.

This article is posted on Family Security Matters. If you'd like to comment please go here and leave your comment for Dave Gaubatz, the author of this article.

February 6, 2009

Dave Gaubatz

Face of Defense: Country Music Star Earned Stripes in Iraq, Afghanistan By Samantha L. Quigley American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29, 2009 – Stephen Cochran was a normal 19-year-old with a dream of making music his life when the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks led him down an unplanned path to the Marine Corps.

“I dropped out of college. I walked away from a record deal,” he said. “I was engaged.”
He didn’t discuss his decision with his parents, or even his then-fiancée, who broke the engagement when he announced he’d enlisted. “It was really the first grown-up decision I’d ever made,” Cochran said.

The musician, born in Pikeville, Ky., grew up in Nashville’s songwriting and recording community. There, he learned the art of songwriting from his father. He made his musical debut on the radio at age 3 and had his first band by 15.

At 17, he was offered a record deal, but he and his parents agreed that he needed to go to college first. If this offer had been made now, they reasoned, there would be others after college.

While at Western Kentucky University, Cochran played lacrosse and continued to write songs and play music. True to his parents’ prediction, he was offered another record deal. But he wanted to finish school.

The company offered a promissory note, but then Sept. 11 happened.

“It was just so horrific,” he said. “It’s like I’d been called. I’d never been pulled so hard to do something.”

It may have been the audacity of the attacks, but more likely it was his family’s long history of military service that drew him to enlist, he said. Both grandfathers served, as did an uncle and several other relatives.

“I’ve always been raised very, very patriotic. It’s just what I had to do,” Cochran said of his decision to join the Marines.

It wasn’t long before he found himself in Kuwait with the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, waiting to cross into Iraq. He was 20.

Once the unit crossed the Kuwait-Iraq border, contact with the enemy was a daily ocurrence, Cochran said. When the unit’s tour was finished, the Marines had fought their way to Tikrit and back.

“We brought every man home with us,” he said. “They said we did 111 missions. That was more missions than any other unit had done since Vietnam.”

But daily battle takes its toll. Cochran said he thinks every Marine in his section showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Four months later, however, the entire battalion volunteered to go to Afghanistan with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit. They figured nothing could be worse than Iraq.

They were wrong.

“In Afghanistan, everything was just dead. There was no foliage. The people wouldn’t look you in the eye,” he said, adding that he and his buddies had learned that usually meant they had something to hide.

In fact, after several months of daily fighting in Afghanistan, the Marines began to wonder just how wrong they’d been about nothing being worse than the fighting in Iraq.

“Some of us came up with a theory that maybe we had been killed in Iraq and now we were in hell,” Cochran said with a chuckle that belied the seriousness of the thought.

That theory may have been conceived during a mission where the Marines were outnumbered more than 2 to 1 and he lost one of his best friends.

“It was a suicide mission,” Cochran said. “We 100 percent knew there was going to be a casualty on this mission. We knew it.”

The mission initially sent a five-man team into what Cochran described as very hostile territory. When 26 insurgents ambushed the team, another seven-man team responded. Despite killing 14 insurgents before the fight was over, they’d lost one Marine.

“If you wanted to pick one man to represent the entire military, it was him,” he said about the Marine. “We were all trying to figure out different ports we could get drunk in. He was trying to get us into Bible study.”

About a month later, on July 14, 2004, Cochran was on his last mission, working security for convoys carrying equipment back to Kandahar, when he was injured.

Just 20 yards inside Kandahar, the vehicle he was riding in hit an anti-tank mine. He was thrown from the vehicle and broke the five vertebrae in his lower back.

When he woke in the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., a month later, he discovered he was paralyzed from the waist down and most likely never would walk again.

To add insult to injury, the record company that had offered Cochran the deal dropped him, saying they couldn’t put $1 million dollars into a paraplegic.

“I understand. It’s a business,” he said. “[But] I never believed I was never going to walk again.”

The doctors at Bethesda weren’t so hopeful. Despite the fact that Cochran’s spinal cord was intact, the bone and cartilage were severely damaged and were pulling on his spinal cord. The doctors’ best suggestion was to fuse the bone together to alleviate the pain.

