thedrifter
09-02-07, 06:37 AM
Supporting troops through the chaplains who serve them
By: NICOLE SACK - Staff Writer
TEMECULA ---- What began as one woman's project to send care packages and prayers to deployed soldiers has snowballed into a church's ministry effort that, since March, has sent more than 230 boxes of supplies and comfort items to men and women serving in Iraq.
It is an effort that has touched hundreds of lives ---- both those who receive encouragement in the form of food, toiletries and correspondence, and those who send it. The chain of giving stretches from the home of a military family in Aguanga, to Sunridge Community Church in Temecula, across the globe to a husky U.S. Army chaplain, and to his soldiers stationed in Iraq.
But there are gifts and letters that also come back. Though the parcels coming back from Iraq are physically lighter than the care packages sent from the States, they are heavy with emotion and offer insight into the life of a man of God fighting to protect his soldiers' spirits and lives.
And with one glimpse of twisted copper wire, it seems that prayers on both sides of the globe are being answered.
First contact
Judi Pontsler is a military mom, with a retired military husband named John. The couple live in Aguanga, on the outskirts of Southwest County. Though they are far from the hustle and bustle of busy Temecula, they are not isolated from news of the war or concern for American troops in Iraq.
Pontsler wanted to go beyond just saying she supported the troops; she wanted to put action behind it.
"Regardless of your political views on the war, we need to make sure our troops are being taken care of," she said. "It's important for them to get a little piece of home."
Pontsler first tried to reach out to individual soldiers last year, but she quickly encountered obstacles to getting information on specific servicemembers who are currently deployed. She searched the Internet for a clearinghouse for troop support, and that's when she stumbled upon the Adopt-A-Chaplain Web site.
Gen. George Washington issued a general order in 1776 to provide a chaplain for each regiment. U.S. Army chaplains serve both God and their country by bringing their gifts of ministry to those in war. Army chaplains are soldiers who minister to fellow soldiers and, like any soldier, they must endure the hardships, separations and deprivations that come with being away from home and embroiled in warfare.
Adopt-a-Chaplain Inc. is a California nonprofit corporation with a mission of providing spiritual and tangible support to chaplains who are deployed with U.S. troops in the Middle East. The group serves approximately 100 deployed chaplains of all religious backgrounds who receive support simply by asking to be adopted. They are then matched with organizations of similar religious backgrounds and interests.
"This was something that I wanted to do, personally," Pontsler said. "It's really wonderful to be able to send all of our care packages to one soldier who will disburse them to other soldiers."
In January, she adopted Army Cpt. David Schlichter, who is the chaplain for the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division, which is now stationed at Camp Taji, Iraq. Schlichter, 43, originally from Ohio, entered the Army as a private in June 1982 and had a 12-year enlisted career before he was called into the ministry. He is based at Fort Hood, Texas.
Schlichter spent most of 2005 in Korea and was back home for 10 months before being deployed to Iraq in November 2006. He was due home this November, but because of the military's lengthening of deployments, he will not return before February or March, according to Pontsler ---- making it 15 months in the war zone.
Until then, Schlichter will continue watching over his battalion, dubbed the "Stallions." He not only offers his ministry support at base camp, but prays with soldiers before they go on a mission. There is also work to do outside the walls of the camp as he makes the rounds with the other soldiers.
"He goes out on patrols with the men. He is in danger too," Pontsler said. "He thinks of the guys as 'his' boys, and when something happens to them, it happens to him."
The dangers of war are always finding ways to the troops. Schlichter is there to pray with soldiers when they are injured or endure emotional pain. He also has the duty of overseeing memorial services for those who are killed.
In some of his down time, he writes.
Jan. 17
Friends, I can not tell how much it means that you and your team pray for my Stallions. These boys go out everyday and get hit by the enemy, come back to camp, get a shower, some hot chow and get ready to go do the same thing the next day. I've lost 5 Soldiers since our arrival in November. We are looking at a 12-15 month tour. the devil is fighting hard to discourage and distract the chaplains from their eternal task. But GOD IS FAITHFUL. God is changing lives and I get to be a part of it.
Thank you, my friends.
CPT (CH) David R. Schlichter
Reaching out
As correspondence between the Pontslers and Schlichter became more regular, Judi Pontsler felt good about her efforts. And if she could help as one person, she thought, how much more help could she provide if she were to get others involved?
In March, an opportunity arose that allowed her to invite the 1,200-member congregation of Sunridge Community Church to join the effort.
That same month, the nondenominational church on Winchester Road in Temecula had launched an outreach program dubbed the "You Too" series.
John Gaskin, assistant pastor at Sunridge, said that on the first Sunday of the five-week series of sermons, each congregation member was given a $1 bill to spend helping others and think about what it means to be Christ-like. By the second Sunday, people were coming back with awe-inspiring stories of how they had decided to reach out to those in need. By the fifth Sunday, he said, numerous members presented their particular causes to the church.
