Remembering President Harry Truman

Sadly, President Harry Truman does not often receive the credit many people think he rightfully deserves. Below are some interesting facts about Harry Truman our 33rd President many people may not be aware of.

President Truman was a different kind of President for three primary reasons:

First - and foremost, he was not elected to his first term of office; he inherited the position of President after the death of President Franklin Roosevelt.

Second - While serving as President of the United States, he chose to pay all of his travel and living expenses such as the food his family ate out of his Presidential salary.

Third - he placed a sign on his desk in the Oval Office which read - ‘The Buck Stops Here’

Ironically, President Truman probably made as many, if not more, important decisions regarding our nation as any as the other 32 Presidents who preceded him. Most notably on August 6th, 1945 he, and he alone, ordered the dropping of the 5 ton Atomic Bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima.

However, his true measure of greatness actually does not begin until after he left the White House in 1952.

After President - Elect Eisenhower was inaugurated into office as the new President of the United States, Harry and his wife Bess drove themselves back home to Independence Missouri in their personal automobile. There was no such thing as a Secret Service escort which followed them.

When they left Washington the only source of income they had was a small U.S. Army pension Harry earned and the only asset he and his wife Bess had to their name was a small house in Independence Missouri which Bess inherited from her parents. Other than the six years Harry and Bess spent in the White House, this was the only house the two of them ever knew during their entire married life.

Almost immediately upon returning to Missouri large corporations from across the county began to contact Harry Truman. They all wanted to offer his positions with huge salaries to come work for them. However Mr. Truman declined every offer he received saying "You don't want me, Gentlemen you want the office of the President, and that unfortunately doesn't belong to me. It belongs to the American people and I am sorry but that office is not for sale."

Several Congressmen soon noticed the former President was paying for all the stationary and the stamps he was using to respond to letters her received from US citizens and people around the world who wrote him. Not only that, President Truman personally licked every stamp he placed on an envelope. Congress voted to grant President Truman the very first 'Retired Presidential Allowance. The following year, Congress voted to give him a retroactive Presidential pension of $25,000 per year.

In May 1971, Congress was preparing a bill to award President Truman the Medal of Honor on his 87th birthday; however President Truman wrote a letter to Congress in which he stated he would refuse to accept any such medal. He said "I don't consider what I have done anything which should be the reason for any award, Congressional or otherwise – all I did was my job."

The one Truman quote I will personally never forget was the one he gave during an interview with the New York Times. When asked why he had gotten into politics in the first place he said "My choices in life were simple, either become a piano player in a Missouri whore house or enter politics. And to tell the truth, the way I saw it there was hardly any difference – so I choose politics."

Many Presidents and numerous political figures that followed President Truman found new levels of success by cashing in on their time in Public Office. Many used creative ways to accumulate untold wealth as a result of their time serving in public office.

It might be wise for us to take a moment now and then to remember President Harry Truman.

Who The Heck Is Betty Crocker?

Betty Crocker is a household name that is pretty much known around the world today.  For over a century, Betty has created delicious recipes and proven baking methods that help even the most novice cooks and newlyweds can follow to easily bake scrumptious desserts and a variety of other baked goods.  Betty’s kitchen advice is trusted and followed by many.  But perhaps there is something you may not be aware of regarding Ms. Betty Crocker.

In 1880, the forerunner of the General Mills Company entered its newly milled flour in the International Miller’s Competition; surprisingly it won the ‘Gold Medal’. The small company was so proud to have won the gold medal; it changed the name of its flour to “Gold Medal Flour.”  Even though the original company changed hands several times, the name Gold Medal Flour has always remained the flagship flour; in fact it’s the largest selling flour in the U.S. today.

Back in 1921, one of the predecessors to today’s General Mills decided to run a special promotion regarding its Gold Medal Flour brand. The company asked housewives in America to submit any questions they had about Gold Medal Flour and it assured them everyone who submitted a question would receive a handwritten response from the company.  

