Welcome home Rose of our heart!

Welcome home 2/25/11 6am

Greatest Generation Holuta, Band of Brothers and the next Greatest generation...

George, Peter,Michael Holuta WWII

Left to right on picture:

George Holuta – Pvt.Medical Corp. 3ID, Killed in Anzio Italy from the bombing of the hospital while he was helping the wounded.

3RD Infantry Division was ordered to hit the beaches at Anzio, 22 January 1944, where for four months it maintained its toe-hold against furious German counterattacks. On 29 February 1944, the 3rd fought off an attack by three German Divisions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzio

Peter Holuta- Cpl. 28TH ID, Germany and France
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/28th_Infantry_Division_%28United_States%29#World_War_II

Michael Holuta –Gunner & 3rd Class Barber WWII.
USS Kearny-  Sunk a submarine in the Mediterranean
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Kearny
Due to their daily fire-support trips to the Anzio beachhead area, the warships became known as the "Anzio Express."
(Great Aunt Julia Galla- pcitures)

 "Let this be recorded for a generation to come,

   so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD": Psalm 102 : 18

Matt and Cynthia thanks so much for serving.

Welcome Home Matt- 2/18/11 0900




Bronze Star

The award that eventually became the Bronze Star Medal
was conceived by Colonel Russell P. “Red” Reeder in 1943,
who believed it would aid morale if there was a medal which
could be awarded by captains of companies or batteries to
 deserving people serving under them.
“Heroic or meritorious achievement or service”



Yellow Ribbon - soon the Homecoming

Welcome home -

Valentines Day- 2011 "Love bears all things.......

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.Love never ends."
1 Cor 13:7-8

Matt and Cyndi - From across the miles .....  Engagement anniversary nears 2/17/06- great day!

 Spelling Love with Candy Hearts

Ten new ways to convey those immortal words

by Holly Hartman

For 2010, NECCO introduced new flavors and sayings. The new flavors include strawberry, green apple, lemon, grape, orange, and blue raspberry. For the first time in its 145-year history, the American public was invited to participate in an online survey to decide which phrases of love would appear on conversation hearts in 2010. The winners include: "Tweet Me," "Text Me," "You Rock," "Soul Mate," "Love Bug," and "Me + You." The following classic expressions reappear on the candies: "Puppy Love," "Sweet Love," "Sweet Pea," and "Love Me."

Last year's new sayings featured food-inspired phrases, such as "Recipe 4 Love," "Table 4 Two," and "Top Chef."

Read more: Valentine's Day History of Candy Hearts —

Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/spot/candyhearts1.html#ixzz1DvqzonK0 

 Momentary Marriage- by John Piper

http://s3.amazonaws.com/media2.desiringgod.org/resources/documents/3338/bmm.pdf?1288305909

(Page 178 Conclusion)
"Marriage is not mainly about prospering economically; it is mainly about displaying the covenant-keeping love between Christ and his church. Knowing Christ is more important than making a living. Treasuring Christ is more important than bearing children. Being united to Christ by faith is a greater source of marital success than perfect sex and double-income prosperity.
If we make secondary things primary, they cease to be secondary and become idolatrous. They have their place. But they are not first, and they are not guaranteed. Life is precarious, and even if it is long by human standards, it is short. “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (James 4:14). “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring” (Prov. 27:1).
So it is with marriage. It is a momentary gift. It may last a lifetime, or it may be snatched away on the honeymoon. Either way, it is short. It may have many bright days, or it may be covered with clouds. If we make secondary things primary, we will be embittered at the sorrows we must face. But if we set our face to make of marriage mainly what God designed it to be, no sorrows and no calamities can stand in our way. Every one of them will be, not an obstacle to success, but a way to succeed. The beauty of the covenant-keeping love between Christ and his church shines brightest when nothing but Christ can sustain it.
Very soon the shadow will give way to Reality. The partial will pass into the Perfect. The foretaste will lead to the Banquet. The troubled path will end in Paradise. A hundred candle-lit evenings will come to their consummation in the marriage supper of the Lamb. And this momentary marriage will be swallowed up by Life. Christ will be all and in all. And the purpose of marriage will be complete.
To that end may God give us eyes to see what matters most in this life. May the Holy Spirit, whom he sends, make his crucified and risen Son the supreme Treasure of our lives. And may that Treasure so satisfy our souls that the root of every marriage-destroying impulse is severed. And may the marriage-watching world be captivated by the covenant-keeping love of Christ. "



True North

True North
There's a strong steady light
that is guiding us home
True North
In the lingering night we
were never alone
True North
(Twila Parris, Sparrow)

"I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!"

Brig. Gen. Harry E. Miller Jr., senior commander Fort Drum, addresses Soldiers, Family Members and friends who gathered Friday at the Main Post Chapel to honor Sgt. 1st Class Todd M. Harris, Sgt. Michael Paranzino and Spc. Blake D. Whipple, who died while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.  Photo by Glenn Wagner

Paul Steven GhiringhelliStaff Writer  

Soldiers, Family Members and friends of the Fort Drum community attended a Mountain Remembrance ceremony Jan. 27 at the Main Post Chapel to honor three 10th Mountain Division (LI) Soldiers recently killed in Afghanistan while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
The Soldiers were Sgt. 1st Class Todd M. Harris, a mortar platoon sergeant with 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment; Sgt. Michael Paranzino, a cavalry scout from 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment; and Spc. Blake D. Whipple, a combat engineer with 693rd Sapper Company, 7th Engineer Battalion.