"We're very decentralized in our ministry. We're not corporate," he said. "All the ministries that were introduced that Sunday were ministries people were already doing and were passionate about. We gave our members the opportunity to follow whatever service made their hearts beat faster."
Pontsler was one of those who used the opportunity to introduce the church to the cause that was near to her heart. She set up a table with 100 flat-rate postal boxes to hand out to those who wanted to fill the parcels with care-package items. All 100 boxes were handed out in the first service.
"The message behind the You Too effort was that we as a church should not stay just within the four walls of the church, that we should start reaching out," Pontsler said. "There are so many people who struggle and it is up to us to discover how God wants us to help."
The church since has sent more than 237 boxes to Schlichter, who in turn gives them to the troops.
"This project has just blessed us in every way," she said. "One of the neatest things is too see how people are giving."
One couple who attends Sunridge opted to skip birthday presents this year. Instead, their birthday wish was for their friends and family members to buy items that could be sent to Schlichter. They collected 13 boxes of goods, which they mailed off to the chaplain, Pontsler said.
The church's women's Bible Study has adopted all the female soldiers, about 15, in the unit and has taken it upon themselves to make sure the women are getting their specific needs taken care of as well.
While chaplains are there to offer support to the men and women around them, they also need someone to listen to their concerns.
March 1, 2007
My friends, there is no higher calling than to BE the presence of Christ wherever you find yourself. You are the light in the dark places of life. You have a war right where you are. Someone near you is struggling in their marriage, someone is considering drug use for the first time, someone is thinking of suicide. AND God put You near them. BE THE LIGHT. Their life and eternity depends on it. It may depend on YOU. You have been silent long enough. I'm not encouraging you to beat them with your biggest Bible. But be love, be Christ there in your town, in your office, in YOUR HOME... God trusts you to do the right thing. Depend on Him. After all, what's your alternative?
Onward Christian Soldiers...
Chaplain Dave
The cross to bear
Pontsler might be hoping the prayers and goodwill of the ministry will spill over to her own family as her two sons ready to deploy, though she's too modest to say so. Her oldest son, Aaron, 35, is a member of the 101st Airborne division. Aaron has served two tours in Iraq, and is preparing for his third deployment to Afghanistan this fall, where he is due to stay for 15 months.
Her youngest son, Adam, 24, is a member of the special operations aviation regiment, and is awaiting his first deployment in the coming weeks. Pontsler said she doesn't know exactly where Adam will be sent or how long his tour will be.
For now, the brothers are both stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky. She's heading there soon to see them before they leave.
"Mom has to be there to say goodbye," she said.
She said her sons have already told her they will be getting in touch with their assigned chaplains when they reach their stations.
"Hopefully, it will be a way to keep them going to church," she said. "Not a lot of young men, soldiers, are willing to say they need to talk with someone about how the war is effecting them. But it's easy for them to say, 'I'm going to the Chap's office to get a candy bar.' But when they arrive they can have the opportunity to decompress and talk about what they are feeling."
Pontsler will spend a lot of time worrying about them once they're gone, of course, but she also worries about Schlichter as if he were family. Though she has never met him, she said she has come to know him and is waiting for his return to the States.
"We can't wait to meet him when he comes out next spring to finally meet (those of) us at Sunridge who have prayed and care for him while deployed," Pontsler said.
Schlichter plans to ride his motorcycle from Texas to Temecula when he returns home so he and his wife can meet the people who have been praying for him during his time in Iraq.
Until that day, the church and Pontsler await updates from the front lines and keep praying for the safety of the troops. While Schlichter cannot reciprocate the material goods that he and his soldiers receive from the members of Sunridge, he is able to offer them gifts of incalculable value.
During the second week of August, Pontsler received a package from Schlichter. This envelope was heavier than a letter.
"I just couldn't understand what he could have sent that would be so bulky," she said. "But when I opened the letter, I understood. When you look at them closer, you realize what they really represent."
Inside were three crudely made crosses crafted from twisted-copper wire. A letter, dated July 28, accompanied the trinity of crosses:
Dear Friend,
The cross you hold in your hand is called a PRAISE cross. I made it from the wire that my Soldiers find attached to an IED (Improvised Explosive Devise) "Bomb". This cross is an example of YOUR prayers being answered. Because, my Soldiers were able to find the "bomb" before anyone got hurt. So God protected them from harm. Now, every time you see your cross, thank the Lord for hearing and answering YOUR prayer, and making a difference in the lives of my Soldiers.
As I make them, I pray for my Soldiers and thank God for people like you who join me in prayer for the safety of our Soldiers.
Keep up the prayers and we will see what God can do.
--- David Schlichter, Chaplain Captain.
Contact staff writer Nicole Sack at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2616, or nsack@californian.com.
