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DMCS Military News |
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PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR ALUMNI SERVING IN THE MILITARY AT THIS TIME! Staff Sergeant Nikolaus Refsland (picture) (husband of Christina Freerksen-Refsland, Class of 1994) serving in Afghanistan with the Iowa Army National Guard since February 2004. The Refslands have two girls, Samantha (7yrs) and Elise (2 1/2yrs). Nikolaus is expected to be deployed until May 2005. 2nd Lt Charles C. Larson, III, USMC, Class of 1999,
has recently served in Iraq. LCpl Brian Kampling, USMC, Class
of 2004, has recently
served in Iraq. Caleb Woolman, Class of 2000, is serving in the U.S. Air Force as a Crew Chief for the KC10 Airplane. You can send notes of encouragement to: A.F.C. Caleb Woolman, 385 Robert Dr., Travis AFB, CA 94535-2324. 1st Lt. Shawn Toenyes (husband of Andrea Wozniuk-Toenyes, Class of 1988) is serving with the US Army 184th EOD (Explosives Ordinance Disposal) Battallion. He is currently stationed at Ft. Gillem, Georgia and will be going to Iraq in 2005 for one year. David and Michael Janzen Return Home! Wednesday, April 14 marked the long awaited return of two of
DMCS' Alumni serving our country. Their return was celebrated with a
ceremony at the State Fair Grounds Wednesday night. Dr. Stouffer had
this to say about the ceremony: I wish you could have been there. Hannah was a bit antsy when the buses were 20 minutes late, highly unusual with military protocol, but her frame of mind changed quickly when she heard the buzz of the bus sightings, the building excitement in the arena, and the thunderous applause which greeted the soldiers as they walked into the pavilion. I turned and looked at the Janzens, whose eyes were understandably filled and overflowing with tears of joy about the return of their sons. I cannot even imagine being separated from Molly or Hannah for 14 months under these circumstances. I praise God for the sacrifices made by David, Michael, the rest of their company, and the families during this time period. I unashamedly proclaim, “God bless America!” My heart swelled with pride, and my eyes with tears as we sang the National Anthem and welcomed these fine men and women home." David will return to UNI in the fall and Michael will continue working at UPS and is considering an electrical apprenticeship.
Letter from David and Michael Janzen
Dear Karen
Greetings from Iraq. I just received your letter today, the 15th of April, and would like to thank you and tell you a little bit about what it’s like here.
Unfortunately I can’t tell you what my unit’s current mission is but I can tell you what the people and country is like. Traveling up from Kuwait on our way to Baghdad was an eye-opening experience. Desert stretched for miles in every direction; the only change in scenery would be little mud shacks the size of my bathroom where whole families would live. The roads were lined with destroyed and burning Iraqi tanks, and thousands of Iraqi peasants who would beg for food and wave. It was heart-wrenching to drive past six and seven year-old children begging for food, but we could give them nothing as orders dictated that we could not do so.
As we neared Baghdad we locked and loaded our weapons and prepared to take action should we come under fire. Luckily, we had no serious emergencies and we reached our destination on time.
Baghdad itself is a mess; and not just because of the American bombing. People live in filth everywhere in tiny homes and apartments. Despite the weather the roads were packed with people and vehicles. The people were very friendly, and I spent more time waving than aiming at suspicious individuals. I got the impression that the people were genuinely glad to see us.
Since then we have been running various missions in and around Baghdad. The weather is horrible (yesterday was 123°). Usually we are either working our shift, or laying on our cots sweating, since it’s too hot to do anything else. Rumor has it that we are going to be moving again, and I just pray that the weather will improve, but they tell us it’s supposed to get hotter as summer continues.
Thank you for writing again. It means a lot to us to get mail even if it takes several months to get here. Tell your family and DMC hello from Mike and I, and please keep us in your prayers.
Your friend,
David & Mike Please send your news items to dmcsalumni@dmcs.org |