Unbelievably, the company was soon overwhelmed with letters coming in from all across America from mothers and homemakers.  The company wanted to ensure continuity in responding to all the women who sent in questions so the company came up with the name Betty Crocker – because it just sounded like a good name to reply.  Every response to the questions submitted regarding Gold Medal Flour were answered by numerous women who all signed their replies - Betty Crocker.

Although Betty Crocker, was and always has been a fictionalized character, she became so popular with housewives and bakers around the world demanded to know what she actually looked like.  So back in 1936, after General Mills bought the company it commissioned a well known artist to create a likeness of what he thought Betty Crocker would look like if she were real - thus the first Betty Crocker image as we know today was created.

Over the years General Mills has continued to update Betty’s looks -  several times in fact. Each update provided Betty with a contemporary hair style and a modern, fashionable wardrobe. The last makeover Betty received was in 1996.  Betty however was initially portrayed as a matronly looking mother; today though she looks much younger, resourceful and confident.  In addition, Betty has always been committed to her family, her community and most of all she loves to bake.

What most people do not realize is that there is always a "Betty Crocker" on duty 24/7 at the General Mills Company headquarters in Golden Valley, Minnesota.  Betty is always there to answer any phone call and reply to any questions that arises regarding Gold Medal Flour.

What’s even more amazing is that according to AdWeek - one of the giant publications in the advertising industry,  has concluded that Betty Crocker reigned as “The Most Famous Fictional Female in the U.S." for almost a century.  She was recently bumped to second place by a younger upstart fictional character many of you might know.  According to AdWeek, the four most famous fictional females ever created by corporations in the U.S. are:

            1) Flo – The insurance spokeswoman from Progressive Insurance

            2) Betty Crocker – The wise baker/kitchen consultant 

            3) Mrs. {Joy} Butterworth – The syrup icon from Pinnacle Foods,

                                                           and

            4) Catalina – A beautiful, fun loving Chicken of the Sea mermaid 

What is Your Perspective as a Local Government Official?

Sometimes it takes only the perspective of a child to remind us of what’s really important. The quality of our lives is based solely on our individual perspectives.

One day a very wealthy businessman, who was the father of an eight year old boy, decided to take his son for a trip out into the country.   He thought by visiting a rural area he could help teach his son some basic facts about life and more importantly help him appreciate all the things he had living a "The Big City". 

The father wanted to show his son how life would be if they were poor. So through a friend - the father arranged to spend a few days out in the boondocks - on a small farm owned by a family that everyone in the local area considered to be very poor.  

The father took off a Thursday afternoon and all day Friday from work.  He and his son got in the car and drove for about four and a half hours to the middle of no where to reach the farm were they had planned to stay at.  Upon arriving they were warmly greeted by the farmer and his family and so they spent the entire weekend with them.  After three days and three nights on the far the father and his son got back in their car for the return trip home.

As they drove the father turned to his son and asked "Well Son how did you like our farm visit".  “It was great, Dad,” the son replied.

“I now see how poor people live?” the son said. The father couldn’t help but crack a broad smile - his plan worked. 

“So tell me Son, what did you learn from this trip we took?” asked the father. Without hesitation the little boy said, “I saw that we have one dog and but that family had four. I know we have a pool behind our house that reaches to the middle of our yard and they have a creek that has no end. 

Mom buys fancy us all those fancy imported lanterns that she hangs in the garden but this family has stars to look up at each night.

Our patio deck is almost as wide as our house but when that family sits on their small back porch they have the whole horizon to look at everyday. 

We have a very small piece of land to live on in our neighborhood and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but everyone in that family is always serving each other.

Mom buys all our food in the grocery stores, but they grow and raise most of what they eat themselves. 

You built that big fence around all our property to protect us; but this family has good friends and neighbors who watch out and protect them.”

