thedrifter
12-03-06, 08:03 AM
Marine's parents rally to effort to make helmets safer for Iraq troops
Sunday, December 03, 2006
By Christopher Ruvo, The Associated Press
LEVITTOWN, Pa. -- Marie Farley's shirt says "Marine Mom." She takes the title seriously.
While her son, Michael, a Marine corporal based in Iraq, endures attacks from insurgents and the scorching heat of the desert, the Nockamixon woman is trying to help him from half a world away.
She and her husband, Mike, have teamed up with the Quakertown Moose Lodge and some local American Legion groups to buy shock-absorbent helmet linings for her son and the 53 Marines in his unit as part of a national effort called Operation Helmet.
"This is one way we can thank them for the incredible sacrifices they have made," she said.
The inserts, which cost close to $100 each, make helmets fit more comfortably and protect against head injury when soldiers are slammed to the ground by the force of explosions. Many servicemen and women have to pay for the inserts personally because they're not always provided by the military, she said.
"I was very upset [to learn that]," Ms. Farley said.
Operation Helmet was founded by Robert Meaders in 2004 after his Marine grandson requested upgrade kits to make his company's helmets safer in Iraq. The program has sent more than 27,000 helmet upgrade kits to those stationed in Iraq.
A news release on the group's Web site, www.operation-helmet.org, states, "The majority of today's helmets worn by most Marines and airmen are designed to protect troops from gunfire and flying debris, not blasts, which have accounted for 65 percent of U.S. military deaths in Iraq, according to figures compiled by The Associated Press."
A helmet upgrade kit consists of shock-absorbing pads and a new strap system. Adding the pads to the combat helmets can reduce fatal impact forces to a survivable level.
"We get e-mails every day from young troopers with families who can't afford to buy their own helmet kits," Dr. Meaders stated ,on his Web site. "We need ongoing donations right now from the American people to keep this effort alive!"
In the Farleys' tidy home in rural Upper Bucks, the TV is on. It broadcasts images of troops patrolling dusty roads among bombed-out buildings in Iraq.
"It's tough," said Dina Koehler, the Farleys' daughter, as she looks at the screen. "You want to watch, but you don't want to watch."
Michael Farley, a 2001 Palisades High School grad, is stationed in the volatile Anbar province, home to the one-time insurgent stronghold of Fallujah. Father Mike Farley, an ex-Marine and Vietnam vet, said his son's base is routinely mortared.
"When the locals disappear, they know it's coming," he said.
It was from TV that the Farleys learned of Operation Helmet: Cher's promoting the nonprofit organization on a talk show.
"I got excited," Ms. Farley said. "I knew right away this was something we could do to help out."
The Farleys went to Rod Van Pelt at the Quakertown Moose Lodge, where they are members, and asked if the lodge would assist them in fund-raising.
"We had to get involved," Mr. Van Pelt said. "We know somebody over there personally and, hopefully, we can help save somebody's life. Whether you believe in the war or not, you have to support the people who are over there."
The Moose Lodge has collected donations and publicized the campaign for two months. Donors' names are written on a little paper helmet displayed at the lodge. The Riegelsville and Quakertown American Legions have helped raise funds, too. And the Trumbauersville Lions have donated $500.
Mr. Van Pelt said close to $2,000 had been raised. The Farleys said they would keep raising money for Operation Helmet, even after their son's unit is outfitted.
"They're all family to us," Ms. Farley said of the Marines. "We want them all to come home safe."
Ellie
Sunday, December 03, 2006
By Christopher Ruvo, The Associated Press
LEVITTOWN, Pa. -- Marie Farley's shirt says "Marine Mom." She takes the title seriously.
While her son, Michael, a Marine corporal based in Iraq, endures attacks from insurgents and the scorching heat of the desert, the Nockamixon woman is trying to help him from half a world away.
She and her husband, Mike, have teamed up with the Quakertown Moose Lodge and some local American Legion groups to buy shock-absorbent helmet linings for her son and the 53 Marines in his unit as part of a national effort called Operation Helmet.
"This is one way we can thank them for the incredible sacrifices they have made," she said.
The inserts, which cost close to $100 each, make helmets fit more comfortably and protect against head injury when soldiers are slammed to the ground by the force of explosions. Many servicemen and women have to pay for the inserts personally because they're not always provided by the military, she said.
"I was very upset [to learn that]," Ms. Farley said.
Operation Helmet was founded by Robert Meaders in 2004 after his Marine grandson requested upgrade kits to make his company's helmets safer in Iraq. The program has sent more than 27,000 helmet upgrade kits to those stationed in Iraq.
A news release on the group's Web site, www.operation-helmet.org, states, "The majority of today's helmets worn by most Marines and airmen are designed to protect troops from gunfire and flying debris, not blasts, which have accounted for 65 percent of U.S. military deaths in Iraq, according to figures compiled by The Associated Press."
A helmet upgrade kit consists of shock-absorbing pads and a new strap system. Adding the pads to the combat helmets can reduce fatal impact forces to a survivable level.
"We get e-mails every day from young troopers with families who can't afford to buy their own helmet kits," Dr. Meaders stated ,on his Web site. "We need ongoing donations right now from the American people to keep this effort alive!"
In the Farleys' tidy home in rural Upper Bucks, the TV is on. It broadcasts images of troops patrolling dusty roads among bombed-out buildings in Iraq.
"It's tough," said Dina Koehler, the Farleys' daughter, as she looks at the screen. "You want to watch, but you don't want to watch."
Michael Farley, a 2001 Palisades High School grad, is stationed in the volatile Anbar province, home to the one-time insurgent stronghold of Fallujah. Father Mike Farley, an ex-Marine and Vietnam vet, said his son's base is routinely mortared.
"When the locals disappear, they know it's coming," he said.
It was from TV that the Farleys learned of Operation Helmet: Cher's promoting the nonprofit organization on a talk show.
"I got excited," Ms. Farley said. "I knew right away this was something we could do to help out."
The Farleys went to Rod Van Pelt at the Quakertown Moose Lodge, where they are members, and asked if the lodge would assist them in fund-raising.
"We had to get involved," Mr. Van Pelt said. "We know somebody over there personally and, hopefully, we can help save somebody's life. Whether you believe in the war or not, you have to support the people who are over there."
The Moose Lodge has collected donations and publicized the campaign for two months. Donors' names are written on a little paper helmet displayed at the lodge. The Riegelsville and Quakertown American Legions have helped raise funds, too. And the Trumbauersville Lions have donated $500.
Mr. Van Pelt said close to $2,000 had been raised. The Farleys said they would keep raising money for Operation Helmet, even after their son's unit is outfitted.
"They're all family to us," Ms. Farley said of the Marines. "We want them all to come home safe."
Ellie