Another option surfaced, however. Though his doctors in Bethesda, who were just beginning to see the types of injuries that became typical with servicemembers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, were vehemently against the idea, his mother -- and first sergeant -- pushed for the procedure. They finally won.

Kyphoplasty, a procedure used to restore fractured vertebra, usually is reserved for older patients suffering from degeneration of the vertebrae and cartilage. However, six months after an orthopedic surgeon at Vanderbilt Medical Center used essentially 4 pounds of cement to fix the crushed vertebrae in Cochran’s back, he was up and walking with the help of a walker.

Today, he’s back on the country music scene and has a deal with Aria Records. His debut album, “Friday Night Fireside,” has received more than favorable reviews.

While music is his passion, Cochran said, he found room for a second passion after his recovery: working to make sure wounded veterans have what they need to recover and live the fullest life possible.

He does this is by working with the Independence Fund, a nonprofit organization that, among other things, provides robotic wheelchairs to veterans confined to wheelchairs. The high-tech chairs can walk stairs and give the veterans their height back, Cochran said.

“They can look everybody in the eye,” Cochran said. “That’s the biggest thing. When I was in a wheelchair … I had to look up at everybody. It was a big shock to your confidence. This raises them up to where they can have a conversation and look you in the eye.”

It has the same technology as the Segway personal transporter, so it won’t fall over, he added.

As amazing as that piece of technology is, Cochran said, bigger things are on the horizon and he’ll do everything he can to make sure veterans have access to them.

“My goal is that the bigger I get in music, the bigger my pulpit can get to preach on my soapbox … and really get more people involved,” he said. “There’s a lot of people in the music business who talk a lot. We just need them to get their checkbooks out now.”

What Cochran said he would really like, however, is for veterans to never have to worry about what comes next.

“I want to have a foundation that covers you from the time you enlist or from the time you’re commissioned until we put you in the ground,” he said. “There is no reason a man shooting a basketball should have to not worry about anything in life, and a man that is ready to take a bullet should.”

Country singer-songwriter Stephen Cochran and his band play for wounded warriors and their guests at a dinner hosted by the USO and Microsoft in New York, Nov. 8, 2008. Cochran is a former Marine who broke his back when he was ambushed while serving in Afghanistan. DoD photo by Samantha L. Quigley

By U.S. Marine Sgt Smith

(Picture of Sgt Smith on a mission)

Some information for everybody about myself. I write here (on Pat Dollards website) as SGT SMITH, talk in the chat room during the BTR Jihadikiller hour shows as Smitty. I've made a couple appearances on the show calling in. This is to let you know who I am, a little bit of what I've done; and why I choose to do what I do.

When I was a Junior in high school, I watched as our country came under attack from cowards. I remember that day as everybody does. My deciding point for joining the military came later that day. My father is a firefighter and that evening, there was a memorial service for all of those emergency responders who had lost their lives earlier that day. I sat in a pew next to my mother as I watched the line of firefighters; who I had grown up with being my big brothers, walk down the aisle with their black mourning bands on their badges. I watched as every one of them lost their composure and started to cry. It was at that exact moment that I was young enough to do something, and that I needed to. October of 2002 I found myself at MEPS in Kansas City volunteering for the Marine Corps.

(My family and I)

I graduated high school in May of 2003 and a little over a month later I was on my way to boot camp, turning 18 only a week earlier. Through 13 weeks of torment and stress I finally earned the title of United States Marine. When I was home on leave I never thought that I would go to Iraq, due to all major operations in Iraq being done. One December 12, 2003 I joined my first fleet unit, 3/7 in 29 Palms, Ca; and learned that I in fact would be making that trip. On Valentine's Day 2004, I boarded a bus to take me to Iraq. Before my 19th birthday had been baptized by fire, earning my Combat Action Ribbon. Along the way I lost many of my friends, to include Brandon Clinton Smith, my rack-mate through boot camp and best friend in the fleet. After seven months of the "Wild Wild West" in Al Qaim, Iraq, I flew home into the arms of my crying mother.