The father was numb and speechless as he tried to catch his breath.  Just then his son added, “Dad I really do want to thank you for showing me just how poor we really are.”

The Barbary Coast - An Important Lesson for all Public Officials

This is an interesting story that will tie together three things:  Thomas Jefferson - Muslims and the United States Marine Corps.

My hope is you will find this is a fascinating story full of pertinent information but also answer the question: Why the U.S. Marine Corp Hymn contains the verse, "To the Shores of Tripoli" in it. 

Okay, let’s begin. Most people are totally unaware that President Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States of America authorized the formation of the United States Marines (sea going soldiers). He did so when American ships were attacked by pirates of the Barbary Coast. The Marines had one job – repulse all invaders on American Ships.

Who were the Barbary Pirates? The Barbary pirates were the terror of the Mediterranean Sea - as well as a large section of the North Atlantic. They were Muslims who represented the Islamic nations of Tripoli, Tunis, Morocco, and Algiers - collectively referred to as the Barbary Coast

That’s right - over two hundred years ago the United States was fighting with Islam and it was Thomas Jefferson who led the charge against them and here’s why. When Muslims pirates attacked foreign ships they always took the crews and passengers and held them hostage for exorbitant ransoms. The captured sailors and passengers were subjected to barbaric treatment and forced to write heart-breaking letters home, begging their governments and families to pay whatever their Mohammedan captors demanded. If ransoms did not arrive fast enough the heads of the hostages were cut off.

Now before the Revolutionary War, all U.S. merchant ships (those belonging to the American Colonies) sailed under the protection of Great Britain. When the Colonies declared their independence from Britain and entered into the Revolutionary War, all ships of the United States were then protected by France. However, once the Colonists won their Independence from Great Britain the United States of America had to protect its own ships – thus the United States Navy was born.

Thomas Jefferson was elected President of the United States in 1801; however 17 years before Jefferson was the Ambassador to France when Algerian pirates captured several American ships. The ‘Dye’ of Algiers at that time demanded the U.S. pay a ransom for their safe returns. Jefferson saw payments to Muslim nations as extortion and was opposed to Congress making any such payments. Many other American leaders, including George Washington shared similar feelings. They too warned Congress against caving in and paying Muslims ransoms. They thought paying tribute would only further embolden these fundamentalist Muslims.

Never the less, Congress to appease the Muslims pirates and avoid entering into another war, agreed to pay the ransoms the Barbary States demanded. Congress felt it would best if they followed in the footsteps of most European nations and just pay the ransoms.

Well in 1786 Jefferson and John Adams personally met with Tripoli's Ambassador to Great Britain and asked him what right his nation had to attack American vessels and enslave American citizens and why Muslims held such hostility towards America, a nation with which they had never had a previous contact with.

The Ambassador from Tripoli told the two future Presidents that Islam "was founded on the Laws of their Prophet Mohamend and that it was written in the Quran that all nations who do not acknowledge Islamic authority were sinners and that it is every Muslims right and duty to make war upon non-Islam’s. Furthermore Muslims who should be slain in battle with Islam’s enemies would all go to Paradise."

So over the years Congress voted to pay Muslims millions of dollars for the safe passage of American ships and/or the return of American hostages. The payments Congress made were estimated to be 20 percent of the United States government annual revenue in 1800. Jefferson was disgusted by this policy. He wanted Congress to form a coalition with allied nations who together would force the Islamic states into peace. However a disinterested Congress “voted NO” to his suggestion and decided to continue to pay ransoms.

Shortly after Jefferson was sworn in as the third President of the United States in 1801, the Pasha of Tripoli sent President Jefferson a letter. The letter demanded the U.S. make an immediate payment of $225,000 plus $25,000 a year for every year thereafter. Jefferson replied to the Pasha’s letter by saying he would not comply with his demand. The Pasha in turn responded by cutting down the American flagpole at the consulate in Tripoli and then declared war on the United States. Tunis, Morocco, and Algiers immediately did the same.

