Tribute to Shirley (Sisko) Harkins: "Dead Air"

In memory of Shirley (Sisko) Harkins, who lost her battle with cancer, here reprinted by permission is her essay "Dead Air" from the new book HEART OF A MILITARY WOMAN by Sheryl L. Roush and Eldonna Lewis Fernandez.

"Dead Air" appears in the book's section "Guess What? I Enlisted!":

When I enlisted in 1976, the Women’s Army Corp (WAC) was in the process of being disestablished as a separate branch of the Army. I’m very proud to have been one of the last WAC’s, serving during this exciting era in military history.

Women were being admitted to West Point. Maternity leaves replaced compulsory discharges, and the umbrella, a traditional military taboo, was approved for issue in the name of promoting a positive feminine image. The powers that be even retained a designer to fashion a sporty new mint green, wash and wear uniform. The times they were a changin’.

There were those, of course, who weren’t enthusiastic about the trend. I encountered several male soldiers who appeared to be threatened by the growing presence of women in the motor pool, the mess hall, and even in co-ed barracks.

Some men attempted to deflate our influence with casual flirtation. Others insisted we carry our weight —- equal pay for equal work, by golly. None, however, stood out so predominantly in my memories as a certain surly NCO at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

Even though I’d have to change it here to protect the innocent, I wish I recalled his name. He was a gristly, Old Army type —- a field instructor attached to the signal school where I was trained. I was offered only three occupational options: food service, clerkship, or communications. I’d opted to be a radio teletype operator —- a dinosaur Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) like the WACS that no longer exists.

Quaint historical reference makes for great story telling. Ask any veteran, young or old. When two or more gather together, the war stories commence in earnest.

The Old Army NCO taught in the field, training the students to apply classroom academics to the actual equipment we’d use to perform our duties. We knew the basics of setting up and maintaining a radio network, but hadn’t learned a great deal about trouble-shooting. His job was to station himself with one network station each day and teach us how to deal with real life obstacles as they cropped up.

His approach was stoic -— stand back and let us flounder, making one frantic mistake after another, until the entire network crashed. Afterwards, he’d explain what went wrong and help us to figure out how we could have responded more effectively.

In theory, his methods seemed valid enough, but his criticism was often sarcastic and condescending. Locking us in a poker face look, he’d observe every move without offering the slightest hint as to whether we were right or wrong. We never knew what was coming: reward or reprimand. It was excruciating.

One morning, I was manning the network controlling station. By the time he stuck his head through the door of the rig where I was working, I’d already lost communication with one of my network stations.

The others were apparently beginning to panic, thumbing through their ciphering and frequency manuals to determine if their settings were correct. Lack of confidence in their own training may have caused them to fiddle with the dials.

The gristly NCO watched while I performed a network check, hailing the other two stations and getting dead air in response. I feverishly typed in the abbreviated commands again and got nothing. Staring at the teletype for a few seconds, I prayed for inspiration. He was expecting me to do something, so I hopped out of the rig and headed toward a nearby jeep.

I slipped on the Morse code key leg strap and began tapping out the commands. The NCO followed. He rested an elbow on the crash pad, leaning in toward me. He didn’t say a word.

When the keypad failed, I sat for awhile staring at the field phone, knowing that any transmission on it would be unsecured. I glanced at the NCO, but received no encouragement either way.

I decided to go for broke, snatching up the handset and cranking the generator. He was going to chew me up and spit me out no matter what I did, so I had nothing to lose.

Via landline, I was able to contact each network station. Careful not to reveal any classified information over the airways, I instructed them to consult their manuals so we were all on the same page.

Afterwards, I jumped back in the rig and ran the network test again. Oh, to hear the glorious beeps, clicks, and whirs of life. We operated the rest of that day without incident. The NCO never uttered a word.

Later that day, back in the barracks, I was summoned to the pay phone in the foyer. I greeted the caller, hearing tinny juke box music, tinkling glassware, and raucous voices in the background. Because he spoke so few times, I didn’t recognize the NCO’s gravelly voice until he introduced himself.

The hair rose on the back of my neck. I must have really messed up if he was calling from the NCO Club to tell me so. Judging by the way he slurred his words, the lecture probably wasn’t going to be polite.

When I didn’t respond, he continued. “I hate women,” he said. “I especially hate women in the Army, so it really hurts to have to tell you this.” He paused for what sounded like another slug from his cocktail.

“But you did one heck of a job out there this morning getting that network back up and running.” Of course, being Old School, he didn’t say “heck,” but I took the liberty to paraphrase.

When I caught my breath after the initial shock, I thanked him. He promised that if I ever told anyone about our conversation, one-sided as it was, that he would promptly deny it. With that, he hung up, and I was left listening to dead air again.

I would go on to receive promotions and other honors from the United States Army, but none gratified me as much as a phone call from a gristly Old School NCO with a chip on his shoulder for women.

~Shirley (Sisko) Harkins

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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Gifts of School Supplies Save American Lives in Afghanistan

Jim Hake, founder and CEO of Spirit of America (www.spiritofamerica.net) and the author of "101 Ways to Help the Cause in Afghanistan" wrote the op-ed piece "Spirit of America in Afghanistan: Ordinary citizens can contribute to our victory" in the December 27th Wall Street Journal.

The opinion piece begins:

In 2003, Sgt. First Class Jay Smith and his Army Special Forces team were based in Orgun-e, Afghanistan and were taking regular rocket fire from al Qaeda fighters. But Sgt. Smith and his men were armed with an effective counterweapon—gifts of school supplies and sports gear for children, and clothing, shoes and blankets for nearby families, all provided by American donors.

After receiving these items, the grateful villagers reciprocated by forming a night-watch patrol to protect our soldiers. Good relations with locals helped save American lives. I've witnessed this success on the front lines, aided by support from home, repeated many times since Sgt. Smith.

Read the rest of the piece now.

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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

The New Movie BROTHERS: What's the Story?

I sat through the new movie BROTHERS, which is a remake of a European film, thinking to myself: What's the story here?