(Picture of me in Al Qaim after I was told my hair was eccentric, so I fixed it by making it blend in better)

The time between my first and second deployments, I had a very hard time re-adapting trying to find answers to questions that can't be found in the bottom of bottles. This eventually led to my arrest at Lake Havasu, AZ with initial charges of nine felonies and seven misdemeanors. I had tried to be above the law, under the influence and underage. That never works out well. Thanks to a mishap on the police's side and my service, I was given a plea bargain. Being convicted of only two misdemeanors with a hefty fine and some other requirements I was sent back to my unit. There I received an NJP, losing my rank of Lance Corporal and was put on restriction. We started our next work-up for another deployment to Iraq. This time I would find myself in Ramadi.

(At Fontana in between deployments)

Ramadi was something out of a movie. War-torn buildings, gunfire every night, not ever knowing what was going to happen next. One night about a month into the deployment, my platoon and I were setting into an ambush position, jumping from one rooftop to the next, when I landed wrong. Pain shot up and down my leg, I wanted to scream but could only whisper to keep our position covert. I was eventually medevac'd to a higher echelon of care where it was determined that I had sheered off a piece of my ankle, cracked my ankle, and had a stress fracture up my shin. I was told that I wouldn't be off crutches for 6-8 weeks with 4-6 weeks of physical therapy following that. Two weeks later, I lost yet another friend, Jonathan Ross Spears. J.R. was killed by an enemy sniper on a rooftop when he exposed his self to tell one of his Marines to get down. At that point I knew that I would be out on the streets very soon. A week and a half later I participated in Operation Machete, an 18 hour foot mobile cache sweep, one of the largest finds in Ramadi history. I was eventually returned to my old platoon India-4 who were attached to Kilo company operating out and around the government center. Daily gun battles to keep the political strong point safe were nothing out of the normal. We operated non-stop, only a few days a month being spent in the rear in order to wash our balls and cammies. Before another one of our large operations, we sat in the briefing room and were told that we would have the "Hollywood movie producer" attached to our platoon. Thinking the worse, that we had some liberal retard attached tried to get skewed views of the war, nobody was very inviting to Pat. Eventually we started asking him questions and got to know exactly what he was doing. After Pat hanging out of doorways to get demo breaches on film and being out there with us never bitching or being a hassle, he became one of the guys. December 10-12 of 2005 the platoon and Pat was at our newest and most tested OP's in Ramadi. Pat had came and talked to me right at dusk of the 10th. Pat needed a cigarette so he went downstairs. As soon as he turned off his camera, an RPG slammed into the bottom of my post. Happening during the perfect 5 minutes when it's too bright to see with NVG's but too dark to see with the naked eye, as Pat ran up trying to find out what happened I was launching illum rounds out of my 203 to try to find the fuck-head that just tried to wax my ass. The next day Pat once again visited my post talking about how crazy the shit from the day prior had been. Then, Pat had to shit. He went down to the wag-bag shitters and popped a squat as mortars dropped all around us. Once, a coincidence, twice- shit starts to get real. Pat came up on the third and final day of us being at the OP, talking shit about how he missed great footage and what-not. Pat left to go talk with somebody else, as a sniper shot punched through my post. I was peppered with small splinters of wood in my upper thighs, a small piece of metal below my nose and another in my left shoulder. The deployment continued on as did the gun battles. Our platoon set oil tankers on fire with our bullets, and killed any insurgent retarded enough to test us. Something more important than all of that is we started to show the people of Ramadi, that Americans truly were there to help, driving a wedge between the civilians and insurgents. Holding elections that finally had voters, and being discriminate and prejudice killers, taking out the bad guys next to civilians, not harming the civilians, as much as possible. The deployment came to an end and we made our way back home again.

(J.R. Spears a few days before the city behind him would take his life)

(Me and some of the guys from India-4)

At this point it was a very critical time in my life with some big issues ahead of me. Do I get out and go to college? Fuck no, I'd wind up killing some liberal fuck -tard professor. Do I get out and be a contractor? The money's good, get all kinds of high speed gear, good training. Do I stay in? I love the bond between Marines, being a leader. Training Marines and watching them become men, unafraid and courageous. About halfway through my debate, I received a phone call from Troy, one of my best friends since being young kids running around causing all kinds of troubles; his twin who also happened to be my other best friend had been hurt. Trey was a reservist mortarman, on his second deployment. Trey's vehicle was struck by an IED and he had 2nd and 3rd degree burns over 20% of his body and his lower arm was connected to his upper arm by a quarter-inch piece of skin. They couldn't stabilize him in Iraq due to his burns and needed to get him to Germany, but the flight would kill him. Trey was stabilized and shipped to Germany but not before I had put my re-enlistment package together, getting me to a unit deploying soon and on the east coast. Trey is currently medically retired out of the Marine Corps and a successful manager for a nationwide store. They were able to save his arm, and he wears a brace to help his prosthetic elbow.