Until this time, Jefferson was opposed to America raising any naval force other than one to defend the coast of the USA; but having watched his nation be cowed by Islamic thuggery for 17 long years he had had enough. He decided it was finally time to meet this evil force with force and thus he created the United States Marines.

Once the Marines were in firmly established Jefferson sent a fleet of U.S. frigates loaded with United States Marines into the Mediterranean and north Atlantic. He authorized these American ships to seize all vessels and goods of the Pasha of Tripoli and to "cause to be done all other acts of precaution or hostility as any state of war would justify". The orders of the Marines were to confront Muslim pirates in battle and follow them back to their villages and kill every man, woman and child they found.

It didn't take long for Muslim nations to leave U.S. Merchant vessels alone. Algiers and Tunis were accustomed to seeing America’s cowardice and acquiescence but now they saw the newly created United States of America had both the will and the might to strike back and they quickly abandoned their allegiance to Tripoli and their other Barbary Coast neighbors. They left all U.S. shipping traffic in the Mediterranean alone.

The war with the Muslims in Tripoli lasted four years. During this war the exceptional bravery of the U.S. Marine Corps in dealing with Muslim pirates was noted by every nation around the world which led to the line "to the shores of Tripoli" being included in the Marine Corps Hymn. Both the English and French started running up US Flags on their merchant ships’ masts whenever they entered the Mediterranean Sea. They knew that by flying an American flag it would insure safe travels for their crews and ships.

Because of all those fierce battles the Marines had with the Muslims during this period - Marines became known as "leathernecks". Why? After engaging in a few battles with the Muslims, Marines had heavy leather collars sewn on to their uniforms. These heavy leather collars were designed to prevent their heads from easily being cut off by Muslims pirates with their scimitars when Marines boarded their pirate ships.

Now Jefferson had always been a very religious man and was well aware that America was a nation of religious tolerance. In fact Jefferson, himself, co-authored the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. However to him, and most of the civilized countries in the world, fundamentalist Islam was like no other religion. Islam was a religion based solely on its self-proclaimed supremacy over all other religions. The Quran - the Muslim holy book not only condoned … but mandated - violence against non-believers of Islam and that was totally unacceptable to Jefferson.

Thomas Jefferson’s greatest fear upon leaving the office of President was that someday radical Islamist would return. He believed Muslims would pose more threats on the United States and its citizens as time went on.

Ironically we now know that Muslims who have immigrated to the United States over the past two decades have petitioned their units of local government, their local school boards and their State Governments to have women-only classes in public schools – which has been approved in many US school districts. We now know Muslims have petitioned to have women only swimming times in city and universities pools - which we also know has been approved in many American communities.

Muslim have successfully petitioned their local court systems that Christians, Jews, and Hindus cannot serve on juries where Muslim defendants are being judged - which even though this is hard to believe it has actually been agreed to in many American communities and several states. We know that Piggy banks, facial tissue dispensers, wall clocks and computer screen savers with Porky Pig images on them are now banned from many workplaces because they are deemed offensive to Islamist sensibilities – and this too has been approved in several American communities and a host of federal and state government offices.

In the private sector ice cream desserts that were sold at many Burger Kings are now banned because the picture on the BK wrapper looked to similar to an Arabic script for the word Allah – and BK agreed to remove these ice cream treats from many of its locations. Finally many school boards have agreed to remove pork meals, pork sandwiches and pork sausage from their school lunch menus at elementary, middle and high schools.

Jefferson believed it was wrong not to fighting back radical Muslims and not to insist that all newly arrived Islamists' adapt to American culture. He feared the United States would be cutting its own throat with a politically correct knife if we caved in to radical Muslim demands. He was unyielding - that not fighting Islam zealots would only help further the Islamists' agenda in America in the future.

