[Oremem/Idamem] More Oregon Gateway News

[leo griffin]

Greetings, All Oregon MARS Members,

KFC seems to be most quiet and with better propagation from 11.30 AM to 3 PM
PDT.  These conditions tend to heighten the effective linking with the
Oregon Gateway. Please make a noble effort to connect.  Evenings and night
time have major interference from SW stations in the present propagation
trends.

Since the SMD has failed to accept my resignation as Public Relations
Officer, I must assume I still have those duties.  Following is an
investigation into "volunteerism" and its ramifications.

Although there are many concepts of what being a volunteer is all about, I'd
like to highlight some of the more positive aspects and organizations which
use volunteers. It seems fitting with Independence Day about to celebrated.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 VOLUNTEERS who signed the
Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before
they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons
captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary
War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred
honor.

What kind of men were these VOLUNTEERS?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of
means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships
swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to
pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his
family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his
family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty
was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton,
Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British General
Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly
urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and
Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his
wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13
children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to
waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to
find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from
exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution VOLUNTEERS!.

These were: not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken
men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more.
Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of
this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine
providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and
our sacred honor." They gave you and me a free and independent America. The
history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary
War. We didn't fight just the British. We were British subjects at that time
and we fought our own government!

Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't. So,
take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently
thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!  It's time we get the word out that
patriotism is NOT a sin, and the

Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games - it is
a day we salute the VOLUNTEERS who gave us the rights and freedoms we
cherish today.  The fight is not over.  We all know and respect the
VOLUNTEER firemen/women who serve our communities with TOTAL commitment.

On that note, I have a friend who is a VOLUNTEER fireman and she was injured
on a practice exercise.  She reported her wound to the Fire Chief and not to
her immediate supervisor.  The Chief put her on probation for another six
months for breaking protocol and nothing was said about her being injured
doing her duty. She was proud of the action and is more dedicated to the
VOLUNTEER Fire Department than before this incident because now she realizes
the absolute need for protocol.. She is dedicated to this cause! She has
accepted the RESPONSIBILITY OF BEING A VOLUNTEER in an organization which
requires total commitment.

Oregon Army MARS does not ask for such loyalty.  She dare not miss an
exercise or study class and will put aside anything in her life to be sure
to attend and fulfill her duties.  Oregon Army MARS does not ask for such
dedication.

But one thing remains crystal clear - the mission of Oregon Army MARS is
just as important, just as needed by the community, and just as critical in
the fulfillment of its mission as are all the VOLUNTEER Firemen in the
nation.  When the WORST happens, Oregon Army MARS must be there!  It cannot
succeed without the dedication of its members and that requires more than an
emotional commitment - it REQUIRES ACTIVE PARTICIPATION by each and every
member in the stipulated requirements of being a member in Oregon Army MARS.

To do something voluntarily means without interference - the definition
disallows any but the most dire circumstances to stand in the way of the
fulfillment of the voluntary act.  It therefore can be said to mean that its
priority level is below only God, Family, and Country or one is not a
VOLUNTEER - one is a part-time hobbyist.  I suggest to you that Oregon Army
MARS requires more than the latter definition.

The mainstay of Oregon Army MARS are the nets - without full participation
in the nets, a member cannot keep current in the many details which
participation as an ACTIVE VOLUNTEER must demand.  The nets are the
life-blood of the membership for honing skills, and learning the growing art
of digital and voice emergency communications.  This means that
participating in the nets is a primary necessity of ALL the members
including the leadership - nay, but to insist on the leadership to be
present on the vast majority of nets.

We are now undertaking the job of supporting new and important clients with
the most serious of burdens and responsibilities.  Frankly, we are not ready
to do the job with our full strength and with ACTIVE VOLUNTEERS.  Thomas
Paine once said, "These are the times that try men's souls.  The summer
soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the
service of their country.  But he who stands it now deserves the love and
thanks of man and woman..." and how fitting that statement is now!  We are
in a bloody and desperate fight with terrorist organizations that range from
small town to our biggest cities and utilities. We are NEEDED NOW!

I sincerely hope EVERY member can re-affirm their commitment to Oregon Army
MARS, and with that reaffirmation, consider again why they became members
and what is required to fulfill the mission of those requirements...and get
ACTIVE!  The call to duty is there, the job is there to be done, the loyalty
MUST NOT give way to the lesser details of our lives.  We don't have to
fight to get our freedom, but we sure as hell must fight and work to keep
those freedoms!  The only test of loyalty is to answer the call to duty -
there is no other means.  With that in mind, I will look forward to hearing
ALL our membership on the nets.

73's
leo
AAR0NH