Posts Tagged ‘Gathering of Eagles’
Hawaii GOE counters moonbats outside training base!
The Pohakuloa training base on the big island of Hawaii has been a frequent target of moonbats. Saturday they ran into some firm opposition from the Hawaii chapter of Gathering of Eagles!
The personnel at the base have come to know GOE for the support our Hawaii chapter has lent to the troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan through the Kona coffee and other projects. Here some personnel come out and chat with our patriots!
The Hawaii Chapter of Gathering of Eagles has been doing troop support in new and innovative ways for almost three years now!
From the first troop support rallies in Kamuela, Hawaii, through convoy welcomes and canteen operations, to their outstanding Kona Coffee support operations, they have set a pace that is amazing!
Red Hawk tells the moving story of how one man with a flag made a difference!
Every significant holiday and day of remembrance they are out waving their flags!
Or manning canteens to refresh our troops!
Their Kona Coffee operations have touched the lives of thousands of deployed Soldiers, Marines and Airmen!
Kona Coffee is considered one of the finest coffees in the world and is only grown in a select area on the Big Island of Hawaii.
U.S. Marine Corps: Operation Jarhead Java
U.S. Army: Operation Warrior Wakeup
U.S. Air Force: Operation Maka’Ala Airmen
Local farms donate the coffee to be shipped to the troops, and the Hawaiian GOE Chapter raises the funds to pay for the shipping costs.
Here’s how you can help keep the coffee flowing to the troops!
Some pictures of the deployed troops enjoying their Kona coffee!
Marine Initiative: No blender, No problem!
Nothing like a cup of Greenwell Farms 100% Kona Coffee on an early Iraq morning..."It puts the round in the chamber" - SSgt. Garza
It’s been a long time. Welcome Home!
Yesterday, Thursday, September 17th, 2009, One Hundred and forty seven years after his death, an unknown soldier from New York was returned to his home state after lying undiscovered in a grave on the Antietam Battlefield.
The Patriot Guard Riders and the New York National Guard undertook the multi-state mission of escorting the young soldier home to be buried with honors at the Saratoga National Cemetery. But not before the Maryland National Guard gave him a moving sendoff.
That afternoon the motorcade passed through Poughkeepsie, NY, where the Gathering of Eagles paid their respects:
The Pentagon Channel has more background:
Another video of the transfer ceremony at Antietam is here:
Patriot Guard Rider Bill Schaaf when talking about the emotions involved in such an escort said:
“For those who couldn’t be there no explanation is possible – for those of
us that were there no explanation is necessary”
The Herald-Mail has a good story from Maryland!
A series of excellent photos in this forum, scroll down for more.
A photo of the escort passing through Hyde Park:
The Poughkeepsie Journal has a photo gallery here.
News Channel 13 has video of the motorcade passing through Rennsselaer.
News10 has good coverage of the return at Saratoga here.
A photo gallery from the Daily Gazette is here.
News10 has an even better video report here.
The Albany Times Union has a story with pictures here. The Saratogian has another here.
CBS6 has good coverage with video here.
The Antietam Battlefield Ranger who made the Going Home video has a blog. Here is his entry for the day our soldier left.
One of the Patriot Guard Riders is a photographer, his gallery is here.
For a history of the Battle of Antietam. More here.
And a final video:
Last year we had the honor to report “A Duty Fulfilled” on a Civil War Marine hero in Queens, NY.
Thank you to each and every one of you who helped bring this young man home to New York with dignity and honor!
For years George Samek, a decorated Vietnam Veteran, and a great friend, has been an advocate for our Wounded Warriors.
Recently he started a new project “Warrior Connection” to get laptops with video cams into the hands of our wounded warriors in medical centers around the country so they could stay in touch with their families during their recovery. George understands the morale boost having that contact gives our wounded warriors. He started out with a goal of donating a single laptop equipped with a webcam. In four weeks, as more people became aware of his mission, the number grew to twenty.
WECT6 the local TV station in Wilmington, NC, did a story on the project here. Be sure to watch the video on the upper right!
George has plenty good to say about Best Buy, the national electronics chain, whose local store pitched in to supply the laptops and webcams at cost and configured them to function seamlessly.