More upsetting was the thought: Does the Marine Corps really not require Marines to go through rigorous psychological rehabilitation after they've been captured and tortured by enemy fighters?

I cannot recommend this film. Instead I recommend you go to my site www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com and download the free report on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. And then send the report link to every military family you know.

The major situation in BROTHERS should never have happened. The returned Marine's family members should have realized he was experiencing PTSD and that he desperately needed professional help. And they should have gotten him that help immediately!
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

8th Annual Holiday Love Campaign for Our Troops Thanks to eMailOurMilitary with Your Help

This email I received is so important because Trish Forant and eMailOurMilitary are such a wonderful support for our troops. Read this email and act now.

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Subject: Happy Holidays! A Holiday Newsletter from eMOM

We're just 7 days away from Christmas!

We're hoping you haven't forgotten our guys and gals serving across the globe this holiday season. We've got some great ways you can show your support no matter what your financial situation or schedule is.

We haven't talked about it much but this year was the hardest yet for eMail Our Military. After 8 years of supporting our troops we've had to cut back our hours of operation to accommodate for our volunteers work schedules.

We lost quite a few volunteers because of the economy. No one at eMail Our Military takes a paycheck and there just wasn't enough time for people to volunteer AND manage their work schedules just to pay the bills.

Sadly, this is also the 1st year we weren't able to send out massive amounts of care packages to our troops in time for Christmas. Financially, ff things don't change dramatically in 2010 we may be forced to close our doors forever.

It's been a wonderful 8 years and we're still optimistic that we'll get the support we need as an organization to keep supporting our military in 2010 and beyond - we'll definitely need your help.


8TH ANNUAL HOLIDAY LOVE CAMPAIGN - HOLIDAY MAIL TO OUR TROOPS

This holiday season you can make the holidays a little brighter for our troops overseas and stationed far from home. Consider becoming a Postage Patriot or a Care Package Patriot. Starting at just $5 you can make a huge difference for our troops: www.facebook.com/l/a7bb1;emailourmilitary2008.chipin.com/holiday-mail-for-our-troops


MESSAGES TO THE MILITARY

We're still hopeful that many of you will take a moment to register to send a message of support to our troops in time for the holidays.


ONLINE REGISTRATION

Though we still don't have our official online eMOM registration form up and running, we've got an online registration form that will get the job done! If you've been waiting for online registration now is the time to sign up. We can't leave this up for too long because it isn't tied to our database but we want to make sure that everyone who wants to email our troops has an opportunity to do so this holiday season.

If registering isn't your thing then why not send a one time message of support to our military instead? You can email a message of support to Messages@http://www.facebook.com/l/a7bb1;eMailOurMilitary.com and your message may appear on our website, blog, facebook page or in one of our care packages to our military!


TWEET US

Are we connected on Twitter yet? If not, you're missing out! Join us at http://twitter.com/mailourmilitary (or get our blog headlines at @EMOMS)


FACEBOOK PAGE

Are you a fan of our Facebook page yet? We share different information there than we do here to give you the best of both worlds. Join us at www.facebook.com/eMailOurMilitary


HONOR, DUTY, EMAIL - THE BLOG

Did you know we have a blog? We sure do! It's called Honor, Duty, eMail and you can find it at www.emailourmilitary.blogspot.com

There we share tips for supporting our military, discounts, deals and all kinds of patriotic goodies and military news and information. You can even subscribe to our blog so you never miss a minute.

We hope you'll keep our troops in mind this holiday season and always!

Happy Holidays,
Trish & the eMOM Team
www.eMailOurMilitary.com
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Women Need Combat Roles to Advance Up the Ranks

Donna McAleer and Erin Solaro in the December 12th Washington Post article "Full participation for our 'sisters-in-arms'" present several reasons why women should now be allowed to serve in combat roles.

My favorite part of the article is this sentence:

An internal Marine assessment of its "female engagement teams" that has been discussed in recent weeks on military Web sites quoted an Afghan village elder as saying, "Your men come to fight, but we know the women are here to help."

Donna McAleer is a West Point graduate and former Army officer who is the author of the forthcoming book "Porcelain on Steel: Women of West Point's Long Gray Line" and Erin Solaro is the author of "Women in the Line of Fire: What You Should Know About Women in the Military," which is based on her embedded tours with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Read the entire article now on why women should be allowed to have combat roles.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

THE HURT LOCKER and THE MESSENGER Collecting Film Awards

Both THE HURT LOCK and THE MESSENGER -- two of the films on my site www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com -- have been receiving awards. Both films, in fact, are on the list of the American Film Institute's top 10 films for the AFI Awards.

The Los Angeles Film Critics Assn. honored THE HURT LOCKER for best picture and best director (Kathryn Bigelow).

And in other news also reported in the December 14th Daily Variety: THE HURT LOCKER won awards for director and ensemble cast from the Washington, D.C., Area Film Critics Assn.

The film also got five awards from the Boston Society of Film Critics: best picture, actor (Jeremy Renner), director, cinematography (Barry Ackroyd) and editing (Bob Murawski and Chris Innes).

Both films are truly compelling -- and it is terrific that they earned these awards. I feel confident there will be more to follow.

Note added one day later: THE HURT LOCKER won the New York Film Critics Circle's awards for best picture and best director.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

HerWarHerVoice: They Love Someone in Uniform

I came across the website www.herwarhervoice.com for military spouses, and I asked Melissa Seligman (on left in photo above) and Christina Piper (on right in photo above), the two women whose site this is, to write about how the site came about.

Melissa is an army wife, mother, author of The Day After He Left for Iraq and Simply Green as well as contributor to Heart of a Military Woman, co-author of A Heart Apart, co-founder of Her War, Her Voice! and can be reached at melissa@herwarhervoice.com

Christina is an army wife, mother, veteran, co-author of A Heart Apart, contributor to Heart of a Military Woman, co-founder of Her War, Her Voice! and can be reached at christina@herwarhervoice.com

When we first met, standing across from each other in our boys’ gymnastic class, we never imagined creating a support group for military wives or speaking about the real struggles revolving around deployments. How could we? We were still stuck in the mindset that being strong was equivalent to being silent.

