Governors Day

So, yesterday I spent the day up at Rice Eccles Stadium with our FRG leaders doing some fundraising at Governors Day. I think we made money and did well. Macades good friend, (I call him Cades babysitter), got awarded soldier of the year. That was fun. I took our photo and sent it to Cade. It was a miracle I found him in that mess of soldiers. Anyone in the Air or Army Guard was there. They literally fill up the whole field when they get in formation. Amazing to see actually. They flew over 6 Apaches and a C-130. It's always cool for me anyway. So right about the time they were getting started, I get a call from Cade. He sounded so happy! He had got the chance to play gunner and as much as I hate the idea, he was so giddy about it. He also has been doing recovery. Which means he is going out to recover vehicles that have been hit or broken down. He took charge of a situation the other day and received praise by the 1st Lieutenant and was pretty excited about that too. He is to be promoted to Specialist next month. He also told me about getting out of his big ol mean lookin truck and talking to the people. You know, people always say they fall in love with the people from their missions? Well, he is no different. He loves the people. He got to talk for quite some time with an Afghani kid about his own age. He says he is making a difference. This is exactly the answer to my prayers that he will see the good in being there and not just the bad.
So, speaking of bad... if you only want to hear the good, here is where you click the little X in the top right corner....
They have already had some incidences where their machinery has had a chance to prove it works. Macade is FINE. I have spoken to him several times and he is OK. I have found out more about there notification process and the news is unfortunate. Info is slow coming. And if it comes from Macade, which is preferable, it is very vague. He cannot say much at all except to let us know that he is fine. I do not know if he was involved in the latest incident, but with several missed calls to me and finally getting through to Sterling, it is my guess that he was there. Again, he is fine.
This was not the first incident and it most definitely won't be the last. They are very busy and working sometimes more than 14 hours a day. Please keep him and his "family" in your prayers. And please keep sending letters. Some of these soldiers will keep letters they get with them all day. In a day when email is certainly easier, sometimes it is the good old fashioned letter that is appreciated the most. He also loves pictures! Thanks again for being so great. We take great comfort in knowing we have wonderful family and friends to support us through this difficult time.