thedrifter
05-21-08, 05:31 AM
Billboard honors Brevard Marine - critics wonder if it's a recruiting tool
Darryl E. Owens
Sentinel Staff Writer
May 21, 2008
Like a soldier on sentry duty, the portrait of a stern-looking Lance Cpl. Andrew Bickerstaff stands guard over the motorists who drive by a billboard on the BeachLine Expressway near Orlando International Airport.
Bickerstaff, a Marine who earned a Bronze Star for rescuing several seriously wounded comrades under assault in Iraq, is the first Central Floridian honored by the Marine Corps' Hometown Heroes billboard campaign.
The Marines say the sign is meant as a tribute to Bickerstaff, of Satellite Beach, and other U.S. servicemen and women at war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It's "to remind Americans that one of their hometown community members has left their city, served their country in an honorable manner and deserves high recognition for their sacrifices," said 1st Lt. Staci L. Reidinger, a spokeswoman for the Marine Corps.
Nonetheless, the billboards here and across the nation have drawn fire from critics who see them as a thinly disguised recruiting effort.
"It sounds like good Marines are being used to trick young citizens of this country into wasting their lives and forfeiting their innocence for someone else's gluttony," said Clifton Hicks, a member of the Gainesville chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War.
The campaign debuted in California three years ago and generated phone calls in support of honoring Marines for their sacrifice and commitment, Reidinger said. But published reports quoted some San Francisco-area residents who viewed the billboards as "propaganda."
Despite that backlash, the Marines have pressed on as Hometown Heroes has moved into cities across the Southeast and Midwest. Leaders at Marine Corps Recruiting Station Orlando decided to introduce the campaign to Central Florida. Last month, the billboards went up, donated by Clear Channel Outdoor and Lamar Outdoor Advertising.
Marine Sgt. Kevin Armentrout of Lakeland, a Bronze Star recipient, and Bickerstaff were selected from nominations for showing uncommon valor and earning high-level medals.
"We decided to bring them [local Marines] back home and put them in front of the community so that they can be honored by those driving by," said Sgt. Juan Vara, a spokesman with Marine Corps Recruiting Station Orlando, who led the project.
According to his citation, Bickerstaff earned his Bronze Star for "zealous initiative, courageous actions, and exceptional dedication to duty" during a May 2005 mission.
Three Marines were seriously wounded and under assault while conducting a mission in al-Ubaidi, Iraq. Bickerstaff bolted from his amphibious assault vehicle, ran about 30 yards to gather one Marine who had been shot and carried him to the vehicle. He made two more trips under fire to rescue two other Marines.
Bickerstaff, who is in Iraq, could not be reached by e-mail, and his family did not want to speak to the media.
But Vara said the billboards have prompted "people [to] contact me and say, 'If you get a chance to talk to this Marine, tell him I said, 'Thanks.' "
Fred Larson, who works with the Sunshine Chapter of the Association of the U.S. Army, conceded there may be an inherent recruiting element to the billboards.
But as Larson sees it, the signs are the least America can do.
"If I were to criticize anything," he said, "it would be this: We as a nation have not done nearly enough to honor, recognize and celebrate the service, sacrifice, heroism and . . . depth of character exhibited by these fine Americans."
Darryl E. Owens can be reached at dowens@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5095.
Ellie
Darryl E. Owens
Sentinel Staff Writer
May 21, 2008
Like a soldier on sentry duty, the portrait of a stern-looking Lance Cpl. Andrew Bickerstaff stands guard over the motorists who drive by a billboard on the BeachLine Expressway near Orlando International Airport.
Bickerstaff, a Marine who earned a Bronze Star for rescuing several seriously wounded comrades under assault in Iraq, is the first Central Floridian honored by the Marine Corps' Hometown Heroes billboard campaign.
The Marines say the sign is meant as a tribute to Bickerstaff, of Satellite Beach, and other U.S. servicemen and women at war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It's "to remind Americans that one of their hometown community members has left their city, served their country in an honorable manner and deserves high recognition for their sacrifices," said 1st Lt. Staci L. Reidinger, a spokeswoman for the Marine Corps.
Nonetheless, the billboards here and across the nation have drawn fire from critics who see them as a thinly disguised recruiting effort.
"It sounds like good Marines are being used to trick young citizens of this country into wasting their lives and forfeiting their innocence for someone else's gluttony," said Clifton Hicks, a member of the Gainesville chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War.
The campaign debuted in California three years ago and generated phone calls in support of honoring Marines for their sacrifice and commitment, Reidinger said. But published reports quoted some San Francisco-area residents who viewed the billboards as "propaganda."
Despite that backlash, the Marines have pressed on as Hometown Heroes has moved into cities across the Southeast and Midwest. Leaders at Marine Corps Recruiting Station Orlando decided to introduce the campaign to Central Florida. Last month, the billboards went up, donated by Clear Channel Outdoor and Lamar Outdoor Advertising.
Marine Sgt. Kevin Armentrout of Lakeland, a Bronze Star recipient, and Bickerstaff were selected from nominations for showing uncommon valor and earning high-level medals.
"We decided to bring them [local Marines] back home and put them in front of the community so that they can be honored by those driving by," said Sgt. Juan Vara, a spokesman with Marine Corps Recruiting Station Orlando, who led the project.
According to his citation, Bickerstaff earned his Bronze Star for "zealous initiative, courageous actions, and exceptional dedication to duty" during a May 2005 mission.
Three Marines were seriously wounded and under assault while conducting a mission in al-Ubaidi, Iraq. Bickerstaff bolted from his amphibious assault vehicle, ran about 30 yards to gather one Marine who had been shot and carried him to the vehicle. He made two more trips under fire to rescue two other Marines.
Bickerstaff, who is in Iraq, could not be reached by e-mail, and his family did not want to speak to the media.
But Vara said the billboards have prompted "people [to] contact me and say, 'If you get a chance to talk to this Marine, tell him I said, 'Thanks.' "
Fred Larson, who works with the Sunshine Chapter of the Association of the U.S. Army, conceded there may be an inherent recruiting element to the billboards.
But as Larson sees it, the signs are the least America can do.
"If I were to criticize anything," he said, "it would be this: We as a nation have not done nearly enough to honor, recognize and celebrate the service, sacrifice, heroism and . . . depth of character exhibited by these fine Americans."
Darryl E. Owens can be reached at dowens@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5095.
Ellie