On September 11, 2009, the laptops were presented to Wounded Warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC.
Now George is working on making presentations at Camp Lejeune to our wounded Marines.
If you want to donate to this worthy cause please send a check to:
Gathering of Eagles/George Samek
1105 Copas Road
Shallotte, NC 28470
The troops will thank you for it!
CJ reports that the project has gone global!
Our friend Jonn met the Canada Free Press reporter at Walter Reed!
More here on the Walter Reed Troop Rally.
Outstanding! Awesome! Beyond My Wildest Expectations!
Only three things marred the day.
- One of our ladies was arrested Friday night (no she was not filming yet another ACORN expose) and we spent all of Saturday in court trying to get her released. It was 7pm before that happened and the march was over. Luckily the court was only two blocks from Pennsylvania Avenue so we were able to take walks down during the delays to take pictures and video. This incident will be the subject of a future posting.
- Someone in DC government issued a permit for a marathon to be run in streets adjoining Freedom Square. I guess they never thought that the number of Americans who could possibly object to our government’s ‘March To Socialism’ would ever exceed the square’s capacity! Epic Fail! When irate marathon organizers tried to get folks arrested for crossing the street they stepped beyond the limits of decorum. Blame Government, Not Conservatives!
- The mainstream media followed the lead of the Associated Press and reported thousands and thirty thousand as the number of marchers. The above photo is from AP itself and puts the lie to their own crowd estimate. I understand the DC Metropolitan Police estimated the size at 2.2 million. They reportedly shut the Metro and closed interstate exits into the city due to the congestion. Associated Press Lies!
I got a call from my brother who reached Freedom Plaza about 9am. The Plaza was full to overflowing and people were backing up on all the side streets around. I began to see that as we passed on our way to court. The Plaza, Pennsylvania Ave and E Street were jammed full of people.
The crowd was alread spilling into 14th Street and the situation on 13th was much worse!
Some boob in whatever department issues permits in Washington had issued a permit for a marathon on E Street and 13th Street for the exact same time as the Tea Party rally and march!
The marathon organizers were livid that mere common American citizens were spilling over into their sacrosanct venue. They were busy trying to get police to arrest anyone that stepped foot into the street! Unfortunately that was the only way many people coming to the rally could go! If the Metropolitan Police had tried to enforce even a little of what the marathon organizers wanted they would have had to arrest thousands and the epic riot that would have ensued would have been one for the history books!
My brother called me about 9:30 to say that the police were no longer able to handle the size of the crowd and that the march was beginning an hour and a half early to help clear the square!
Jim sent this photo from the Marriot Hotel looking down on Freedom Plaza about this time:
And they Marched!
And Marched!
And Marched!
They came by state, town, large groups and small. Individuals, couples and families. Americans, Russian immigrants, Cuban exiles it made no difference. They all had one overarching theme:
We happened to be standing in front of this building, the Newseum, whose inscription of the first amendment fired up the crowd as they marched past:
Here is a taste of what the march was like!
The March lasted for over two and a half hours from curb to curb along Pennsylvania Avenue!
Here is a link to hundreds more of my pictures. Joe has more pics from the same location!
More great photos here by Mommy Life!
Our friends at Numag put together a great overall video:
Here is a report on their excellent interviews with people at the Capitol!
John at Radio Free Dar al Harb has more video on the street and at the rally.
Atlas Shrugs notes Doctors on the Mall!
Our friend El Marko has more at Looking At The Left!
Bubba checks in with a great report and video: The Patriot Tsunami!
The best Panorama shot of the Day is here!
More Excellent Photos are Here!
An Excellent Analysis of the size of the March is here:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/19743935/The-Real-Number-of-Protesters-Zac-Moilanen
The Silent Majority has outstanding pictures here, here and here! Their great videos are here!
Here’s One, the CNN bus fiasco! Hiding the crowd by filming from the other side of the bus!
The Band of Mothers has a report with pictures here.
And now, for some comic relief!
Here is the Organizing for America response on 9/13 when they ‘organized’ their March on Washington!