It wasn’t until our initial conversation that we began to realize just how stuck in that mindset we were. “Do you ever just get really angry?” was the ice-breaking question. It definitely was not the typical “How long have you lived here?” conversation. That real moment, that shared burden exposed, that brief reprieve of seeing another person reflecting the same pain was the original inception of Her War, Her Voice.

We never set out to make money, reach a bestseller list, or to change anyone’s opinion of a military wife, or even military life. Our vision has never revolved around publicity or sitting on Oprah’s couch. But it has from the very beginning revolved around that shared moment of understanding. And that need to voice our struggle in a comforting and supportive manner.

Along with the fear of being seen as “whiners” or “airing dirty laundry” we were also nervous about whether our idea of providing a place for women to speak freely about their real struggles and then allowing others to uplift them would even resonate with other military women.

That niggling feeling of “are we alone?” was very hard to get past. But from our first step out as Her War women, it became immediately clear that not only are we not alone, but we are also surrounded daily by silent warriors.

Women we have known for years or have lived beside as neighbors came to us, anonymously voicing their pain and struggle. Wives of higher ranking officers as well as girlfriends of privates began to speak, understand, and rejoice in the unity of our shared burdens and victories.

Between us existed an FRG leader, a veteran, four young children and an author. We began to pool our experiences and our strengths in order to launch a campaign against the divorce rate in our military. But, one of the most important aspects in waging this battle was that we first had to be willing to speak about our successes and our failures. Our inabilities to do this alone. Our need for something to help us through.

We had to be willing to put our hearts and our stories on the line in hopes that others would begin to understand and to see the silent warriors on the frontlines every single day: our military families.

It hasn’t been easy filleting ourselves for all to see. It hasn’t been pretty at times when we talk about depression, anger, and victories in our daily lives. But through it all, it has been real. Honest. And gut-wrenchingly hard.

We work daily to provide a haven for those wives, girlfriends, and fiancés (and the male version of those) who seek a place where their voice is heard and celebrated. We hope to offer a shoulder, an ear, and a hand up out of the trenches. We are on the frontlines with these women, blogging about working through a third deployment as well as recovering from a third one.

Her War, Her Voice has already succeeded beyond our wildest dreams in giving us the chance to voice our stories in the Heart of a Military Woman book as well as the opportunity to work with other organizations such as Operation Military Family concerning supporting our military marriages.

It has also provided the opportunity to expand and express our passion for helping our war children through these painful deployments. Our first interactive book for military children has come to fruition. Not only are we looking to the future for more ways to uplift the voice of the military spouse, but we are also prepared and geared to lead the rally cry through the war zone.

When we first met, sharing a moment of quiet struggle and stoic silence, we could have never imagined speaking out for and with other military wives. We are strong. Independent. And each of us has a beautiful story of heartache and victory to share.

Her War, Her Voice will not cease until every voice, every story, has been lifted, heard, and celebrated. We deserve that much. After all, we have the hardest job in the military: we love someone in uniform.

Visit www.HerWarHerVoice.com now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

USO Holiday Campaign: Phone Cards to Call Home

Since the USO launched Operation Phone Home in 2003, over 2 million phone cards have been distributed. And a $10 phone card lasts for 30 minutes.

Go to the USO site now to donate online and also to learn other ways that you can help our troops stationed around the world.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

New Study Reveals Emotional Toll on Children of Deployed Military Personnel

As if anyone needed a study to know this, the children of military personnel suffer more emotionally than the children of civilians.

The December 7th Wall Street Journal article "Study Gauges Toll on Military Children" by Stephen Power discusses the study carried out by researchers at Rand Corp. who, with funding from the National Military Family Association, interviewed approximately 1,500 military families in which a parent had been or was currently deployed.

Here are the results of this study:

It found that children of such families were twice as likely as those from civilian families to report experiencing elevated anxiety symptoms, such as getting frightened for no apparent reason or feeling that they couldn't be alone. Some 30% of children from military families reported experiencing such symptoms, compared with 15% of children from civilian families.

People without combat exposure, including children, can be suffering from PTSD.

Get the free PTSD report at www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com to help you discern if someone you know or love may be experiencing PTSD.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

American Widow Project Strives to Comfort Young Military Widows and Widowers

From the back of the DVD case:

"On May 21, 2007, 21-year old Taryn Davis lost her husband, Michael, to a roadside bomb in Baghdad, Iraq. Feeling lost and alone, she began traveling around the country to hear other women's stories of love, tragedy and survival.

"Through this film and the American Widow Project organization, we hope America's young military widows and widowers are inspired by the willpower and strength of those in their shoes and realize that they are not alone."

Visit the organization's site at www.AmericanWidowProject.org

FYI -- This documentary is now featured on the site www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Nonfiction Book HEART OF A MILITARY WOMAN Now Available

I've just received a copy of the new nonfiction book HEART OF A MILITARY WOMAN by Sheryl L. Roush and Eldonna Lewis Fernandez. (The above is an affiliate link.)

Sheryl is a former Navy wife "honoring the unique lifestyle, challenges and dedication of military life." Eldonna is a retired Air Force Master Sergeant "with 23 years of honorable military service."

The book is a collection of essays by military members and their families. And I'm pleased to be one of the contributors.

Here from the book is my essay "Proper Mrs. Lieutenants in 1970":

On my third date in late winter of 1967 with the young man who would become my husband, Mitch said to me: “I’m going to Vietnam.” At that moment the song “Duke of Earl” was playing in the background of the party we were attending with other members of the newspaper staff of the State News, Michigan State University’s daily newspaper. Over 40 years ago, and I still remember it, as the saying goes, “like yesterday.”

At that time the Vietnam War was raging – battlefield casualties were shown on the nightly news (albeit in black and white). And the anti-Vietnam protesters were raging too. No voluntary army then – a draft (although the first draft lottery in December 1969 had not yet taken place). Mitch was a junior, two years ahead of me, and he was in Army ROTC.