(Troy and Trey)

On December 13th 2006, I checked in with 2d Marine Division Anti-Terrorism Battalion. I would be deploying to Diayla Province. I was looking for a fresh start, without the "Havasu Smith" incident shadowing over me, and that is exactly what I got. Three months into this new unit I was put on a meritorious Corporal board and won. I deployed to Ashraf in April, providing security for the PMOI or MEK, you can look them up on the Department of State website. During this deployment, enemy was all around us but due to being under an Army command, they deemed us going and doing our jobs, killing bad guys and protecting the innocent; and I quote "Too Dangerous". I no bullshit - laughed out loud when I was first told because I thought it was a joke. The only way to win hearts and minds I decided was to treat people who came into the ECP. The Army was against this because it wasn't an American job to treat Iraqi's. I personally treated and never lost under my care 13 life-threatening casualties. Everything from gunshot wounds to the head, to serious burns. I set up an SOP for the base to treat mass-casualties after a bad day for innocent Iraqi's caught in a crossfire. During that deployment, my platoon was only in one fire fight, and the company was only in a handful total. Even with so little going on, it all came at a price. Our company lost two Marines to an IED, and had more than a dozen wounded. We were back stateside another seven months later, November of 2007.

(An Iraqi and I)

(Betancourt and I)

After coming back, our unit had transformed for ATBN to 2d Battalion 9th Marines, Hell in a Helmet. I fell into "Echo" company. In February I was sent to a formal school "Corporal's Course" and graduated with the Gung Ho (motivator award) award, class First Sergeant (in charge of the students in absence of instructors), and the fourth highest GPA in the class, I didn't get third by only .02%. After coming back we went to VA for a month long training evolution. When we returned, I was nominated for a meritorious sergeant board. I won that board as well and was promoted to Sergeant in May of 2008. Throughout this span, I realized that deployments had taken their toll on me, that I might need some help dealing with things that I didn't know how to. Rather than drinking to not think, or acting out; I talked it out and it seemed to help.

I am currently deployed once again, we left CONUS 22 Sept 2008. My battalion's AO is massive. My platoon's AO is 1/3 of the battalion's. We still piss in tubes and use burn shitters. Life is good though. I am down here with my section of Marines, running missions. All though there isn't any kinetic warfare going on here, the non-kinetics are almost harder to deal with. Being an adviser to political figures within towns, training supervisors for police stations, and trying to root out corruption and insurgents is a thinking man's game. Don't get me wrong, combat patrols are some of the most taxing events somebody could experience, but this is difficult. I think because I never thought I would do something like this, that I would always be "hunting muj" and what-not. It's a tough transition to make, but one that means so much. All of my buddies that have given their lives, even those who I never knew; did it for a reason. I never once in a firefight, debated on the reasons of our presence in Iraq. I never thought "Well this will surely drop gas prices". I never did it for Republicans, Conservatives, Liberals, Democrats or anybody but the people beside me. I didn't reenlist because I thought that I would somehow fix our country's problems. I did it because the country needs people to fight for it. I did it because I will not, ever, let those who have gone before me be forgotten or go in vain. I started out being a Marine for the challenge, to be the best of the best. I do it now because I love it, every second, every cold morning wake up, not getting enough chow or cold water. I love to watch Marines mature and bond. I do this so my nieces and nephew, and my future children will never have to know who Saddam Hussein was other than what they learn about him in school.

(Abigail, Ethan, and I)

(My platoon commander and I) me with long ass hair and clear lenses

Christmas With The Troops

 

About a week ago I was asked by a Solider in Afghanistan what I thought about

 doing a blogtalk radio show for the troops. A show that the

guys who are way from home this Christmas could send in messages

and have them read,

request songs and hear greetings from home. Instantly I was smiling.

One I was thrilled with the idea and two honored that those who are serving

would ask me to be involved. They had already contacted one host

 and I was able to help

bring 2 other shows on board with this project.

