Announcing the 173rd Sky Angels Fund Website
Kit Lange of the milblog Euphoric Reality and the Blog Talk Radio Show The Front Line aired a show on 17 May 2007 (Armed Forces Day) which included an interview with Terry and Cheryl Blaskowski. You can listen to the recorded version of that show here. Kit begins the show talking about two great American Marines who recently gave their lives in order to save those of many other Marines and Iraqis. About 15 minutes into the show she begins the interview with the Blaskowskis. The entire show is definitely worth listening to.
As a result of the show Kit designed a web site to assist with the fund raising for the Welcome Home Celebration. The web site is called The 173rd Sky Angels Fund. We appreciate Kit so much for offering to do this and for getting it done so quickly. We will continue to update the site with news and information. There is a link on the site which allows you to donate via PayPal. There is also an address to use if you prefer to mail your donation. We hope that you will spread the word about the site. We know there are enough great Patriotic Americans out there who can donate $5.00 or $10.00 to help make this a reality.
For any new readers the purpose of this fund raising drive it to provide a "Welcome Home" celebrationi party for the 173rd, 2/503 (INF) Airborne when they redeploy to their home base in Vicenza, Italy later this year. They are on a 15 month deployment to northeastern Afghanistan on and near the Pakistani border. You can read more about some of the details of their deployment in this post. Most of all they will not be returning to a base in the United States so their is no American "community" to welcome them home. These Soldiers are from all over the USA. We want them to have a well deserved "American Style" homecoming.
Gold Star parents, Terry and Cheryl Blaskowski, have joined with us in this fund raising effort as a way to honor their son, SFC Matthew Blaskowski, KIA 23 Sept 2007 in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, as well as all of the other 173rd Sky Soldiers who have given their lives in service to this nation. We also have the support of other Gold Star and Blue Star families within the Battalion as well as the support of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Association.
Together I know we will do this. We will do this for the Soldiers and their families. We will do this in honor of those who have given their lives. We will do this so that all of the Sky Soldiers know that America is behind them 100%.