As we all well know there are many of America's leaders today – in Washington, in State Capital and at Local government levels, who don’t share President Jefferson’s opinions. Sadly, the vast majority of our government and political leaders today still prefer to be appease and be politically correct rather than confront any Muslim threat!

If you have any doubts about the above information then just Google "Thomas Jefferson vs. the Muslim World." (Check out all this for yourself.)

The Day Mrs. Thompson Quick Teaching

Mrs. Thompson stood in front of her fifth grade class on the first day of school and told a lie, a big lie - the biggest lie she had ever told as she welcomed the students.  She said that she would treat all the students the same.  But she knew there was one student she would not treat the same - his name was Teddy Stoddard.

The school district had hired Ms. Thompson the year before and she couldn't help but notice Teddy’s behavior throughout the last year.  He was a known problem child with a lousy academic record. He didn’t play well with other children; his clothes were always a mess; everyday he looked like he needed a bath, and he had a bad attitude regarding everything.

Throughout the beginning weeks of the semester, Mrs. Thompson delighted in marking Teddy’s papers with a broad red pen and placing big bold 'X's on all his wrong answers.  She smiled every time she put a large 'F' at the top of his papers as she wanted the other students in class to be able to see his grade when she handed them out.

Unfortunately school policy required every teacher to review the academic records of their students during the first week of December.  Mrs. Thompson held Teddy's file off until last.  When she finally sat down to review his file, she was taken aback.  Teddy’s first grade teacher had written, "Teddy is a bright child who does neat work and has excellent classroom manners. He is a joy to have in my class - I will miss him next year."

His second grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an above average student who is well liked by his classmates. He has been having trouble lately at home because of his mother’s illness and life at home is really a struggle for Teddy." 

His third grade teacher wrote, "His mother's recent death has been very hard on Teddy.  He tries hard to do his best, but his father doesn't show much interest in him and I believe his home life is going to be negatively impacted by these events."

Teddy's fourth grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is a withdrawn child who doesn’t show much interest in school.  He has very few friends, often comes to class unprepared and is frequently disruptive in class.  He generally wears dirty clothes and looks like a mess."

Mrs. Thompson now felt ashamed of her behavior. She felt even worse a few weeks later when her students all brought in their Christmas presents for her.  All were wrapped in brightly colored holiday papers and tied with fancy ribbons except for one. Teddy's was gift was clumsily wrapped in brown paper from a grocery bag and it had no ribbon.  Mrs. Thompson decided to open Teddy’s present first.  Many of the children laughed when they saw a small rhinestone bracelet with several stones missing and an old bottle of perfume which was barely one 1/4 full; but Mrs. Thompson quickly stifled their laughter by commenting on how beautiful the bracelet was as she put in on.  She then dabbed some of the perfume on each of her wrist, inhaled deeply and said it smells wonderful Teddy – Thank You so much for this lovely gift.

Before he left class that afternoon, Teddy slowly walked up to Mrs. Thompson's desk, leaned in and said, "I just want you to know you smell just like my Mom use to."  Then he quickly ran out of the classroom.  When all the other students left, Mrs. Thompson put her head down at the desk and cried. This was the day she vowed to quit teaching.  Never again she said would she teach her students reading, writing or arithmetic, instead she would start teaching children how to live.

The following Monday morning she began to pay special attention to Teddy in class.  As she worked with him, his mind came alive.  The more she encouraged him, the faster he responded.  By the end of the school year, Teddy was one of the brightest students in her class. Despite "her lie to treat all students the same," it was obvious Teddy was Mrs. Thompson pet.  The following year, Teddy transferred to the middle school and Mrs. Thompson never saw Teddy again.

Towards the end of the next school year, Mrs. Thompson found a note under her door one night.  It was a note from Teddy.  The note said “Dear Mrs. Thompson you were the best teacher I ever had in my whole life – signed Teddy”. 

Seven years passed before she received another note.  This time Teddy wrote he had just finished high school - third in his class - and that he would be going off to college - and that, by the way Mrs. Thompson, you are still the best teacher I ever had in my whole life.  