In the summer of 1968, a year later, Mitch was commissioned a second lieutenant in infantry. That summer he attended ROTC summer camp at Ft. Riley, Kansas – a hellhole in the days before air conditioning. Of the four weekends out of six that the men got off, they drove to a motel and slept four in an air-conditioned room. The cookies that my mother sent him from Elgin, Illinois, melted in his locker, and he reported that at 3 a.m. the temperature was still unbelievably high.

At Fort Riley Mitch’s hayfever was so bad that he was in the infirmary for three days with pneumonia. He got out of sick bay for the night compass course because, if he had missed that exercise, he would have had to repeat summer camp.

Before Mitch went off to summer camp he insisted he didn’t want to get married until after he had served his ROTC two-year commitment. Upon his return from Ft. Riley he had changed his mind. We set our wedding date for September 7, 1969, as Mitch had a year’s active duty deferment to get a master’s degree at MSU.

During the year that Mitch got his master’s in communication and I finished my undergraduate journalism degree in three years, I typed on a manual typewriter numerous copies of Mitch’s request for a branch transfer to military intelligence while Mitch took an army correspondence course in psychological warfare.

We were married as planned, and when we returned from our honeymoon Mitch was scheduled to report to Ft. Benning, Georgia, for Infantry Officers Basic training. Mitch called an army clerk in St. Louis, Missouri, to ask about his branch transfer. She told him not to report to Ft. Benning; she would put his orders on hold until he heard about his branch transfer request.

This delay and the eventual granting of the branch transfer put us on the road to Ft. Knox, Kentucky, for Armor Officers Basic training (Military Intelligence officers had to first take a combat officers’ training course) in May 1970 a few days after the Ohio National Guard shot and killed four students at Kent State University during a protest against President Nixon’s incursion into Cambodia.

Even though the army hadn’t said officers attending Armor Officers Basic (AOB) could bring their wives, I insisted on going with my husband. The Ft. Knox housing office had a list of available off-post housing, and we found a one-bedroom apartment in Muldraugh, Kentucky.

Mitch started AOB and suggested to a classmate from the South who lived near us that the two men carpool and their wives share the other car. Suddenly I was spending my days with someone who until now hadn’t known a Jew (me), let alone been friends with a Northerner.

And then came the ironic surprise: Even though the army hadn’t said we AOB wives could come, there was a training program for us to learn how to be proper Mrs. Lieutenants. I raised my hand to be chair of the entertainment committee for the wives’ graduation luncheon. Of course my carpool mate had to be on my committee as we shared a car.

Somehow we got three other AOB wives on our committee: a black (the correct term in those days), a Puerto Rican who spoke English and was the daughter of a career enlisted man, and a Puerto Rican who didn’t speak English. And then the five of us had to adjust to our racial, religious and class differences in order to get along.

This coming together of such different women because our husbands went on active duty at the same time made a lasting impression on me. I soon realized that, as different as the five of us were, our husbands’ well-being was the most important thing to each of us. And that in this shared concern we were all proper Mrs. Lieutenants.

Thirty-eight years later from my time as a new Mrs. Lieutenant, I published my novel Mrs. Lieutenant to tell a fictional story of this experience that had such an impact on my life.

Read the first four chapters or the entire novel MRS. LIEUTENANT based on these experiences at Ft. Knox.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Send Free Printed Postcards to U.S. Troops Stationed Overseas

Visit the Let's Say Thanks site hosted by Xerox right now and send a free postcard to a member of our armed services.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Stories of Women Who Served in Vietnam Needed

Author Kerry Pardue sent out this request:

I am beginning to write another book and it is about women who have served during war. The women who served in Vietnam are the forgotten ones and not considered to have endured any hardships, many are closet vets. I want their stories to be told and shared as our generation is beginning to go away.

This book will be about women who served during the Revolutionary War to the current situation in Afghan and Iraq. From Rosie the Riveter to the nurse to the air traffic controller to the donut dollie.

Each of these has certainly paid a price and paid their dues with their blood, sweat, tears, and their hearts and minds. I would also like to include something from a woman who lost a husband or parent, or a child that lost a parent.

I need your story, your photo back then to one that is current, your writings, your reasons for becoming one, your experiences how that time was for you, how was your homecoming, your memories now of how the guys treated you, your regrets, your losses, and would you do it over again or not.

What happened to you after you came back to the world? What do you want other women to know about you and your service?

I know that I am asking a lot but it will be an important work; most of the proceeds will be donated to the Vietnam Women's Memorial for education.

Please consider being a part of this work and please send this on to your network of women that you know have been a part of serving their country during war time and peace.

If anyone has any questions please contact me at kerrypardue247@yahoo.com or 480 250-6021 (cell phone).

I would like to have everything in by March 1st so that I can begin to work on the material and putting it together. I have set a goal to have the book released on Veterans Day 2010.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Documentary THE WAY WE GET BY Tells of Seniors Who Greet the Troops in Bangor, Maine

The documentary THE WAY WE GET BY tells the story of seniors in Bangor, Maine, who since 2003 have greeted the planes taking troops to and from Iraq and Afghanistan.

It's especially moving to see these seniors thank the men and women soldiers of today -- and to see these men and women soldiers thank those seniors who were veterans of WWII and other previous wars.

Through December 12 you can watch the entire documentary online.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Showing Gratitude for Our Troops

In honor of Thanksgiving Day, take a few minutes to watch some of the documentary and film clips at www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

By watching these clips you will understand how grateful we as a nation must be for all the men and women who have served since before the founding of the United States of America up until today.

As Nancy Brown and I said at the end of each BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com, God bless our troops.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Walmart Supports Our Troops

For my project www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com I've been researching possible corporate sponsors. I was impressed when I came across what Walmart does to support our troops.

Check out the page on Walmart's site that talks about how Walmart supports our troops.

And on the right-hand side of the page click on "Military Support Fact Sheet" for examples of recent Walmart support of our troops. The fact sheet is very extensive.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Free Ebooks Now Available for Deployed Military Personnel

I just came across the September 11th blog post "Smashwords Supports Operation Ebook Drop." The post begins:

The other day on the Amazon Kindle message boards, Smashwords author Ed Patterson met a U.S. soldier stationed in Iraq who wanted to download ebooks for his Kindle, yet Whispernet (Amazon's wireless download service) didn't work in Iraq.