I want to thank the man who's idea this was, Cpt Kevin,

for not only thinking of this but for involving me.

Please if you can join us... it should be a fun and touching evening.

Knottie

 

 

Three Blog Talk Radio shows are banding together to air a six hour

Christmas show that is all for the troops:

 

Chandler’s Watch,

Buffman and Wrench

 Do the Right Thing

 

 are going to broadcast back to back to back on Monday December 22^nd

 starting at 6pm CST  for our men and women in Iraq, Afghanistan

 and any of our military who will not be home with family this holiday season.

The show will include music, guest and reading messages from and to the troops.

 to their families to us that will be read over the air (internet).

 and Founder of Fueled by the Fallen

President Bush Visits Troops in Iraq
Al Faw Palace - Camp Victory
Baghdad, Iraq

White House News   Photos

      In Focus: Defense
      In Focus: Iraq

8:05 P.M. (Local)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you for coming out to say hello. General, thank you for the introduction, I am honored to be at Camp Victory.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Laura and I have been having a lot of Christmas parties at the White House, so I thought it would be kind of neat to change the scenery.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: And I would rather be with the men and women of the United States military than with anybody else. (Applause.)

So as you can see I decided to fly over, and in the spirit of the season we renamed Air Force One to Rudolph One.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah

THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming. I bring greetings from a proud and grateful nation -- Merry Christmas to you, happy holidays. Congratulations on your inspiring accomplishments here in Iraq. And above all, thank you for volunteering to defend our country in a time of danger.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: This is a time of year to give thanks for our many blessings B- and the greatest blessing we have is freedom and the fact that we've got a United States military to defend that freedom.

So General, thank you very much for your leadership. I'm proud to be with you again. I appreciate the leadership of General Austin, as well. Ambassador Crocker and Christine are with us today. I had the pleasure of meeting Sergeant -- Command Sergeant Major Lawrence Wilson; Command Sergeant Major Joe Allen; Major General Hammond -- (applause) -- put it together for Hammond. (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Command Sergeant Major Gioia.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Major General Oates. (Applause.) How about, have you ever heard of a guy named Redmore? (Applause.)

Thanks for coming out. I am thrilled to be here with the diplomats, embassy personnel who are so critical to our success.

I want to thank the Iraqi citizens who are here with us today. I appreciate your courage. I know there are members of the coalition who are here with us. There have been a lot of troops from around the world who have come to help this young democracy survive and thrive. And so I want to thank the citizens of those country [sic] and the troops who have served here before us.

This is my fourth trip to Iraq -- and you've probably heard I'm heading into retirement -- (laughter) -- so it's going to be my last trip as the President. But thanks to you, the Iraq we stand in tonight is dramatically freer, dramatically safer, and dramatically better than the Iraq we found eight years ago.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: And as a result of the sacrifices of our troops, America is safer, and America is more secure.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: I want to take you back to what life was like eight years ago here in Iraq. Iraq had a record of supporting terror, a record of developing and using weapons of mass destruction, was routinely firing at American military personnel, systematically violating United Nations resolution. Life for the Iraqi people was a nightmare, with Saddam Hussein torturing and murdering anyone who did not support his repressive rule. Iraq was a sworn enemy of the United States at the heart of the Middle East; the region was a serious threat to the us.

After the attacks of September the 11th, 2001, America concluded we could not tolerate a regime like this in a pivotal region of the world. I gave Saddam Hussein a chance to peacefully resolve the question as to whether or not he had weapons of mass destruction. You might remember, I went to the United Nations, where a body said: disarm, disclose, or face serious consequence. It was his choice to make. And he made the wrong choice. And so the United States military, with a vast coalition removed this man from power and the world is better off for it. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

THE PRESIDENT: I doubt in his worst nightmares he ever would have dreamt that we'd be standing in one of his palaces.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Thanks to you, 25 million Iraqis are free.

Thanks to you, Iraq is no longer sponsoring terror -- it is fighting terror. It's making American people safer as a result.