Four more years went by when a third note from Teddy arrived.  It stated “I have just graduated from college and am now going to medical school in this fall - and by the way Mrs. Thompson, you are still the best teacher I ever had”.

Several years passed before another letter arrived.  In this typed letter, Teddy stated he met a woman, a beautiful young lady, and he was going to get married in June.  He explained that his father had died a few years earlier and was wondering if she, Mrs. Thompson, would agree to sit in the place of honor reserved for the groom's parents at the head table on the night of his wedding. This letter was signed Theodore J. Stoddard M.D.

Of course Mrs. Thomson agreed. When arrived at the plush wedding ceremony wearing a beautiful dress on her wrist was an old rhinestone bracelet which had several rhinestones missing.  As she walked in the room she carried a scent of a perfume that a young boy once said reminded him of his mother.

Dr. Stoddard saw her and immediately came forward and gave her a big hug.  As he inhaled the fragrance of her perfume, he whispered in her ear, "Thank you Mrs. Thompson for making me feel so important and thank you for making a difference in my life."

With tear filled eyes Mrs. Thompson whispered back "No Teddy you have it wrong.  I need to thank you. I want to thank you for what you taught me. Teddy you taught me I could make a difference in other people’s lives."

THE LAST CAB RIDE ... A Powerful Life Lesson Shared by a Cab Driver

I arrived at the address and honked the horn.  After waiting a few minutes, I honked again.  Since this was my last fare for this shift I thought about just driving away, but instead I put the car in park and walked up to the door and knocked hard. "Just a minute," answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor; after a long pause, the door opened. A small woman who must have been in her 90's stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and an old fashioned pillbox hat with a veil, like somebody out of a 1940's movie.    By her side was a small suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks on the shelves or utensils on the counters.  In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.    "Would you carry my bag out to the car young man?" she asked. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to help the woman walk to the cab.  She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb; all the while she kept thanking me for my kindness.  "It's nothing," I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated."  "Oh, you're such a good boy," she said.     When we got in the cab, she gave me the address she wanted and asked if I could drive through downtown before we got there?  "Ma’am, it's not the shortest way," I answered.  "Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice center."  I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.     "I don't have any family left," she continued in a soft voice. "The doctor says I don't have very long with all this cancer."  (I quietly reached over and shut off the meter.)    "What route would you like me to take?" I asked. "Any one you want," she replied. For the next two hours, we just drove through the city. She pointed out a building where she once worked as an elevator operator.  Then we drove through a neighborhood where she said she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds.     She had me pull up and stop in front of an old furniture warehouse that she said had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a young girl when she was in high school.  As we drove, she would often ask me to drive slow in front of a particular building or around a corner;  sometimes she would ask me to just park and then she would stare into the darkness and say nothing.    At the first hint of sunlight she suddenly said, "I'm tired; can we go to the Hospice Center now?"  We drove in silence to the address she had given me. When we arrived it was a low building, kind of like a small convalescent home with a long driveway that passed under a portico.  As soon as I pulled in, two orderlies came running out. They were solicitous and very intent; they watched her every move.  They obviously were expecting her. I hopped out and opened the trunk and took her small suitcase to the door.  The orderlies had already seated her in a wheelchair. "How much do I owe you young man?" she asked reaching into her purse.  "Nothing," I answered.  "That’s not fair; you have to make a living," she said.  "There are plenty if other passengers," I responded.    Almost without thinking, I bent forward and gave her a hug and kissed her on the cheek. She held onto me tightly. "Young man, you gave an old woman a lot of joy tonight," she said. "Thank you," I said as I squeezed her hand and walked back to my cab. Behind me, I heard a center door shut; it sounded like the closing of a life.  For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. I thought what if that woman had gotten an angry cabbie or a driver who was impatient and wanted to end his shift quickly?  What if a driver would had refused to take that late night run, or had honked only once, then driven off?    Looking back on last night, I don't think that I have ever done anything more important in my entire life.   Many of us think our lives revolve around great moments; but the truly great moments in our lives often catch us when we least expect them – they are often hidden in what others consider to be small things.    Remember; people may not always remember what you did for them or what you said to them but I no one ever forgets how you made them feel.   I am not going to ask you to share this story.  All I want you to do is think about The Last Cab Ride  and remember try to always remember that even though life is not always the party we had always hoped for while we are living it, we might as well dance every chance we get.