Ellie
By: NICOLE SACK - Staff Writer
TEMECULA ---- What began as one woman's project to send care packages and prayers to deployed soldiers has snowballed into a church's ministry effort that, since March, has sent more than 230 boxes of supplies and comfort items to men and women serving in Iraq.
It is an effort that has touched hundreds of lives ---- both those who receive encouragement in the form of food, toiletries and correspondence, and those who send it. The chain of giving stretches from the home of a military family in Aguanga, to Sunridge Community Church in Temecula, across the globe to a husky U.S. Army chaplain, and to his soldiers stationed in Iraq.
But there are gifts and letters that also come back. Though the parcels coming back from Iraq are physically lighter than the care packages sent from the States, they are heavy with emotion and offer insight into the life of a man of God fighting to protect his soldiers' spirits and lives.
And with one glimpse of twisted copper wire, it seems that prayers on both sides of the globe are being answered.
First contact
Judi Pontsler is a military mom, with a retired military husband named John. The couple live in Aguanga, on the outskirts of Southwest County. Though they are far from the hustle and bustle of busy Temecula, they are not isolated from news of the war or concern for American troops in Iraq.
Pontsler wanted to go beyond just saying she supported the troops; she wanted to put action behind it.
"Regardless of your political views on the war, we need to make sure our troops are being taken care of," she said. "It's important for them to get a little piece of home."
Pontsler first tried to reach out to individual soldiers last year, but she quickly encountered obstacles to getting information on specific servicemembers who are currently deployed. She searched the Internet for a clearinghouse for troop support, and that's when she stumbled upon the Adopt-A-Chaplain Web site.
Gen. George Washington issued a general order in 1776 to provide a chaplain for each regiment. U.S. Army chaplains serve both God and their country by bringing their gifts of ministry to those in war. Army chaplains are soldiers who minister to fellow soldiers and, like any soldier, they must endure the hardships, separations and deprivations that come with being away from home and embroiled in warfare.
Adopt-a-Chaplain Inc. is a California nonprofit corporation with a mission of providing spiritual and tangible support to chaplains who are deployed with U.S. troops in the Middle East. The group serves approximately 100 deployed chaplains of all religious backgrounds who receive support simply by asking to be adopted. They are then matched with organizations of similar religious backgrounds and interests.
"This was something that I wanted to do, personally," Pontsler said. "It's really wonderful to be able to send all of our care packages to one soldier who will disburse them to other soldiers."
In January, she adopted Army Cpt. David Schlichter, who is the chaplain for the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division, which is now stationed at Camp Taji, Iraq. Schlichter, 43, originally from Ohio, entered the Army as a private in June 1982 and had a 12-year enlisted career before he was called into the ministry. He is based at Fort Hood, Texas.
Schlichter spent most of 2005 in Korea and was back home for 10 months before being deployed to Iraq in November 2006. He was due home this November, but because of the military's lengthening of deployments, he will not return before February or March, according to Pontsler ---- making it 15 months in the war zone.
Until then, Schlichter will continue watching over his battalion, dubbed the "Stallions." He not only offers his ministry support at base camp, but prays with soldiers before they go on a mission. There is also work to do outside the walls of the camp as he makes the rounds with the other soldiers.
"He goes out on patrols with the men. He is in danger too," Pontsler said. "He thinks of the guys as 'his' boys, and when something happens to them, it happens to him."
The dangers of war are always finding ways to the troops. Schlichter is there to pray with soldiers when they are injured or endure emotional pain. He also has the duty of overseeing memorial services for those who are killed.
In some of his down time, he writes.
Jan. 17
Friends, I can not tell how much it means that you and your team pray for my Stallions. These boys go out everyday and get hit by the enemy, come back to camp, get a shower, some hot chow and get ready to go do the same thing the next day. I've lost 5 Soldiers since our arrival in November. We are looking at a 12-15 month tour. the devil is fighting hard to discourage and distract the chaplains from their eternal task. But GOD IS FAITHFUL. God is changing lives and I get to be a part of it.
Thank you, my friends.
CPT (CH) David R. Schlichter
Reaching out
As correspondence between the Pontslers and Schlichter became more regular, Judi Pontsler felt good about her efforts. And if she could help as one person, she thought, how much more help could she provide if she were to get others involved?
In March, an opportunity arose that allowed her to invite the 1,200-member congregation of Sunridge Community Church to join the effort.
That same month, the nondenominational church on Winchester Road in Temecula had launched an outreach program dubbed the "You Too" series.
John Gaskin, assistant pastor at Sunridge, said that on the first Sunday of the five-week series of sermons, each congregation member was given a $1 bill to spend helping others and think about what it means to be Christ-like. By the second Sunday, people were coming back with awe-inspiring stories of how they had decided to reach out to those in need. By the fifth Sunday, he said, numerous members presented their particular causes to the church.
