Sit tight, help is on the way!

Valor is common in the United States Military. If you need help from our military, you can expect the above instructions. Sit tight, help is on the way… Sometimes, occasionally, someone will thank me for my service in the military. I always answer that it was my privilege. I was surrounded by heroes and they have my gratitude.

Mom got what she wanted

I joined the Navy because my mom wanted me to be in the Navy. Of all the service branches, she thought my risk-taking tendencies might be controlled a little more closely. She was right. In the Navy, I didn’t lack supervision. She told me to keep my head down and “knew” I would be going to Vietnam. The fighting in the Vietnam War was nearly over.

Not going to Vietnam

Mom was right about my risk-taking being more controlled in the Navy. She was wrong about me going to Vietnam. The Navy wanted me in Spain rather than Vietnam. I wanted to be a pilot. I always thought of myself as not being serious enough and not trying hard enough, yet I think I was pretty clever. If I was going to be a pilot then I better start studying. I spent the next five years staring at a radar screen and looking out the window. The Navy trained me to be an Air Traffic Controller. The window was in the control tower and my view was the airport. From there, after college, my next job was back in the Navy; this time to be a pilot.

Mom wanted me to be a pilot

Mom loved flying and worked for an airline. She worked for the airline so she could fly and travel. Mom wanted me to be a pilot so that when she quit working, I could fly for an airline and she could use a family pass and fly. Her goal for me was an airline job sitting in the front seat with a nice window of a very large airplane. The Navy, however, needed helicopter pilots and that was the choice the Navy made for me. I couldn’t have been more delighted.

Helicopters and tiny ships

My job in the Navy was to fly helicopters. Every job that I had in the Navy (except as noted — being an Air Traffic Controller); I flew helicopters. Most of my flying was over the open ocean taking off and landing on the smallest ships in the Navy. Usually, the larger ships (aircraft carriers) were far away. Occasionally I had shore duty, still flying helicopters. When I was stationed on land (mostly in San Diego) I flew helicopters. On one of my many ships, traveling across the Pacific and Indian Oceans I was there to fly helicopters. I even flew my helicopter to the very north end of the Persian Gulf before, during, and after the many conflicts. I flew nearly every day; including missions along the east coast of Africa. An uneventful flight was the sign of a great mission. Most of my flights were uneventful and maybe even boring.

Of course, many flights were not uneventful but rather had planned or unplanned events. Sometimes; I got to help others in need. Sometimes, I was the person they called when they called for help. Instructions were to sit tight, help is on the way. I am most proud of when I used the helicopter to help people who desperately needed help.

Without hesitation

When we got the call for help, we didn’t hesitate. Help was on the way immediately. We didn’t ask questions or worry about how we were going to help or even ask for details about what we might find. We could fill in the blanks later our first thoughts were about how we were going to get there in as short a time as possible.

About fear

I guess sometimes I must have been afraid. Thinking about fear didn’t help anyone. I don’t remember being afraid. I always had something to do. Perhaps I should have been afraid. To me, the challenges of flying the helicopter took my full focus and didn’t include any room for fear. Helicopters are a spinning collection of parts that break frequently and usually don’t give any warnings about their failures. Of course, sometimes the mission alone included reasons to be afraid. Sometimes I went to places where I wasn’t welcome.

Not about me

When I took my helicopter to places to help people who needed my help, I didn’t go alone. I was surrounded by heroes. They were both inside my helicopter and flying with me in other helicopters, on ships, and in other aircraft. Sometimes these heroes were on the ground and sometimes these heroes were the ones looking up to me for help. Disappointing someone who needed help wasn’t an option.

Sit tight, help is on the way

If you are in the military, this single statement is my evaluation of why our military is unmatched anywhere in the world. Regardless of your job, you are part of a team that cares about you. You will be surrounded by heroes who make it their job to go places and do things that are difficult with 100% success. Anything less is unacceptable.

We care

The people in the Navy, especially the ones you are closest to, care to the point that they will willingly go to dangerous places and do risky things; all to help their friends. I enjoyed being with these heroes every day. It was my privilege to be with them.

Just part of the job

The Navy (and I assume the other service branches too) has a problem in that valor is so common that they don’t frequently express thanks for the amazing accomplishments that service members make daily. Uncommon valor is very common in the military. When needed, without comment, they perform heroic tasks as just part of their job. I made it one of my goals to point out these accomplishments frequently. Usually, it helped. It always made me feel more appreciated.

Valor recognized

I never considered that the terms hero or valor would apply to me. I was just doing my job and taking care of my friends. About two weeks ago I was awarded a quilt made by members of the Quilts of Valor Foundation. Since the Quilts of Valor Foundation’s creation, this charity has made and awarded nearly 400,000 quilts made by its members to heroes in our military service. It was unknown to me, at the time, that I was nominated for this award by a family member who I hardly knew. The last time I met her was when we were children. After nomination, the service member is awarded the quilt by the Quilts of Valor Foundation as soon as possible.

My nomination

I was nominated by my cousin Debbie Bradfield. Due to the distance between our families, I didn’t really know Debbie. I remember my grandmother would tell stories about what Debra Kay (Debbie) was doing. We saw each other when their family would travel from Louisiana to Colorado to see my grandmother. We reconnected when I tried to call her mother (my aunt) a few years ago when we were traveling through Louisiana to plan a visit. I am sorry that the visit didn’t ever happen.

Since then, Debbie has been in contact with me frequently. We finally met as adults two weeks ago when we were near Dallas for the solar eclipse. While at this meeting, I finally met Debbie face-to-face as an adult. During that meeting, I received my Quilt of Valor and I learned what a fascinating life Debbie had. I regret that we were not closer.

The first Quilt Of Valor 

The first Quilt Of Valor was awarded in November 2003 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center to a young soldier from Minnesota. That day, more than 150 quilts were awarded to wounded veterans at Walter Reed Medical Center.

The first quilt was awarded to a soldier who came home from Iraq injured and since then veterans from every war have been awarded quilts.

“Not everyone answers the call to serve our country. It is those rare individuals who are selfless enough to sacrifice so much so we can all enjoy the freedom we have. We’ll never know exactly what each Veteran experiences and how they are touched by war. But we can welcome our Veterans home, support them and their families, and thank them for their service whenever possible.” Lori Thompson, Executive Director 2021 – Present

The mission of Quilts of Valor

The mission of Quilts of Valor is to recognize and award quilts to service members as a thank you for your service.

Who is eligible for nomination

“Any service member or living veteran who served in one of the following branches: Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard. Members of the activated National Guard and activated or active duty-special work (ADSW) reservists are included.  The Army National Guard and Air Force National Guard are components of the Army and Air Force respectively.   Merchant Marines were activated from 1941 to 1945.  Additionally, anyone who serves at the Dover Mortuary Facility is eligible.” Quilts of Valor Foundation

My privilege and my honor

I always considered my time in the Navy to be a huge privilege. To be honored by the Quilts of Valor Foundation is stunning. I was pretty speechless. I am very grateful for this honor and humbled to be selected. Similar to other awards I have received, I was just doing my job while being surrounded by heroes and they have my thanks for including me with them.

My thanks

I want to express my thanks for this honor. I am still rather speechless.

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