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thedrifter
03-15-07, 03:35 PM
Web site helps families maintain contact
Lance Cpl. Chris T. Mann

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.(March 15, 2007) -- Technology offers more than just a modern way to fight and win wars for the Marine Corps. It now provides a way for families to communicate with one another over great distances and keep in touch with their loved ones deployed overseas.

Websites for Heroes was first launched November 2006 by former Marine Corps sergeant, Terry L. Gniffke, of Cottonwood, Minn. The company has come up with a unique way for military personnel to communicate with each other on a personalized Web site for free.

“This Web site is about keeping lasting relationships when you’re far away from those whom you love and care about,” Gniffke said. “The Web site is important for the morale and mental health of those deployed and those left behind.”

The waiting list for the Web site is on a first-come, first-served basis. Service members can sign up to be placed on the list by visiting the Web site.

The site also provides a way for others to make contributions to the men and women serving in the military.

People outside the military wishing to help can do so by sponsoring a Web site or making donations to the site. A sponsorship allows the families to use the service for 12 months.

Gniffke married his wife shortly after he returned home from his final tour in Vietnam. He now has three children and two grandsons.

“The site was designed for the husbands and wives who are at home worrying about their spouses overseas,” Gniffke said. “This will help put them at ease through difficult times.”

The Web site is a combined effort of Gniffke and Michael Sawtell, both CEOs for their Web-based companies.

According to an ABC affiliate, South Mississippi WLOX News aired a newscast Feb. 21, 2006, that described the Web site and a military family who used the site. Michelle Galvez used it to send her husband Robert Galvez, who is in the Navy and was deployed overseas, digital video footage of their 18-month-old son Zachary.

“He may be 7,000 miles away, but we can share with him daily events of our lives,” Michelle said.

For more information regarding Websites for Heroes, visit online at www.websitesforheroes.com.

About the Founder

Terry L. Gniffke, cofounder of Websites for Heroes and former aviation ordnance technician, Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 12, Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, made history during his tour in Vietnam after he and his team assembled the last bomb used for combat operations against the North Vietnamese.

Gniffke worked as a munitions support technician who assembled bombs, napalm and rockets used by the aircraft group. The ordnance team assembled the explosives at Bien Hoa Air Base, Republic of Vietnam.

“It was a time of lasts,” said Gniffke. “January 26, 1973, we assembled the last bomb for combat operations.”

On that date, a single volley of 122 mm rockets hit the area during the early morning hours and killed Pfc. Mark J. Miller, an administration clerk who worked with Gniffke. He was one of the last Marines killed in action before ceasefire was officially instated.

On Sept. 10, 1972, an ordnance dump exploded, injuring four Marines and causing structural damage to the MAG-12 supply building where Gniffke worked. The Marines there were unable to determine what the cause of the explosion was, so the Marines formed two 30-man platoons that worked as a reaction force.

“Being a part of the reaction force holds memories that I shall never forget,” Gniffke said. “With the cessation of combat operations throughout Vietnam (Jan. 27, 1973), we made preparations to return to Iwakuni, Japan.”

More than 800 rockets hit the Bien Hoa Air Base, and approximately 417 of the rockets hit in the MAG-12 (A-4 Skyhawks) area where Gniffke worked.

“Most operations were from three to 50 miles from Bien Hoa,” said retired Col. Dean C. Macho, former commanding officer for Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 12. “It was common to see, hear and feel air strikes flown by MAG-12 A-4s as close as three to five miles from the parameter, definitely a huge incentive to keep our focus on the mission.”

The total losses suffered by the group during their mission in Vietnam were three A-4 Skyhawk Aircraft, three Marines killed, one who was missing in action and 11 wounded. The missing Marine was Capt. James P. Walsh, Marine Attack Squadron 211, who was one of the last Marines to be captured by the North Vietnamese.

The aircraft group was the last American fixed wing aviation unit to depart Vietnam. After leaving the country, the group had completed 12,574 combat missions and dropped 19,903 tons of ordnance during combat operations.

Ellie