Wed, Feb 10 2010
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Published November 19, 2009 04:42 pm - Bob French chokes up a little when he reads some of the letters written by Joplin school pupils to local soldiers serving in Afghanistan. All the letters include a “thank you” for the safety and security the soldiers’ service helps provide. But in some, the youngsters acknowledge the sacrifices being made by soldiers, who are in harm’s way, separated from their families, and missing holidays, birthdays and other important events. Veteran gathers kids’ letters to send to troops in Afghanistan w/ Joplin kids' letters to soldiers By Susan Redden
sredden@joplinglobe.com Bob French chokes up a little when he reads some of the letters written by Joplin school pupils to local soldiers serving in Afghanistan. All the letters include a “thank you” for the safety and security the soldiers’ service helps provide. But in some, the youngsters acknowledge the sacrifices being made by soldiers, who are in harm’s way, separated from their families, and missing holidays, birthdays and other important events. “They wrote from the heart, and it’s obvious they care,” French said of the more than 1,000 letters that he delivered Thursday to the Missouri Army National Guard Armory in Joplin. When he made the request to Joplin elementary and middle schools, he was hoping he would be able to send one letter to each of the approximately 300 members of the Joplin-based 203rd Engineer Battalion now serving in Afghanistan. He got three times that, and in short order. The day after he called the schools, “They had the letters for me,” said French, a Navy veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars, and a member of American Legion Post 13. French said he made the request after attending a Veterans Day program at Eastmorland Elementary School at which the children gave letters to veterans, thanking them for their service. “I asked them to write to the soldiers who are in harm’s way now,” he said. The schools and youngsters responded with letters and handmade greeting cards. Many contained drawings, and some included class pictures. French called the response “heartwarming.” “It (the letters) lets them know they’re loved and that we want them to come home safe,” he said. Michelle Pippin, public affairs representative with the Joplin-based unit, said members of the 203rd are stationed at three sites in Afghanistan. She said it will take about two weeks for the letters to arrive, and she predicted they will be welcomed. “It means a lot, because it’s a piece of home, and letters from kids mean 10 times more,” she said. “They talk about the Afghan kids who come up to them and want to shake their hands or touch their uniforms. They say they’re so beautiful it melts their hearts, and this will too.” 
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