assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. 'I'm glad I have a
> good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap,' I thought. Just
> before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled
> all the
> vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start a
> conversation.
>
> 'Where are you headed?' I asked the soldier seated nearest
> to me.
> 'Chicago - to Great Lakes Base. We'll be there for two weeks for
> special training, and then we're being deployed to Iraq
> ' After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made
> that sack
> lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours
> before we
> reached Chicago, and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the
> time.
> As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his
> buddy if he
> planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money for just a
> sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we
> get to
> Chicago.
>
> His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers.
> None
> were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed
> the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch to all
> those soldiers.' She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her
> eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. 'My son was a soldier in
> Iraq; it's almost like you are doing it for him.'
>
> Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the
> soldiers
> were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, 'Which do you like
> best - beef or chicken?'
>
> 'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned
> and went to
> the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate
> from first
> class. 'This is your thanks.' After we finished
> eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest
> room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I want to be
> part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me twenty-five dollars.
>
> Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain
> coming down
> the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he was
> not
> looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my
> side of the plane. When he got t o my row he stopped, smiled, held
> out his
> hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.'
>
> Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the
> Captain's
> hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was a Sol dier and I was a
> military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act
> of kindness I never forgot.' I was embarrassed when applause was
> heard from all of the passengers.
>
> Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch
> my
> legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached
> out his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five
> dollars in my palm.
>
> When we landed in Chicago I gathered my belongings and
> started to
> deplane.Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped
> me, put
> something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying
> a
> word. Another twenty-five.
>
> Soon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering
> for their
> trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them
> seventy-five dollars. 'It will take you some time to reach the
> base. It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'
> Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their
> fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a
> prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all
> for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals. It
> seemed so little...
> A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life wrote a
> blank
> check Made payable to 'The United States of America ' for an amount
> of
> 'up to and including my life.' That is Honor, MAY
> GOD BLESS THE USA