Ed offered to email the soldier all 13 of his ebooks, for free. The soldier gratefully accepted.

Following the chance encounter with the soldier, Ed, himself an Army veteran, queried other indie authors on the Kindleboards message boards, asking if they too would be willing to offer their ebooks for free to troops deployed overseas.

Read the entire post and then help spread the word. This is a terrific project to support our troops!
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Fast Company Article Describes Hollywood's Help to Prepare Soldiers for Roadside Attacks

The FastCompany.com November 8, 2009, article by Alissa Walker headlined "Inside the IED Battle Drill: How Hollywood Is Prepping Soldiers for Roadside Attacks" begins:

So," the smiling publicist asked cheerily, "do you want to get blown up, or not?"

Not a question I routinely get asked when reporting stories. But nothing about my visit to this non-descript office park about 40 miles north of Los Angeles could be described as routine. Here, in the shadow of the dozen or so roller coasters of Six Flags Magic Mountain, a team of more than a dozen Hollywood creatives and theme park engineers are debuting their latest creation.

Except this team is working not for the hottest Hollywood studio but for the Department of Defense. And this is no blockbuster film. It's a simulated IED attack.

Read the entire article now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Ignore the Film Title and See the Movie THE MESSENGER

The new film THE MESSENGER would be much better served with the title NEXT OF KIN. While THE MESSENGER could refer to any number of movies -- and is an unmemorable title -- NEXT OF KIN is powerful, memorable and pinpoints the emotional rollercoaster of this compelling film.

This film does NOT bash the military or the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Instead it provides a window into the lives of military personnel and their families who are forever changed by death.

As those of you who are regular readers of this blog know, I've written a great deal about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Nancy Brown and I interviewed numerous people on this subject for our BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com. And my new site FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com offers a free report on recognizing the signs of PTSD.

In fact, in the scenes when the two protagonists of THE MESSENGER deliver the death notification to next of kin, it is vividly demonstrated how that moment in time can give PTSD to someone who has never seen combat.

I recommend that everyone see this movie in order to understand the sacrifices that our military men and women and their families are making for our freedom.

Then show your gratitude to our military personnel and their families. Many of the posts on this blog describe organizations that are supporting our troops and need your help to do so.

And after you see this movie, come back to this post and leave a comment about the film.

For now, visit the film site now for more information at www.themessengermovie.com.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

BlogTalkRadio Show Your Military Life Ends Regularly Scheduled Segments

From November 2008 to November 2009 the 30-minute BlogTalkRadio show Your Military Life was regularly scheduled on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. Eastern with the replays available at www.YourMilitaryLife.com.

When Nancy Brown of YourMilitary.com and I started co-hosting these shows a year ago, neither one of us was as busy as we are now. Yet Nancy and I finally had to accept that each one of us is only one person and we can't continue to function as if each of us were two people. Thus the conclusion of the regularly scheduled BlogTalkRadio shows.

But we are still keeping the show account so that we can do special shows when appropriate. And we'll list those special shows at www.YourMilitaryLife.com as well as get out the word through Twitter, etc.

We are both so appreciative that in the past year we have been exposed to so many wonderful people -- many of them doing incredible things to support our troops. A special thanks to all these wonderful guests we've had on the show. You made the show a success!
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Transitioning From the Military to the Civilian World Requires New Skill Sets

Eileen Terry of Eileen Terry Consulting and client Lyle Forcum, a retired USMC lieutenant colonel, talked on BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com about transitioning from the military to post-military careers.

Eileen explained the different types of skill sets required in a command environment (the military) and in a collaborative environment (civilian life). Lyle was eloquent in describing, for example, how he had to learn to listen to people's opinions -- including those of his own children -- in order to succeed in a non-military environment.

Visit Eileen's website www.etconsult.biz to learn more and then listen to the interview to hear some very insightful advice.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Kaziah Hancock’s Project Compassion Started with a News Announcement in 2003

Portrait artist Kaziah Hancock remembers the moment in 2003 when the newly launched war in Iraq was brought home to her. She was listening to the news about an American soldier who had been killed.

In that instant she determined to do something for the family of the soldier.

She called the news station to find out how to contact the soldier’s family so that she could offer to paint a portrait of the fallen soldier. She was asked what about the other Utah soldier who had just been killed. She said she would also contact the family of that soldier. And one thing led to another …

Now six-and-a-half years later she’s personally painted over 668 portraits and she also has other artists working on the project. She explained on the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com how she draws the strength to keep going on this project thanks to the strength she sees in the photos of the fallen soldiers whose portraits she paints.

But supplies such as canvas, paints, and frames are not free. Although she doesn’t take a penny for her own work, she does need funding for the portrait supplies and the administration of this project. (The shipping costs and packaging materials are donated.) And she always is on the lookout for more portrait painters.

Go to her Project Compassion project website now at www.heropaintings.com to learn how you can help this incredible project. You can also request a portrait of a fallen soldier.

And then listen to the interview of Kaziah Hancock – the strength of her amazing personality comes through loud and clear.

(Portrait of fallen soldier painted by Kaziah Hancock.)
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

RETURNING HOME PROJECT Website Launches Following First Showing of Documentary THE WAY WE GET BY

The documentary THE WAY WE GET BY first aired on Veterans Day 2009: "Sometimes all it takes is a handshake to change a life." The documentary is now available online in its entirety through December 12, 2009, at www.pbs.org/pov:

On call 24 hours a day for the past five years, a group of senior citizens has made history by greeting over 900,000 American troops at a tiny airport in Bangor, Maine.

The Way We Get By is an intimate look at three of these greeters as they confront the universal losses that come with aging and rediscover their reason for living.

Bill Knight, Jerry Mundy and Joan Gaudet find the strength to overcome their personal battles and transform their lives through service. This inspirational and surprising story shatters the stereotypes of today's senior citizens as the greeters redefine the meaning of community.

