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I've received the following letter from Baerbel Hamilton and told Baerbel that I would pass it along on her behalf. A wonderful local story relating to one of the fine folks currently serving our country in Afghanistan and the appreciation that was shown for what they are doing.  
 
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There are times when you realize just how wonderful people can be. True enough, most people are good people, but then there are those that go beyond what we classify as “caring people”.  
 
My husband and I have lived in a rural farming community in South Western Manitoba now for five years (Deleau, MB). It wasn’t a choice that was initiated by us but rather by the Military. My husband is in the Canadian Armed Forces and CFB Shilo was the destination they had in mind for us in the fall of 2004.  
 
We moved here from Ontario and brought along with us a few horses, a donkey and some dogs and cats. Having this many animals meant that we required a few acres and at the time of our “house hunting expedition”, the only place we could find that could afford us the luxury of those few acres was well outside the Shilo area….107 kms away! It would mean a long commute on a daily basis but being able to become part of a rural community, far away from the realms of Military Life, was something we looked forward to. It would prove to be our own little sanctuary after a long day at the Base and after almost 28 yrs of living in the Military Community, we welcomed that change. And thus our adventure began. But that is another story.  
 
Last February my husband was “attached posted” to a base in Edmonton for pre-deployment training with the TF 3-09 Engineer Support Unit. It would prove to be the start of a long and often lonely undertaking, on both our parts. He was training for his part in the combined efforts of the troops going to Afghanistan later that fall. In October of 2009, his turn came and he made his way to Kandahar.  
 
As much as I tell people that as a Military spouse you get used to hubby being away, whether just across the country or overseas, this trip was different. I was as much worried as any other spouse or family member that had someone serving in a war torn country. Having voiced my concerns to my husband, well, he claimed that he was alright…everything would be alright…don’t worry. That was my husband for you. He took everything in stride and never seemed to complain about anything! When I saw photos of his living quarters, which consisted of two bunk beds in a small portion of a sea container, and commented to him how horrid it must be, he just waved off my unease at the situation. There were others that had it far worse he said. He actually stated that he had it good compared to those that came in from “outside the wire” covered in sand and fly bites because they were exposed to the elements and the harshness the land had to offer. No, he assured me, he was fairing well.  
 
With comments like that and his overall concern for “the other guy” and not himself, I knew that underneath all that bravado, he must be feeling personal apprehension as well. After all, you aren’t married for almost 28 years to the same man and not know what he is feeling and thinking most of the time!  
 
Because of this, I wanted to do something special…but what? This Christmas he wouldn’t be home but I still wanted him to know just how special I thought he was and how proud I was of what he (and his fellow soldiers) was accomplishing there. The media doesn’t often dwell on those stories but instead prefer to linger on the headline that afford them the most publicity …and that is usually the “bad news”. Although that is understandable to some degree, I had always hoped that their focus would be on the good our soldiers were doing for that country and its people.  
 
I mentioned this to a neighbour of mine and asked if she thought that it was a good idea if I asked the local school kids to write him some letters… or something of that sort. Did she think they would go for that? I knew my husband would love to hear about their farm life, their animals or anything else they had to tell him…after all, he was a “farmer wanna be”.  
 
With our own two boys grown up and no longer living at home, having children express their thoughts in the form of stories and pictures would be a wonderful way to keep him in touch with our community while he was so very far away. It also afforded them the opportunity to learn and understand exactly what it was that our men and women of the Armed Forces were doing over there…other than shooting people, as they often thought that that was all they were doing there.  
 
My neighbour thought it was a great idea and jumped at it. She said that often our community had wanted to do something to say Thank You to all the soldiers but never knew what they should do to show their appreciation. Having us in their community as the only Military family for miles, made it even more important to show their support. Before I knew what was happening, she contacted a teacher at the local school and within no time at all, the kindergarten kids and a class of grades 3 and 4 were putting together cards, letters and pictures to send over.  
 
I was excited! I could just imagine my husband wondering what on earth that parcel of letters and cards were and from whom?  
 
And he did wonder. From his emails, I pretty much got the impression that he was speechless. He doesn’t often show his emotional side but like I said, I know him inside and out and I do know that this touched him deeply. He shared these wonderful notes with other members serving over there and sent many to the men and women at the Forward Operating Bases so that they too could take joy in reading what these youngsters had written (I never got to read these letters beforehand, which is probably a good thing especially since I have shed enough tears already to last me a lifetime).  
 
This brings me to the real reason for this long letter…it’s to say Thank You! Thank you to Doreen Winona Logeot for taking me and this enterprise under her wing and flying with it! Thank you to Brenda and Kevin Mantell (and those that worked with them) of the Hartney School for understanding just how important this endeavour was not only for me but also for the children and especially for our troops in Afghanistan. It showed the much needed support these men and women deserve and reiterated the real objective of their presence there…the children…who are our biggest asset…who are our future. The biggest Thank You of all goes to the children of the Kindergarten class and the grade 3 and 4 class! Although they may not totally understand what is going on and how important their gesture in doing this is, I am sure that one day they will remember. I know that the soldiers they have touched with their innocence and kind hearts will never forget this. The children and people in my community have set a precedent that I think all people should follow. They have shown that they care about their fellow man no matter where they are or who they are. They were not afraid to take that all important first step to say Thank You.  
 
God Bless each and every one of them!!!  
 
Sincerely,  
Babs Hamilton  
Wife of Sgt Ian Hamilton, presently serving in Afghanistan.  
 
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