BEST MISSION ON THE BATTLEFIELD…
I’ve been asked, over and over, what I think about the situation here.
It may sound odd, but I rarely think of it in terms of “whether the surge is working, or whether we should be here or not.” The job I have to do is MEDEVAC!
With MEDEVAC; there are no politics, no care about current media events, who is leading in the presidential candidacy polls, or anything else - it’s ALL ABOUT THE PATIENT. You may not realize, but we must evacuate EVERYONE - not just our soldiers. In addition to our soldiers, we evacuate; Iraqi Army, Iraqi police, Iraqi citizens, Coalition Forces, third country nationals, and even the enemy. Yes, the insurgents are evacuated - just like everyone else. In fact, if an insurgent has a more life-threatening wound than our soldier - we evacuate the enemy FIRST.
I’ve said it before, but after 17 years of being on the “pain-dealing” side of the Army, this MEDEVAC mission took a little getting-used-to. Now that I am on the “pain-healing” side of the Army, I have loved the switch in karma.
It’s simply about taking people out of harm’s way, providing them with medical care, and giving them a chance to live out the rest of their lives.
It absolutely is the BEST MISSION ON THE BATTLEFIELD!
Take care,
Tim
I witnessed how the ‘change in karma’ affected you. I also think how you have remained politically neutral has been important to you doing your job well.
Get some sleep.
tiffany - October 19th, 2007 at 10:45 pmThank you— for doing your job so well.
Thoughts and prayers are always with you.
Hoping time flies. (Corny,but true).
Love ya,
Sylvia, Ned and kids
sylvia - October 20th, 2007 at 10:06 amThank you for your perspective and courage. It is why our country supports and admires our men and women in uniform. We cannot thank you enough for what you do.
Best,
TRowe
TRowe - October 20th, 2007 at 11:26 amTimbo,
Big Stone - October 20th, 2007 at 7:10 pmI had no idea you had to do that for the enemy as well. Keep up the great work. We are very proud of you.
I am proud to be your friend. Amen.
Stacy Meyer - October 20th, 2007 at 8:16 pmSo I just got home from the Stoner household at about 11pm, a regular occurance these days considering the Fall lineup of TV shows after 9…Tiff and I live our love lives vicariously through Meredith and McDreamy these days! But tonight was different. Tonight we discovered “The Secret.” I won’t ruin the details for those who have never heard of the book/movie that, according to Oprah and others, has been the main key to success for our great leaders of the past, ie Churchill, MLK Jr, Buddha, to name a few. The main idea of this “Secret” is that your thoughts project your actions which determine your success. I won’t be able to do it justice so I won’t try but something that jumped out at Tiff and I was the importance of Gratitude, and that you should take the time to list things that you are grateful for EVERYDAY. Tiffany has done a great job of this so far, writing daily thank you’s and such in the blog. So I too decided that I would write how grateful I am for the blessings in my life and I thought that you should know, Tim, that you and your family are responsible for SO MANY of them!
Sara (CeCe) - October 23rd, 2007 at 12:43 amI have come to terms with the fact that I am in a transition phase right now. I am not sure what my next step in life will be, who I will share it with, how I will pay my bills, you name it…I’m confused about it! I am, however, very confident in my friendships that I have formed with you and Tiffany, Nate and Helena, your extended family and friends and most importantly your children. No matter how down I get, I always know that going to the Stoner home will make my day brighter. Whether it’s seeing Briggs get riled up when I tease him about being my “boyfriend” or following along on a family outing and feeling wanted and in some cases needed (an extra set of hands and eyes are pretty necessary in public settings with all those kiddies!) Or leaving Gage for the summer as a young boy who could barely get out the words and coming home to a TOTAL MAN who can very audibly say the word “Spiderman” (which totally broke my heart) or watching Cam and Em learn to brawl like wild animals and minutes later embrace like I’ve never seen two sisters hug and love! It’s good stuff at that house! And I’m grateful for the examples that you have unintentionally set for me. I’m grateful that despite the fact that you are thousands of miles away from your wife, your love and committment is so strong that I am still learning lessons from you. And I’m grateful that despite the fact that I don’t have a CLUE what the future holds for me, I know that I am FREE to do whatever it is that makes me happy. And for that freedom I owe you and your troops a million thanks!
Wow…what started as a simple “hey, how’s it going” lead to a public journal entry I guess. Well let’s just go with it and know that this journal entry is dedicated to Tim Stoner, a man who lives his life for his family and country, and ever-so-humbly changes the lives of people he may never come in contact with…and the fact that I’m one of them…well, I’m grateful for that.
[...] getting my soldiers one step closer to the US, our MEDEVAC mission here and how it truly is the BEST MISSION ON THE BATTLEFIELD, how successful we have been here, the patients lives that we have affected positively and [...]
Letters From Tim » Blog Archive » Final Combat Mission - April 14th, 2008 at 8:24 am