The RETURNING HOME PROJECT was developed by THE WAY WE GET BY filmmakers Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly along with the Bluehouse Group and through the Bay Area Video Coalition's program Producers Institute for New Media Technologies.

Visit the RETURNING HOME PROJECT website, which just launched, to ensure that American soldiers are not forgotten.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

RETURN TO DUTY Airs on MTV for Veterans Day

Real World Presents: Return to Duty - MTV Shows

Above is the clip from the MTV Veterans Day special RETURN TO DUTY. This documentary follows Ryan Conklin from the show "The Real World Brooklyn" as he is re-deployed to Iraq.

I recommend you see this documentary, which provides an up-close-and-personal look at what our troops are doing in Iraq right now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Former Military Personnel Helps Transition From Frontline to Home Front

Gabrielle Bourne, a former Army personnel, shared insights on smoothing the transition from the frontline to the home front on the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Gabrielle, who deployed to both Afghanistan and Iraq as a Civil Affairs personnel, has a unique perspective with which to help with this transition. You can learn more about her at www.gabriellebourne.com and by listening to the interview now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Twitter Provides Online Place for People to Thank Police Officer Kim Munley

Reprinted from a blog post of Phyllis Zimbler Miller as a National Internet Business Examiner.

The November 7-8 Wall Street Journal’s page-one story about the shooting at Fort Hood included this sentence in the section on Kim Munley’s courageous efforts to stop the shooter:

“Her Twitter account filled with messages of thanks and admiration from strangers world-wide.”

Kim Munley’s username on Twitter is @hope2forget30, and besides her name and location (Killeen, TX), here’s what she wrote in her bio:

“I live a good life....a hard one, but I go to sleep peacefully @ night knowing that I may have made a difference in someone's life.”

When I checked she had only tweeted three times, the last time July 6th. How prescient that bio was – “knowing that I may have made a difference in someone’s life.”

I searched on @hope2forget30 and found the messages. You can read them yourself.

And you can also read the tweets about her by name if you search on Kim Munley.

In conclusion, we can all be thankful that she has indeed “made a difference in someone’s life.”

FYI – If you are on Twitter and would like me to add you to my Twitter list of U.S. troops supporters (@ZimblerMiller/us-troops-supporters) please tweet me. And you can also check out my site www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Former Army Medic Writes of His Time in Iraq

Michael Anthony recently completed six years in the U.S. Army Reserves, during which time he spent a year in Iraq. He is the author of MASS CASUALTIES: A Young Medic’s True Story of Death, Deception and Dishonor in Iraq (Adams Media, October 2009). The book is drawn from his personal journals during the year he spent serving in Iraq. It is a non-partisan look at what really goes on within the military.

Below is a guest post:

President Obama recently stated that sending more troops into harm’s way in Afghanistan is a solemn decision -— one that he would not rush. As a veteran, I find the decision to send troops into harm’s way without an effective military mental health program in place beyond solemn. It’s deeply disturbing. Keeping soldiers mentally fit should be as important as keeping them physically fit.

Since the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq started, nearly 2,000 active-service soldiers have killed themselves, according to a report by the San Antonio Express-News earlier this year. Even more alarming is the fact that every day, five active-duty service members attempt suicide. In the past eight years, that means up to 14,000 have felt their life is not worth living.

The government doesn’t want you to know this. In spring of 2008, CBS news journalist Armen Keteyian exposed a Veterans Administration cover-up of suicide stats. The reporting revealed that every day 18 veterans kill themselves and roughly 1,000 attempt suicide each month. The VA’s head of Mental Health had claimed there were only 790 attempts in all of 2007, a far cry from the reality.

Among all veterans, over the eight years we’ve been at war in the Middle East, the statistics point that roughly 50,000 have committed suicide, with upwards of 44,000 attempting suicide. These figures only represent data gathered since 2001; this has been an ongoing and persistent problem since Vietnam -— and the numbers go up each day.

Recently, the Army made a big deal about giving $50 million to fund a five-year research project on military suicide. In their book The Three Trillion Dollar War Linda J. Bilmes and Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz figured the cost of the Iraq war at $12 billion a month. That means we spend more than $16 million an hour. If you do the math, the $50 million that went to suicide research is what we spend every three hours in Iraq.

The day after Christmas this year will mark our 3,000th day at war. At this point, we’ve heard a lot about suicide bombers, but what about suicide? Regardless of anyone’s feelings about our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, these soldiers deserve much more than three hours of our time.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Participate in the Veterans History Project

The Veterans History Project was signed into law in 2000. Veterans' stories can be told through personal narratives (audio, video, written material), correspondence and visual materials. The website's home page states:

The Veterans History Project of the American Folklife Center collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.

The Project collects first-hand accounts of
U.S. Veterans from the following wars:

* World War I (1914-1920)
* World War II (1939-1946)
* Korean War (1950-1955)
* Vietnam War (1961-1975)
* Persian Gulf War (1990-1995)
* Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts (2001-present)

In addition, those U.S. citizen civilians who were actively involved in supporting war efforts (such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers, etc.) are also invited to share their valuable stories.

Visit the website now to learn how you can participate in the Veterans History Project.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Vietnam Marine Grunt Talks About His First Novel

Terry Rizzuti, author of the novel THE SECOND TOUR, was a guest on the BlogTalkRAdio show YourMilitaryLife.com to talk about his first novel, which is based on his experiences serving a 13-month-tour in Vietnam from 1966-67. (He was awarded a Purple Heart.)

The talk that Terry and I had is of a serious nature and quite compelling, ranging from PTSD to the redeployment of troops today to the therapeutic benefits of art.

FY -- The book title THE SECOND TOUR refers to the protagonist reliving his Vietnam tour -- it's as if he had a second tour. And Terry later emailed me that his book "really isn't for vets; it's for their families. That's where I'm getting most of my positive feedback."

