care packages

Greetings

The high points of this week were two greetings that came in the mail. The first greeting I received when I arrived back here at Speicher and caught up with my mail. I received mail from a number of friends and my heart was warmed. McLeans from Wichita sent along four large bags of jelly beans. Its amazing how jelly beans can create a mild sensation when they are shared between freinds. My neighbor in the room next to mine took a little bag and shared them at work. Jelly bean ministry, who would of thought of it. Also in the large jelly bean box was a poster from St. Paul's in Wichita. I posted it outside my office which is right next to the mail room which most deployed members see every day. I am including a picture. Any reminder we have that folk back home are holding us in their thoughts really is helpful. Another greeting came from the governor's office, a Kansas flag that has flown over the captitol in Topeka. There is included with it a certificate of authenticity signed by our great governor Kathleen. The state motto, "To the stars through difficulties" echos the struggles in this place. While Kansas' struggles were the struggles of the civil war and the stars were the stars of statehood the struggles here are for freedom and democracy. I have also included a photo of myself and the Kansas state flag. I greet you all from the depths of my heart, I wish you peace and freedom!

DAVE

(picture taken on convoy from spcicher to mosul)

Friends;

The past few days have been some of the most satisfying in my military career. First of all, getting to know and work with Msgt Janet O'Keethe-Hernandez has been great fun. She even has given me a gift, a container of Right Guard anti-perspirant. I wasn't quite sure what to make of this, is she trying to tell me something in her sutle Texas way? Actually, we received a generic care package from the states to distribute to the troops serving here. I kept the Right Guard. It was 120 degrees today. The second thing was a unit news lettter I edited with some help from the talented young engineers working in this deployment. It was a collaboration between myself in Mosul, Iraq and an engineer at Balad Air Base, Iraq, an engineer at Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan and our commander (I don't know where he is?). I am hoping my daughter Heidi who is my post mistress for this blog will be able to find a way to link the newsletter to this blog. The third thing was a "needs assessment" I did for the convoy team. Janet and I led four hour long sessions asking the airmen how it was going for them. I compiled the results and submitted them to the commander of our CLP team. He and his senior NCO's were very grateful for the feedback on the life of this mission community. I have also done needs assessment with our airmen who were going to Afghanistan and that also was helpful to the command staff. Tomorrow I am scheduled to lead 'Sunrise Prayers" at St. Elijah's Monastery here at FOB Marez at 0700. We shall see how that goes. Soon I head back down to COB Speicher for a spell and then off to Afghanistan for a visit. I pray all is well for you in your journey. And to all wo are following this blog who are connected to Janet, GOD bless you and thank you for your prayers. While Iraq isn't Texas or Kansas, what we do is realitively safe. Some risk is necessary in a war zone. Janet's professional career makes her quite adept at assessing risk so I think we will be just fine. None the less, we appreciate all the prayer support you can give, for us, but mostly for those whom we serve.

Peace be with you!

Dave

(alright, I haven't figured out how to attatch a pdf file into this blog yet. the newsletter will be posted as soon as this post-mistress can overcoome her technological challenges! Thanks for your patience and support....Heidi)

Successful Convoy

(Pastor Dave is on far right for those who have any question!)

Dear Friends;

Its been a few days since I have posted to this blog. My chaplain's Assistant, Msgt Janet O'Keeffe-Hernandez has joined the mission here. She is in professional law enforcement in Texas and so the security part of her mission is well taken care of. She is qualified as expert on both the M-9 and the M-16 weapons which is a comfort also. I find her smart and refreshing work with. I am confident she will consistently add value to this deployment. She is pictured on the monastery wall facing the Russian Tank graveyard. There is something poetic in this image, a monastery across the road for weapons of destruction.

Last Monday I had the opportunity to ride on my first convoy. As many of you are aware, convoy can be dangerous and the majority of casualties in Iraq are on convoys. What isn't stated in the news is that there are hundreds of convoy every day most of which are without incident. Ours was one without incident. It was truly a rigorous experience though. We hit the start point at 0830 in the morning. The teams usual practice is to hit the start point at 0630 due to the fact that is is simply cooler to drive during the early day. We had a truck break, the alternator went out and some of the convoy teams members replaced it within in an hour. I am posting a few shots of the convoy as well. Some on the convoy team are pictured with me. Sgt Barrows is to my right. He was deployed to Romania with me in 2003 and was my truck commander. He was engaged in Iraq however, I just stayed on the base. Next to him is Sgt Viars who briefed us on intelligence and was a truck commander. Next to Sgt Viars is Sgt Snipes, another truck commander and on end is Capt. Eric Hanssen, the convoy commander and commander of the CLP team. Capt. Hanssen is an Air Force Academy graduate and sharp young leader.

I was thrilled by the experience of riding on a convoy. It is considered a combat mission in Iraq but I would have to say it is combat only if we are attacked. We are not looking for trouble as so many in the army are doing. Many in our organization are attending a memorial service tomorrow for a young man who was killed in action on a convoy in Mosul. He was hit by a sniper. I will report on that event in a later post. It is a reminder that what we are doing here is dangerous and is fatal for too many young Americans. GOD bless their souls.