The enemies of freedom in Iraq are determined, and this fight has been tough. Two years ago, the situation had grown dire -- the political process was frozen and sectarian violence was spiraling out of control. Some of you were here then/

Many said the mission was hopeless; many called for retreat. Retreat would have meant failure -- and failure is never an option.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: So instead of pulling troops out, we sent more troops in -- called the surge. And because of you and because of your courage, the surge is one of the greatest successes in the history of the United States military.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Terrorists who once held safe havens across the country are being driven out of their strongholds. The political process that was once stalled is moving forward. Iraqi citizens once afraid to leave their homes are going back to school, and shopping in markets, and leading a more normal life. And American troops are returning home because of success.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: The dramatic turnaround you led in Iraq culminated in the two agreements completed last month, which the Prime Minister and I affirmed in a ceremony earlier today.

These agreements formalize the ties between our two democracies in areas ranging from security and diplomacy to culture and trade. These agreements show the way forward toward a historic day -- when American forces withdraw from a democratic and successful Iraq, and the war in this land is won.

There's more hard work to do before we reach that day. But if there is any -- but if there is no doubt -- but there is no doubt in my mind, there's just no doubt that we're going to reach that day. I am confident because our cause is just. And freedom is universal. I'm confident because the Iraqi people are showing unshakable determination and courage.

And above all, I am confident because I know the character and the strength of those who wear the uniform of the United States military.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: Over the past five years, you have shown the world some unmistakable truths:

You have shown that when America is tested, we rise to meet the test.

You have shown that the desire for freedom is more powerful than the intimidation of terrorists.

You have shown that there is no task too difficult for the United States military.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: And so I have a message for you and all who serve our country: I want to thank you for making the noble choice to serve and to protect your fellow Americans. Sometimes it can be hard to tell when history is being made, particularly if you're in the middle of the action. What you're doing in Iraq is as important, and courageous, and selfless as what American troops did in places like Normandy and Iwo Jima and Korea. Your generation is every bit as great as any that came before it. And the work you do every day will shape history for generations to come.

I guess what I'm telling you is your grandchildren some day are going to say, "Thank God you showed up and served."

America now has a strong friend and a partner in the fight against extremism in the heart of the Middle East, and that is historic.

People across this troubled region of the world now have an example for a more hopeful path -- a model of liberty that can prevail over tyranny and terror. Killers who wanted to take the lives of Americans back home have been brought to justice before they reached our shores.

Because of you all who work to protect this nation -- and all who work to protect the nation, America has done something many said was impossible: We have gone seven years without a terrorist attack.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: We think of those who have laid down their lives for freedom here in Iraq. Their children are growing up without a mom or a dad. But all of our children are growing up with something else -- the promise of a safer America and a better world. And that is the lasting memorial of all who have sacrificed here in Iraq. And thanks to you, that memorial will be achieved -- and their sacrifice will not be in vain.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: We think of your comrades who have been wounded. And this nation pledges that we will give them all the care and all the support they need to recover.

AUDIENCE: Hoo-ah!

THE PRESIDENT: We think of all your families back home. I know many of you have a sweetheart who misses you, or a daughter who longs for her dad, or a mom who worries about you day and night. For many of you, it won't be your first holiday away -- and that certainly doesn't make it easier. So I'm going to give you an order: When you get out of here, call home or email home; you tell your families you love them; and you tell the Commander-in-Chief came by to thank them for their sacrifice along with yours. (Applause.)

Thanks -- thanks for coming by to let me say hello. Thanks for serving the United States of America. They ask me what I'm going to miss as the President. I'll tell you what I'm going to miss: being the Commander-in-Chief of such a fabulous group of folks. May God bless you, and God bless America. (Applause.)

END 8:13 P.M. EST

WWE Superstars Tribute Troops

Story by Cpl. Nicholas J. Lienemann

“Iraq isn’t exactly a vacation hotspot so it’s awesome that they were willing to take the time out of their busy schedules and come visit us,” said HM3 Terrance R. Jones, a corpsman with Regimental Combat Team 1. “They were all really down to earth and friendly. It was a big time show of patriotism.” To read the rest of this article go here.

AND

RCT-1, Team 2 takes Turkey Bowl at Camp Ramadi

Story by Lance Cpl. Jerry Murphy

U.S. soldiers in Iraq rebel and sing the 12 days of Christmas to kick off the holiday season. We may not get to come home for Christmas, but we can send it home and show family and friends we will be ok. Merry Christmas to all!!!!!