“The Soldiers we are honoring today were volunteers in a volunteer Army,” said Brig. Gen. Harry E. Miller Jr., senior commander Fort Drum. “No one demanded their service; rather, they gave years of their lives in commitment to defending their country, and ultimately they gave their lives.”

Miller said the Soldiers being honored shared special bonds of loyalty, dependency and passion for one another. He explained that losing a battle buddy in combat means “to suddenly find oneself without the support and trust of another, in the most dangerous of situations.”

But the bonds of one’s immediate Family, he noted, are without comparison.

“A Soldier’s immediate Family is his refuge, his purpose and his unfailing support,” Miller said. “Families, I want you to know that you are not alone. To the Families here today, you are always welcome in the 10th Mountain Division, and I invite you to always be a part of our Army Family.

“Your sacrifices are tremendous,” he added. “Whereas your Soldier volunteered his service to this country, you did not. Yet, you faithfully supported and ultimately sacrificed more than the overwhelming majority of other citizens – citizens who will reap the benefits of your sacrifice for years to come, but will never understand what that sacrifice feels like.”

During the ceremony, commanders from each Soldier’s unit also paid tribute to their fallen comrades.

In honoring the memory of Harris, Capt. Michael E. Falls, rear detachment commander of 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, called the fallen warrior a “fearless, selfless motivator” who was a “brother-in-arms and an infantryman through and through.”

“Like many of our leaders have done in recent months, when faced with a dangerous decision, (Harris) led his men forward to help his fellow Soldiers,” Falls said. “He understood that leaders take action – especially in combat.

“Because of his service and commitment, he gave that last full measure of devotion for that priceless ideal that we call freedom,” he added. “He gave his life leading his men to help other Soldiers under attack by the enemy.”

Falls quoted Psalm 27 to close his remarks, suggesting Harris’ actions under fire in Afghanistan were a form of good works.

Next, Maj. Douglas Baker, rear detachment commander for 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, said although he regrets not knowing Paranzino more than he did, he distinctly remembers the fallen scout’s personality.

“The reason he stands out in my memory is because of that great smile,” Baker said. “Every time I saw him, he had a smile on his face. Through the strain of constant missions and sweltering heat, peeking out from under the grime and road dust was this smile that said: ‘It’s not that bad; we got this.’”

The commander called Paranzino a wisecracking morale-booster who knew how to bring the entire platoon to tears from laughing so hard. But he also mentioned Paranzino’s love for the Afghan people, and that the young man held strong beliefs about the Army’s continuing mission in those “muddy villages halfway around the world.”

“It’s easy for a Soldier in his unit to comment on the tremendous impact Michael had on the population,” Baker said. “But the true magnitude of his accomplishments was evident by the Afghan interpreters who would call him a brother and mean it, or by the Afghan police officers, who referred to him as a courageous warrior because they knew he would fight shoulder to shoulder with them as an equal.”

Lastly, a captain who formerly commanded 693rd Sapper Company, 7th Engineer Battalion, reflected on the consistency of Whipple’s loyalty – whether for a winning cause or for his continually trampled Buffalo Bills team.

“He always took the time to remind me that he was a diehard Bills fan, and that my team would lose to them during their next game,” Capt. Charles Comfort said. “I would play along and remind him of the Bills’ current record. That did not faze him, because he was a loyal fan, and it was the same loyalty that he showed to every one of his (Soldier) brothers.”

Concluding his remarks, Comfort said he only had his faith to fall back on while recognizing that no words would ever fill the hole in the hearts of those who knew Whipple.

“For whatever reason, Blake was chosen over many others to join God’s ranks. The only thing I do know is that God received one of the finest, young, dedicated men I have ever served with,” the captain said.

The ceremony concluded with the playing of taps, a moment of silence and the benediction.

The Lord Is My Light and My Salvation

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall. 3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident. 4 One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. 5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock. 6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the LORD. 7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me! 8 You have said, "Seek my face." My heart says to you, "Your face, LORD, do I seek." 9 Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation! 10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in. 11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies. 12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out violence. 13 I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living! 14 Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!(ESV)

Cynthia Rose and Matthew Jon- End of mission nearing

" I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope."

Reading about waiting... and how God always has a purpose and a great plan as we “wait on the Lord” or wait to return or the wait to see you –

- when I saw the dormant vineyards, wintering sailboats, and observation tower overlooking frozen lake I can see that waiting on God is faith for those things unseen

yet to come

- soon the vines will have fruit, boats will be scattered across the glimmering lake, sights and sounds of the refreshing day.

Psalm 130:5
I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.

Psalm 130:4-6 (in Context) Psalm 130 (Whole Chapter) (www.biblegateway.com)

⁶ I wait for the Lord
   more than watchmen wait for the morning,
   more than watchmen wait for the morning.

"Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?"—Isaiah 60:8.

Panorama at Wilson's promontory national park, Australia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilsons_Promontory_National_Park
 
"The glory of the gospel is not that it paints ravens white, and whitewashes blackbirds, but that it turns them into doves. it is the glory of our religion not that it makes a man seem what he is not, but that it makes him something else. It takes the raven and turns him into a dove; his ravenish heart becomes a dove's heart. It is not the feathers that are changed, but the man himself. Glorious Gospel, which takes a lion, and doth not cut the lion's mane off, and then cover him with a sheep's skin, but makes him into a lamb! O church of God! these that have come like doves to their windows are trophies of regenerating grace, which has transformed them, and made them as new creatures in Christ Jesus." CHS- Sermon (No. 63)
http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0063.htm