The Beauty of a White Rose

I was killing time walking through a Big Bazaar type store, when I overheard a cashier tell a young boy who couldn't have been more than 6 or 7 years old, “Son, I'm sorry, but you don't have enough money to buy this doll.”

The little boy looked at the cashier and asked, “Are you sure?''

 The cashier politely took time to count the boy's money again and replied, ''You know that you don't have enough money to buy the doll, dear.''

The little boy stood silent while still holding the doll in his arms. I walked over and asked him who he wished to buy the doll for. “My sister.  It is the doll she loved and wanted so much. I wanted to give it to her for her birthday on Friday.”

He went on to say; “I have to have the doll today so I can give the doll to my Mommy tonight so that she can give it to my sister when she goes to live with her tonight.  My sister has gone to live with God and Daddy says that Mommy will be going to live with God soon too so I thought Mommy could take the doll with her to give it to my sister on Friday.''

My heart nearly stopped. The little boy looked up at me and said, "I asked my Daddy to tell Mommy to wait until I come back with the doll.” Then the little boy reached in his pocket and pulled out a picture of him laughing with a little girl and said, “I want Mommy to take my picture with her so my sister won't forget me. I don’t want Mommy to leave me, but Daddy says that she has to go to be with my sister." Then he squeezed the doll against his chest as tears fell from his eyes.

I slowly put my hand in my pocket and grabbed a few bills I had and said, "Son, suppose we count your money one more time just in case you do have enough money for the doll?''

"Okay he said. I sure hope I do have enough." As we counted his money, I discreetly added several of my dollar bills to his pile. When we were done counting, low and behold there was enough for the doll and even some money to spare.

The boy looked up and quietly said, "Thank you God for giving me enough money!" Then he looked at me and added, "Last night before I went to sleep I asked God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll for my sister.” I also wanted to ask him for some money to buy a white rose for my Mommy, but I didn't dare to ask God for that because I thought I would be asking too much. But look what God did. He gave me enough to buy the doll and also enough to buy a white rose for Mommy because she loves white roses."

I finished my shopping with a totally different state of mind from when I started. I couldn't get that little kid out of my mind. As I was checking out, I suddenly remembered a newspaper article from a few days earlier which mentioned a drunken driver hit a car occupied by a young woman and her little girl. The girl died at the scene but the mother was taken to the hospital and was in a critical condition. The family, I recall, was asked to make a decision whether to pull the plug on the life support machine because the woman would not be able to recover from her coma. I wondered if that was the family of the little boy who wanted to buy his sister a doll.

The next day on my way to work I bought a paper.  A story featured on the front page was about a young woman who passed late last night because her family had instructed her doctors to pull the plug. I don’t know why but during my lunch break - I went to a nearby florist and bought a dozen white roses and drove to the funeral home that was listed in the paper. The room was full and up front was a casket for family and friends to make their last visit before the burial would occur.

I walked towards the casket and as I neared it I saw a young lady holding a beautiful a white rose in her hand. Next to the rose was a photo of a little boy and a girl laughing and over her chest was placed a doll – a doll I had seen the night before. I immediately turned around and left the funeral home as my eyes filled with tears. On that day I learned the simple beauty of a while rose and a little toy doll.

Who Was That Man

A nurse on the intensive care ward took the tired and anxious looking serviceman to the bedside. "Your son is here," she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened.