You can visit Terry's website at http://thesecondtour.com and then listen to the interview.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Unfit for Military Duty: 75% of Young Americans

In a November 3rd Sphere (part of AOL News) article by Andrea Stone entitled "75 Percent of Young Americans Are Unfit for Military Duty," she reported:

The latest Army statistics show a stunning 75 percent of military-age youth are ineligible to join the military because they are overweight, can't pass entrance exams, have dropped out of high school or had run-ins with the law.

So many young people between the prime recruiting ages of 17 and 24 cannot meet minimum standards that a group of retired military leaders is calling for more investment in early childhood education to combat the insidious effects of junk food and inadequate education.

Is this a matter of national security? Read the entire article now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

For Veterans Day Join the Campaign The Flag Still Stands for Freedom

Retired Navy personnel Laura Kennedy spoke on the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com about her campaign started this past 9/11 entitled: The Flag Still Stands for Freedom. The campaign encourages all of us to drape the U.S. in red, white and blue on Veterans Day.

You'll want to listen to this interview as Laura describes why she started this campaign, which will go on after Veterans Day, and how she will do a 24-hour radio show on Veterans Day.

You'll also learn why starting the campaign on 9/11 has so much meaning for her as she is a survivor of the second tower.

And please visit her site at www.flagstillstandsforfreedom.com to make a Veterans Day recording to be sent to deployed troops. This is NOT a fund-raising campaign. It is a participation campaign.

Listen to the interview now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Paul Rieckhoff of IAVA Gets Veterans Health Bill Signed into Law

The October 30th CNN.com article by Ed Hornick headlined "Rieckoff takes veterans' fight from 'sandbox' to White House" is a powerful tale of how one person can make a difference.

Paul Rieckhoff is executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America (IAVA), an organization that did not exist until Rieckhoff started it after he served as an Army platoon leader in Iraq.

Read the story now to learn what one man has achieved.

P.S. See my new Twitter list @ZimblerMiller/us-troops-supporters .
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

USO Program Brings Deployed Parents Home to Their Children

USO's United Through Reading program:

In 62 locations around the globe, the USO's United Through Reading volunteers make DVDs of GIs reading children's books – like "Goodnight Moon" or "The Cat In The Hat" – aloud. The DVD and the book are then mailed to the kids back home to show them that mommy or daddy, though far away, is in fact OK.

In less than three years, the United Through Reading program has exploded. Over 50,000 recordings have been made this year, and 100,000 are projected for 2010. Your donation will help the USO provide the cameras (many are wearing out from overuse)... the books… the DVDs and mailers... even the boxes of tissues that must be placed in every recording location.

Visit the USO site now to donate to this program.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Author Bob Mayer Uses His Green Beret Training to Teach Civilians How to Win

West Point graduate, Special Forces veteran and New York Times bestselling author Bob Mayer discussed on the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com how to apply Special Operations tactics in the civilian world.

Bob's new book WHO DARES WINS uses these tactics to help people succeed in their civilian careers. He's now working on a book that will apply these tactics to teams.

Bob has 40 books published, some non-fiction and many fiction, including military fiction titles. He also writes under the pseudonym Robert Doherty for the Area 51 series and other books.

Historical note: Bob said that at West Point they had to memorize that 155 battles out of the 160 Civil War battles were waged by generals on both sides who had graduated West Point. (Bob is working on an historical novel starting at the Mexican War and moving forward to the Civil War.)

Listen to his interview now and then learn about the writing courses he teaches by visiting his website at www.bobmayer.org.

(The above Amazon link is an affiliate link.)
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

Karie Fugett Talks About Caregivers of War-Wounded Service Members

On the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com, Karie Fugett, writer of the blog Wife of a Wounded Marine featured on Cinchouse.com, talked about her experiences being the wife and caregiver to a wounded warrior.

Karie mentioned that the organization NotAlone.com provides "help for warriors and families dealing with war trauma."

Karie also talked about how helpful the WoundedWarriorProject.org is for families dealing with the aftermath of war-inflicted injuries. She urged everyone to support Senate Bill 801, the Caregivers and Veterans Support Act of 2009. You can support this bill right now.

Listen to Karie talk about her experiences during the last four years of being her husband's caregiver (she had been married only three months when her Marine husband was wounded in Iraq). What you learn may help you or someone else you know.

Then visit Karie's blog where she shares with readers what she goes through on a daily basis.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. Her newest project is www.InSupportOfOurTroopsFilms.com.

Phyllis' company MillerMosaicLLC.com does power marketing that combines traditional marketing principles and Internet marketing strategies to put power in your hands.

McCormick and Schmick's Seafood Restaurants Host Veterans Appreciation Day on November 8th

McCormick and Schmick's Seafood Restaurants will offer a complimentary entree from a special menu on Sunday, November 8, to show appreciation to veterans. Reservations are needed and proof of eligibility is required.

Check out the information now, including participating locations.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.

The Amazing Story of a Staff Sergeant Who Deployed with Her Unit 30 Days After Being Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

The following is from a transcript of a Department of Defense Bloggers Roundtable and is used with permission:

LINDY KYZER (Army Public Affairs): We're very pleased to have with us Staff Sergeant Elizabeth Cowie. She's a National Guard soldier. She was preparing for deployment to Iraq in the spring of 2007 when an Army-mandated mammogram revealed a tumor. With a year-long deployment around the corner, Staff Sergeant Cowie opted for an aggressive treatment plan and went on to deploy with her unit. Certainly an amazing story, especially as we recognize breast cancer awareness month this October.

Sgt. Cowie, can you tell us about the aggressive treatment and why you decided to go through that treatment, and how you were able to actually deploy with your unit? Because that seems to be a really amazing story that the amount of time was not a lot that you were able to get your treatment in and actually deploy with your unit. Can you describe that?

SGT. COWIE(pictured above): What happened was, once they saw the mammogram and they saw that there was something on there, I had an ultrasound done, and right away the ultrasound confirmed that there was something. They just didn't know what. So through TRICARE I found a physician that was a breast care specialist that was in Indianapolis, which we were at Camp Atterbury during our mob [mobilization] training. And through my TRICARE I could go to see the civilian doctors.