-- Rev. Dave Fulton
Making Disciples to Make Peace
St. Paul's Lutheran Church
925 N. Waco
Wichita, KS 67203

Friends;

Thanks for all the feedback on this BLOG. It seems that I have experienced alot of firsts since I have been here: a first helicopter ride, the first time in Iraq, my first convoy, my first meeting with actual people form Iraq. Tomorrow I will experience my first over the road convoy mission. I have been working with the convoy team since I trained with them in Kuwait in early June. Now I get to experience what they do, another first. Another first is that this is the longest time I have been absent from a congregation I serve in my 30 years of ordained service. While I conceive of what I do here as a significant outreach of St. Paul's' Lutheran in Wichita I yearn to be present with those whom I am privileged to be pastor. I am deeply grateful that one of my mentors in ministry and a long time colleague, Pastor Sally Fahrenthold is filling my shoes in Wichita. While I have great confidence in Pr. Sally and in St. Paul's I still miss a direct connection with that SPIRIT filled community.

Now some news from the deployment. I have stated elsewhere in this blog I am not able to speak in detail abut the mission here, since our enemies get 80% of their intelligence from public sources such as this blog. Let it suffice to say that this detachment, the Red Horse compound at COB Speicher is in significant transition as we prepare to send a team to Afghanistan and welcome a team who have just completed Combat Skills Training and their orientation at Camp Buehring in Kuwait. My assistant will be a part of those new comers. I look forward to meeting her and becoming a chaplain service team. COB Speicher is also receiving a group called Det. 10 who are civil engineers engaged in the vital mission of route repair. They fix the holes in the road the insurgents make. When all are in place we will have a nice little community here at Speicher. This is why Speicher is my home base for this deployment. Blessings to you and thanks for checking in on me!

DAVE

Received word early this morning that the convoy arrived safely in Mosul.....Heidi

covoy prayers

This morning I got up early, about 3:45am to have a word and a prayer with our convoy team as they set out on their 3.5 hour journey to FOB Marez in Mosul, Iraq. I have grown close to this group. They apprecdiate my ministry more than most on this deployment. There is something about embarking on a "Combat Logistics Patrol" that concentrates the mind and looks to the ultimate ground of all life,our GOD. Imagine, you are headed out on the road to an uncertain parel, and you hear these words,

" 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? When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh "my adversaries and foes” they shall stumble and fall. Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident. One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple."

As I retruned to my room to do devotions the thought struck me that these guys are like pioneers on wagon trains mvoing accross America. Those were actually much more dangerous than what our CLP teams encounter. It is that pioneering spirit that is so striking. I think the image of pioneer is appropiate for this yong men, they are working to establish outposts of freedom in this hostile environment. GOD bless their souls.

There is also a sense of humor in a war zone. The Speicher National Forest is one solitary tree along side one of our dusty roads. GOD bless you! Thanks for joining me on this journey!

DAVE

Convoy to Mosul

Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas any more!

This thought came to me as we took a small convoy into downtown Mosul yesterday. We traveled in three gun trucks which decisively moved through the city. The gunner in the first truck motioned his arm to move the traffic over as we passed. I am including here a picture of a stryker vehicle in downtown Mosul. I was in a humvee but you get the idea. We arrived at the Center where we would meet with the director and meet with some children. I am needing to be vague about the center and its mission since this blog is public and can be used against these amazing people. We met the "Child in Iraq." In the first portion of this blog there is a poem I wrote called a "Child in Iraq." God help me, I met that child! I was so deeply moved by the people here who deeply appreciate our presence here and yearn for the freedom we celebate on this 4th of July. As we arrived our hosts welcomed us with a meal. I am including here a picture that is very similar to what we were offered. We were offered an abundance of food and our hosts would actually put food in our mouths as we were eating. I had an opportunty to speak directly to the director who spoke through an interpeter. I told the director that many americans had a deep yearning for peace in Iraq and yearn to provide resources that would make for peace. The director was deeply moved and with hand over heart said, shakur, thank you. Two children wrote notes in arabic to two of my companions on this mission. The children, who couldn't have been more than 8 or 9 spoke with simplicity and yearing of simply being able to play without the fear of bombs or shooting. They spoke of being able to go to the park without being afraid. God bless their souls! Any doubts I may have had about our involvement in this country disappeared with those children's letters. I asked the director, "How can we in America be helpful to you." She seemed puzzeled by the question. We later discussed the issue and concluded that she had no frame of reference for compassionate gifts form America. It was amazing to live through an event that I knew I would never forget and that could be decisive for the well being of Iraq. My challenge is to find a way to bring compassionate resources from America to Iraq in ways that would be helpful for the Iraqi's. The problem is that when the Insurgents find out we are helping people in Iraq, they will simply kidnapp thier children and hold them for ransom or have them killed. It is dangerous to do good in this country. I am determined to find a way! I see some type of faith based United Way of Iraq to help these desperately poor but richly noble people. Our host, looked into my eayes and said through our interpetor, "I feel in my heart your deep feeling for us, shakur." I pray you will feel the depth of compassion I feel for these people. GOD, help us find a way to make peace in the land of strife.


Blessings to you

Dave