I’ll give them a break and guess that they may have had 200 moonbats present. They speed up the video of the group walking around the cricular fountain in a futile attempt to make it seem more impressive! The same people appear three or four times! Epic Fail!
Wow! A ton of great American Patriots were out at Walter Reed on Friday night!
Several hundred lined the corners of Georgia Avenue! Folks came in early to be there before attending the Great American Tea Party March on Washington 9/12.
Here’s a great video by one of our patriots!
Since I don’t do night pictures very well here are just a few photos!
Thank you to all who came out from early afternoon until the last troop bus returned from dinner!
More and better pictures are here.
The Silent Majority has a report here.
We didn’t get into town until the evening so as soon as we checked into the hotel we ran right back out and drove like maniacs to Walter Reed. But the festivities began much earlier in the day.
Our buddy Jonn from This Aint Hell has an excellent report with pictures and video from the daytime activities!
Video covering the day and night outside Walter Reed:
Another great video that gives you the flavor of the Troop Rally:
During the day, after the presentation of laptops for the warriors, Jim Diehl presented a picture of The Last Eagle for the troops.
Thousands turned out today to welcome home Cpl Christopher Levi who returned home after an extended stay at Walter Reed Army Hospital while he was fitted and trained to use his new prosthetic legs. The Arrivals Terminal was a sea of American flags. So many came out that all the Patriot Guard Rider Region 9 flags were used as well as many riders’ personal flags.
The escort ride proceeded through a forest of flag arches erected by many volunteer fire departments and then through crowds of well wishers lining the road to his home.
Pictures are here and here.
Local News Report with video is here.
Newsday story is here. Newsday photos are here.
Another Newsday report is here.
An Excellent Video of the entire motorcade passing under the Flag arches.
A few more outstanding photos are here.
A followup editorial on returning soldiers is here.
Another set of outstanding photos are here.
Excellent pictures from the Riverhead Fire Department.
A large happy crowd turned out in Rockville Centre today for the 4th Annual Walk of Honor in memory of 1st Lt. Ron Winchester, USMC, a resident of this town who was killed in action in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, in 2004. The fund raiser which benefits the Semper Fi Fund for wounded Marines and the 1st Marine Division Scholarship Fund for the children of Marines who have lost a parent in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The crowd proceeded to march from pub to pub in Rockville Centre enjoying half price drinks, food buffets and excellent comaraderie from 2pm until after 9pm.
It was a beautiful crisp clear day at the National Cemetery in Farmingdale, NY. A stiff breeze kept the flags flapping and everyone’s cheeks rosy!
National Cemetery, Farmingdale, NY, Wreaths laid on Veterans Graves
Harry Rathsam and the scouts of Troop 604 did an outstanding job of preparing the grounds for the Wreath ceremony. Starting about 9:30 am they placed over 2,000 wreaths on veterans’ graves throughout the cemetery.
At the appointed time Patriot Guard Riders formed a flag line along Flagstaff Drive, the road leading to the flagpole from the Administration Building. The Boy Scouts marched up flagstaff drive with veterans and Gold Star family members. As they passed, the PGR flag line fell in behind them and followed them in to Flagstaff Circle.
Harry Rathsam was a fabulous Master of Ceremonies and led the group through the Pledge of Allegiance, the setting of wreaths for each branch of the armed forces and POW/MIAs.
What was nicest was that it was a gathering of Americans, veterans and civilians alike, for one purpose. To honor those who served and laid down their lives in defense of our nation and our liberty. The were no speechs by politicians with flowery rhetoric, only folks who really cared about our troops past and present.
It was an honor to take part in this event and I look forward to doing it again next year.
Here is a map of the cemetery. The location of the ceremony was at the circle in the middle of Flagstaff Drive in the lower right of the image.
A few pictures are here, and more pictures as well as some short video clips which will be edited into a single clip are here.
Other reports from NY State:
Chemung County, Woodlawn National Cemetery 2
Chenango County, Guilford Center Cemetery 2(Video)
Tioga County Veterans Memorial 2 3
Saratoga County, G. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery
Steuben County, Bath National Cemetery 2
Suffolk County, Calverton National Cemetery 2
Westchester County, Kemper Memorial Park
For reports from other locations around the nation continue reading