So we went ahead and did that and he did a biopsy and I had to wait about 10 days to see him, so it was a little nerve-wracking. But they understood, you know, it was important for me to hurry up and get there. I had talked with the doctor's office a little bit about the sense of urgency.

So I got in there, did my biopsy, and about three days later had the results back that I was stage zero breast cancer, which is very, very early.

The breast care specialist had very rarely ever seen stage zero. Usually it's caught at stage two to three, so it was by lucky stars that somebody looked close enough at the mammogram to see something that was caught early. Once we had the diagnosis, you know, we talked about my deployment and my time line. I had about 30 days before we were ready to go.

He explained to me some different options. Standard treatment for breast cancer is lumpectomy and then six weeks of radiation therapy. However, there was a new treatment available that I was a good candidate for, and it's called MammoSites.

What it is, instead of having external radiation, you have internal radiation for five days. So you go in twice a day, about 15 to 20 minutes each session for five days, and you're done. So that's what I chose to do because, again, it was on my time line.

I was really committed to my deployment. Being so far into the training, it just was not an option for me personally to back out and say, hey, I have to go home. I'd made a commitment to these troops and to this unit to see them through and that's what I was going to do, as long as the military would let me.

So we went from biopsy to lumpectomy to five days of radiation and cleared for deployment within 30 days. It was pretty aggressive, but again, for me, because they caught it so early, I was a good candidate for it.

Had I not had the mammogram done prior to deployment, had it done a year and a half, two years later, only God knows what it would have been, so I consider myself pretty lucky to have caught it so early.

Again, this month, the whole thing for breast cancer awareness is early detection. I'm a perfect example of that.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.

Documentary WAR DOGS OF THE PACIFIC Tells an Amazing Story

Producer and director Harris Done of the new documentary WAR DOGS OF THE PACIFIC has preserved an amazing story of the U.S. Marines training donated family pets for scout dogs in the jungle fighting in the Pacific during World War II.

The dogs' abilities to smell and hear sounds that the men couldn't saved an incredible number of American lives. And the bonds formed between the dogs and their handlers are truly compelling.

Go to the film's website now at www.wardogsmovie.com to learn more about this documentary. And I've created a page for it at my new site www.FilmsThatSupportOurTroops.com .
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.

Organization Provides Donated Event Tickets to Veterans and Active Duty Military

Veteran Tickets Foundation founder/CEO Michael Focareto discussed on the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com how his organization is making a difference
in the lives of veterans everywhere.

Michael told the story of how the idea for the all-volunteer work of this organization came to be, and it's a compelling story of seeing something he thought was wrong and setting out to make it right.

Now his organization is a central gathering point for donated tickets for all types of events. The tickets are then given out to veterans and active duty military personnel.

Michael (pictured here) is a disabled veteran (shoulder injury) of the US Navy (1988 - 1993) serving in the 1st Gulf War; he was a Naval Nuclear Engineer aboard the USS Virginia (CGN-38).

Listen to Michael explain how the system works.

And then go to his site now to offer tickets, make a donation or, if you are a veteran or active duty military, sign up for free to receive donated tickets.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.

Chef Seeks Recipes for Military Cookbook

Kate Gabriele appeared on YourMilitary.com's BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com to talk about her quest to have recipes submitted for a book on the food missed by service personnel when they were away from home.

Kate shared her cooking background (including her cooking show) and her motivation for starting this cookbook project to collect and preserve the recipes as well as the photos and stories of the service personnel to whom these recipes meant so much.

Please help Kate by passing along word of this project to people you know. You can find out more at her website at www.militarycookbookproject.com.

And listen to her interview now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.

Song "Road to Recovery" in Support of Our Troops

Diana D'Itri, CMO/Partner/Host of Web TV Network, gave me permission to share with you the song she co-wrote in support of our troops. She emailed me about the song:

The song initiated from a poem [by Marc Cattapan] that was sent to me from a man who volunteers for an organization called Ride 2 Recovery. I rewrote it and put music to it and had one of my singer friends sing lead. It was a labor of love as it was all volunteer (except for a few hundred dollars for the recording studio). All musicians are personal friends and my daughter and I sang back up.

Here are the credits and lyrics. And then listen to the MP3 below.

ROAD TO RECOVERY © 3/2009

Original poem by Marc Cattapan

Lyrics: Marc Cattapan, Diana D’Itri, Kelly Moore

Music: Diana D’Itri, Brett Duncan, Vanessa Vail,

Produced by Diana D’Itri, Bobby Dorman, Hal Ratliff

Engineered by Hal Ratliff - Keyboards and Programming: Hal Ratliff

Vocals: Bobby Dorman, Diana D’Itri, Vanessa Vail

Saxophone: Greg Vail - Guitar: Jay Stewart

C F

You took a bullet for me, a blast from an IED

Bb C

I wanna thank you, for your sacrifice

C F

For doing what you believe is right, never thinking twice

Bb C

I’m waving the flag, I’m here to salute you

C F Bb C

I don’t know your name, don’t know your face your story but I thank you

C F Bb C

I don’t even know your name, but I’m here to thank for, fighting for old glory

C F

Don’t ever think you’re alone, or nobody even cares at home

Bb C

It’s cause people like you, that make people like me free

C F

Free to be and say anything, free to even disagree

Bb C

One things for sure, you carry the weight of the world

REPEAT CHORUS

Dm F

Here’s wishing you…. well (break)

G C

On your road, on your road to recovery

F C F C F Bb

Oh Yeah, road to recovery, oh yeah road to recovery

Musical breakdown and Vocal over Chorus progression

C F Bb C

I don’t know your name, don’t know your face your story but I thank you

C F Bb C

I don’t even know your name, but I’m here to thank for, fighting for old glory

F C F C

I wanna thank you, I wanna thank you, I wanna thank you (vamp out)

Listen to the MP3 recording now.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the Jewish holiday book SEASONS FOR CELEBRATION. She is also an Internet business consultant and the co-host of the BlogTalkRadio show YourMilitaryLife.com.

Phyllis' company provides Internet marketing training as well as social media marketing to promote your business more effectively.