January 6, 2008

We are saddened by the news
of the death of
our good friend and shipmate
CHUCK ERLANDSEN.

We were contacted by
Chuck's grandson,
RYAN ZURAKOWSKI
who informed us that
Chuck had passed away
on December 31, 2007
after a brief illness.

More information is
available on Chuck's page.

 
November 9, 2007

We have been contacted by
Pat Kenneally,
daughter of Shipmate
ROBERT E. KENNEALLY.

Pat informed us that Robert
had passed away in 1990.

Robert's page has been added
to the roster, along with the lyrics
of a song composed by Pat about
her family.
.

 
October 31, 2007

We have been contacted by
Brenda Leap,
daughter of Shipmate
E.E. "BILL" WILLIAMS.

Brenda informed us that Bill
had passed away in March, 2003.

Bill's page has been added
to the roster.
.

 
April 11, 2007

We have been contacted by
Richard Foehl, Jr.
the grandson of Shipmate
GLEN FOEHL.
Richard informed us that Glen
had passed away in 1977.

Glen's page has been added
to the roster, with some great
photos that Richard provided.
.

 
April 5, 2007

We have been contacted by
Elward L. Meehan
the son of Shipmate
ARTHUR L . MEEHAN,
who informed us that Arthur
passed away on Monday, April 2.

Arthur's page has been
updated.
.

 
January 31, 2007

We have been contacted by
the nephew of Shipmate
LLOYD O. ROBERTS,
who informed us that Lloyd
had passed away in 1980.

Lloyd's page has been
added to our roster section.
.

 
January 16, 2007

We have been contacted by
the daughter and son-in-law
of Shipmate
TONY MELLO,
who informed us that Tony
has passed away,
on December 29, 2006.

Our sincere condolences to
Debra and Wayne and the
rest of Tony's family.

Tony's page has been
added to our roster section.
.

   
December 18, 2006

We have been contacted by
Command Sergeant Major
David I. Birdsey
US Army (Retired),
a friend of
CPO STEVE STROYNY,
who informed us that Steve
had passed away.

CPO Steve Stroyny will be
sadly missed by all.
  

December 10, 2006

We were recently notified of the
loss of our Friend and Shipmate
HAROLD HANDSCHEN

Harold passed away on
Tuesday December 5, 2006.

Please go to Harold's page
to view his obituary as posted
in the Asbury Park Press.

Hal will be missed by all
who attend the
Lee Reunions.
  

November 17, 2006

We were recently contacted by
Daniel Doody, son of
shipmate
ROY T. DOODY
who informed us that Roy
had passed away on
March 30, 2006.

Roy's page has been
added to our roster section, with additional information coming soon.
  

 
Before You Go

The elderly parking lot attendant wasn't in a good mood. Neither was Sam Bierstock. It was around 1 a.m., and Bierstock, a Delray Beach , Fla., eye doctor, business consultant, corporate speaker and musician, was bone tired after appearing at an event.
He pulled up in his car, and the parking attendant began to speak. "I took two bullets for this country and look what I'm doing," he said bitterly.

At first, Bierstock didn't know what to say to the World War II veteran. But he rolled down his window and told the man, "Really, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you."

Then the old soldier began to cry.

"That really got to me," Bierstock says.

Bierstock, 58, and John Melnick, 54, of Pompano Beach - a member of Bierstock's band, Dr. Sam and the Managed Care Band - have written a song inspired by that old soldier in the airport parking lot.

The mournful "Before You Go" does more than salute those who fought in WWII. It encourages people to go out of their way to thank the aging warriors before they die.

"If we had lost that particular war, our whole way of life would have been shot," says Bierstock, who plays harmonica. "Every ethnic minority would be dead. And the soldiers are now dying at the rate of about 2,000 every day. I thought we needed to thank them."

The song is striking a chord. Within four days of Bierstock placing it on the Web, the song and accompanying photo essay have bounced around nine countries, producing tears and heartfelt thanks from veterans, their sons and daughters and grandchildren.

"It made me cry,"wrote one veteran's son. Another sent an e-mail saying that only after his father consumed several glasses of wine would he discuss "the unspeakable horrors" he and other soldiers had witnessed in places such as Anzi o, Iwo Jima, Bataan and Omaha Beach. "I can never thank them enough," the son wrote. "Thank you for thinking about them."

Bierstock and Melnick thought about shipping it off to a professional singer, maybe a Lee Greenwood type, but because time was running out for so many veterans, they decided it was best to release it quickly, for free, on the Web. They've sent the song to Sen. John McCain and others in Washington. Already they have been invited to perform it in Houston for a Veterans Day tribute - this after just a few days on the Web.  They hope every veteran in America gets a chance to hear it.
 
 
Turn up your volume and please visit:
http://www.managedmusic.com/beforeyougo.html