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Reaching out to children

Apr-13-2004 » Filed Under: Link of Interest

[Link to Full Article]
BY VALERIE ZEHL
Press & Sun-Bulletin

Bob Fiedler of Vestal knows something about war. In the 1940s, he was a boy living in Germany, and a decade later he watched fellow American soldiers die in Korea.

Powerless then, he witnessed ordinary lives falling victim to forces beyond their control. But now, he's in a position to do something.

Through American Legion Post 89 in Vestal, he is bringing to the people of the Southern Tier a plea from an Army chaplain serving overseas: Please help the children of Iraq.

The GIs of the 37th Artillery Battalion of the Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division -- Fiedler's unit years ago -- are helping rebuild that country. But meanwhile, Iraqi children suffer.

They need clothing, school supplies and toys so they can start to feel like children again.

"I saw some pictures -- and those children look just like ours," says Fred Sherman, a past commander of the post, and the grandfather of Stryker Brigade medic Justin Whittaker. "Hopefully this will help educate them and give them a better future."


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