thedrifter
10-10-07, 07:38 AM
Heroes Weekend honorsservice and offers support
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
By PATRICIA C. McCARTER
Times Staff Writer patricia.mccarter@htimes.com
Wounded warriorswill attend eventtied to Veterans Day
During his eight months in Iraq, Cpl. Zeth Tays was wounded twice.
The first time was when a grenade was tossed in the Humvee he was riding in. He threw it back out of the vehicle and, when it exploded in air, the percussion knocked him unconscious.
The second time, the 21-year-old Florence man's vehicle hit a triple-stack anti-tank mine, and it threw him out of the vehicle. A lance corporal who was with him was killed; Tays suffered a dislocated knee and his front tooth was knocked out.
"But if I could, I wouldn't go back to the day I joined up and do anything differently," said Tays, who enlisted on a Friday and was headed to boot camp the next Monday. "Once a Marine, always a Marine."
It is for people like Tays that the Semper Fi Community Task Force of North Alabama is hosting the first Heroes Weekend to coincide with Veterans Day. Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment, headquartered in Virginia, will be honored for their service, and they'll be offered support for their return to civilian life.
The Huntsville Track Club is partnering with the task force to host the 5k Heroes Run, in which veterans who sustained combat injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan will be helped along the course by local citizens. Those who cannot complete the course because of their injuries - like Cpl. Tays - will be on the sidelines cheering.
(Non-military runners are also welcome. Go to www.huntsvilletrackclub.org for more information.)
Tays - who requires more surgery and is seeing a neurologist for his short-term memory loss - says he knows it will mean the world to wounded veterans to see people come out and show their support at the race on Nov. 10 or at the annual Veterans Day parade Nov. 12.
"I know that a lot of veterans feel forgotten," Tays said. "But it's a great feeling when you know that people recognize what you've done, what you've sacrificed for your country.
"When you're over there in Iraq and you hear about Congress wanting to cut back funds for the war, you wonder, 'What about us? What about what we need?' To have people thanking us will mean a lot."
Retired Army Gen. Frank Libutti, the CEO of Digital Fusion in Huntsville, is a member of the Semper Fi Community Task Force and a big believer in what the Heroes Weekend is setting out to do. The group won't know until closer to the event how many Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment will attend. It could be up to a couple of dozen.
"Those Marines will represent the contributions made by the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who are doing their jobs and doing them well in Iraq," Libutti said. "We really want to wave the flag and highlight what they've done."
So far, at least 8,000 Marines have received Purple Hearts, he said.
Libutti said the weekend isn't just to recognize the disabilities that some of the soldiers have been left with; it is to acknowledge their abilities.
After the parade, the task force will sponsor a job transition workshop at Embassy Suites, where the wounded soldiers will be coached in how to write resumes and interview for jobs. The next day, they will attend a job fair where local companies will try to match the Marines' skills with jobs.
The event could be a costly one for the task force, which organized this year. It has to pay some transportation costs as well as meals and lodging for the wounded warriors invited in for four days.
Anyone wishing to mail a contribution can do so at SFCTF, P.O. Box 2291, Madison AL 35758.
Ellie
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
By PATRICIA C. McCARTER
Times Staff Writer patricia.mccarter@htimes.com
Wounded warriorswill attend eventtied to Veterans Day
During his eight months in Iraq, Cpl. Zeth Tays was wounded twice.
The first time was when a grenade was tossed in the Humvee he was riding in. He threw it back out of the vehicle and, when it exploded in air, the percussion knocked him unconscious.
The second time, the 21-year-old Florence man's vehicle hit a triple-stack anti-tank mine, and it threw him out of the vehicle. A lance corporal who was with him was killed; Tays suffered a dislocated knee and his front tooth was knocked out.
"But if I could, I wouldn't go back to the day I joined up and do anything differently," said Tays, who enlisted on a Friday and was headed to boot camp the next Monday. "Once a Marine, always a Marine."
It is for people like Tays that the Semper Fi Community Task Force of North Alabama is hosting the first Heroes Weekend to coincide with Veterans Day. Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment, headquartered in Virginia, will be honored for their service, and they'll be offered support for their return to civilian life.
The Huntsville Track Club is partnering with the task force to host the 5k Heroes Run, in which veterans who sustained combat injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan will be helped along the course by local citizens. Those who cannot complete the course because of their injuries - like Cpl. Tays - will be on the sidelines cheering.
(Non-military runners are also welcome. Go to www.huntsvilletrackclub.org for more information.)
Tays - who requires more surgery and is seeing a neurologist for his short-term memory loss - says he knows it will mean the world to wounded veterans to see people come out and show their support at the race on Nov. 10 or at the annual Veterans Day parade Nov. 12.
"I know that a lot of veterans feel forgotten," Tays said. "But it's a great feeling when you know that people recognize what you've done, what you've sacrificed for your country.
"When you're over there in Iraq and you hear about Congress wanting to cut back funds for the war, you wonder, 'What about us? What about what we need?' To have people thanking us will mean a lot."
Retired Army Gen. Frank Libutti, the CEO of Digital Fusion in Huntsville, is a member of the Semper Fi Community Task Force and a big believer in what the Heroes Weekend is setting out to do. The group won't know until closer to the event how many Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment will attend. It could be up to a couple of dozen.
"Those Marines will represent the contributions made by the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who are doing their jobs and doing them well in Iraq," Libutti said. "We really want to wave the flag and highlight what they've done."
So far, at least 8,000 Marines have received Purple Hearts, he said.
Libutti said the weekend isn't just to recognize the disabilities that some of the soldiers have been left with; it is to acknowledge their abilities.
After the parade, the task force will sponsor a job transition workshop at Embassy Suites, where the wounded soldiers will be coached in how to write resumes and interview for jobs. The next day, they will attend a job fair where local companies will try to match the Marines' skills with jobs.
The event could be a costly one for the task force, which organized this year. It has to pay some transportation costs as well as meals and lodging for the wounded warriors invited in for four days.
Anyone wishing to mail a contribution can do so at SFCTF, P.O. Box 2291, Madison AL 35758.
Ellie