Heavily sedated because of the pain he was experiencing, he dimly saw a young man in uniform standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The young man wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp hand and squeezed a message of love and encouragement.

The nurse brought a chair so the young military man could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young man sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. 

Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the young man take a break and go for a walk; however he refused.

Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the uniformed man was oblivious to her and all the other night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients. 

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words to the dying man who said nothing, all he did was hold on tightly to his son's hand all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The young man released the now lifeless man's hand he had been holding all night and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, the young man patiently waited.

Finally, she turned to the young man and started to offer words of sympathy, but the man in uniform interrupted her and asked "Who was that man?"  

The nurse was startled, "Why he was your father," she answered. 

"No Ma' am', he wasn't my father, "I never saw this man before in my life. My dad is doing fine I just saw him yesterday."

"Then why didn't you say something when I took you into his room?" asked the nurse. 

The young man replied "I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew that man needed his son at his side and his son wasn't here.

When I realized he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son and knowing how much he needed someone to be at his side, I just stayed." 

“I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey; his son was killed in Iraq today, and I was sent to inform him. What was this gentleman's name?

The nurse, with tears in her eyes, answered, "Son, that was Mr. Grey."

The First Presidential Limousine - You Won't Believe It!

It's been a while since I have posted on this blog.  December was hectic and January just took off.  I am sorry.  Hopefully you will find this story fascinating and share it with your family and friends.  Gabe   

Just hours after Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941, the Secret Service found itself with a major dilemma - an unusual problem. President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked to speak to an emergency session of Congress on Tuesday morning, December 9.  He chose to wait until Tuesday to address Congress as he wanted as many of the elected state representatives present and wanted to give them time to get back to Washington when he made his address to the nation. This joint session on December the 9th is where he gave his powerful “This is a Day That Will Live on in Infamy” speech. 

Though the actual trip from the White House to Capitol Hill was short, Secret Service agents at the time were concerned about his personal safety. Standard vehicles had always been used to transport the President wherever he travelled; however now with the possibility of war pending, they thought a more secure and safer mode of transportation should be used.

Federal Laws in place at the time prohibited government agencies and departments from purchasing vehicles that cost more than $750. The only recourse the Secret Service had was to get emergency authority and funding from Congress to purchase a safer vehicle; however with all the mayhem erupting in Washington, nobody had time for that. 

As luck would have it, one of the older (or should we say long-term) agents working for the Secret Service, remembered the US Treasury Department had seized a bulletproof car from a mobster a few years ago that might work. 

The mobster they seized the vehicle from was none other than Al Capone - the famous Chicago crime boss. Capone, you may recall, was sent to prison in 1931 for tax evasion.  He failed to file and pay taxes on $150,000 of income he earned from his illegal operations. The car the Treasury Department seized from Al Capone was now sitting in a Washington D.C. warehouse.

Capone’s seized car was a 1928 Cadillac Town Sedan which had a V-8 engine. 

Interestingly, Capone had his car painted black and green to look identical to the Chicago police vehicles of that era. Capone also had the 1928 Cadillac Town Sedan modified with 3,000 pounds of armor plating and one-inch thick bulletproof glass. Furthermore, he had a police siren and flashing lights installed behind the front grille of the vehicle which he used often to speed his way through Chicago’s congested traffic quickly.
 

Throughout Sunday night, all day Monday, and all of Monday night mechanics and Secret Service agents labored to clean the car and make sure it was in perfect running condition. On Tuesday morning, December 9, they had Capone’s car ready to transport President Franklin Roosevelt to Capitol Hill. 

The point we should all remember from this fascinating little story is: The very first "Official" White House Limousine ever used to transport a US President was a bulletproof Cadillac, formerly owned by the notorious Chicago gangster, Al Capone.

Want to get in the Christmas Spirit?? Watch this wonderful short clip -- its amazing

A Great Air Force Surprise