"We're very decentralized in our ministry. We're not corporate," he said. "All the ministries that were introduced that Sunday were ministries people were already doing and were passionate about. We gave our members the opportunity to follow whatever service made their hearts beat faster."
Pontsler was one of those who used the opportunity to introduce the church to the cause that was near to her heart. She set up a table with 100 flat-rate postal boxes to hand out to those who wanted to fill the parcels with care-package items. All 100 boxes were handed out in the first service.
"The message behind the You Too effort was that we as a church should not stay just within the four walls of the church, that we should start reaching out," Pontsler said. "There are so many people who struggle and it is up to us to discover how God wants us to help."
The church since has sent more than 237 boxes to Schlichter, who in turn gives them to the troops.
"This project has just blessed us in every way," she said. "One of the neatest things is too see how people are giving."
One couple who attends Sunridge opted to skip birthday presents this year. Instead, their birthday wish was for their friends and family members to buy items that could be sent to Schlichter. They collected 13 boxes of goods, which they mailed off to the chaplain, Pontsler said.
The church's women's Bible Study has adopted all the female soldiers, about 15, in the unit and has taken it upon themselves to make sure the women are getting their specific needs taken care of as well.
While chaplains are there to offer support to the men and women around them, they also need someone to listen to their concerns.
March 1, 2007
My friends, there is no higher calling than to BE the presence of Christ wherever you find yourself. You are the light in the dark places of life. You have a war right where you are. Someone near you is struggling in their marriage, someone is considering drug use for the first time, someone is thinking of suicide. AND God put You near them. BE THE LIGHT. Their life and eternity depends on it. It may depend on YOU. You have been silent long enough. I'm not encouraging you to beat them with your biggest Bible. But be love, be Christ there in your town, in your office, in YOUR HOME... God trusts you to do the right thing. Depend on Him. After all, what's your alternative?
Onward Christian Soldiers...
Chaplain Dave
The cross to bear
Pontsler might be hoping the prayers and goodwill of the ministry will spill over to her own family as her two sons ready to deploy, though she's too modest to say so. Her oldest son, Aaron, 35, is a member of the 101st Airborne division. Aaron has served two tours in Iraq, and is preparing for his third deployment to Afghanistan this fall, where he is due to stay for 15 months.
Her youngest son, Adam, 24, is a member of the special operations aviation regiment, and is awaiting his first deployment in the coming weeks. Pontsler said she doesn't know exactly where Adam will be sent or how long his tour will be.
For now, the brothers are both stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky. She's heading there soon to see them before they leave.
"Mom has to be there to say goodbye," she said.
She said her sons have already told her they will be getting in touch with their assigned chaplains when they reach their stations.
"Hopefully, it will be a way to keep them going to church," she said. "Not a lot of young men, soldiers, are willing to say they need to talk with someone about how the war is effecting them. But it's easy for them to say, 'I'm going to the Chap's office to get a candy bar.' But when they arrive they can have the opportunity to decompress and talk about what they are feeling."
Pontsler will spend a lot of time worrying about them once they're gone, of course, but she also worries about Schlichter as if he were family. Though she has never met him, she said she has come to know him and is waiting for his return to the States.
"We can't wait to meet him when he comes out next spring to finally meet (those of) us at Sunridge who have prayed and care for him while deployed," Pontsler said.
Schlichter plans to ride his motorcycle from Texas to Temecula when he returns home so he and his wife can meet the people who have been praying for him during his time in Iraq.
Until that day, the church and Pontsler await updates from the front lines and keep praying for the safety of the troops. While Schlichter cannot reciprocate the material goods that he and his soldiers receive from the members of Sunridge, he is able to offer them gifts of incalculable value.
During the second week of August, Pontsler received a package from Schlichter. This envelope was heavier than a letter.
"I just couldn't understand what he could have sent that would be so bulky," she said. "But when I opened the letter, I understood. When you look at them closer, you realize what they really represent."
Inside were three crudely made crosses crafted from twisted-copper wire. A letter, dated July 28, accompanied the trinity of crosses:
Dear Friend,
The cross you hold in your hand is called a PRAISE cross. I made it from the wire that my Soldiers find attached to an IED (Improvised Explosive Devise) "Bomb". This cross is an example of YOUR prayers being answered. Because, my Soldiers were able to find the "bomb" before anyone got hurt. So God protected them from harm. Now, every time you see your cross, thank the Lord for hearing and answering YOUR prayer, and making a difference in the lives of my Soldiers.
As I make them, I pray for my Soldiers and thank God for people like you who join me in prayer for the safety of our Soldiers.
Keep up the prayers and we will see what God can do.
--- David Schlichter, Chaplain Captain.
Contact staff writer Nicole Sack at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2616, or nsack@californian.com.
Ellie