Salute the Armed Forces: It's all about responding to a 911 call for help and honoring it

The 10th anniversary of  9-11 conjures images, once again, of that horrific day when terrorists toppled the World Trade Center and gouged a bone-baring hole in America's base for military strategy, the Pentagon.

For Ed LeTourneau, founder of Salute the Armed Forces, those dark images also serve to call up the idea that plenty of those firefighters, EMTs and police officers were veterans before they shifted from military service overseas to service in their own U.S. communities.

How ironic, he said in a Sept. 1 interview in Bolingbrook, that  those on the front line—whether that's lower Manhattan, the mountains of Afghanistan or Saigon—react in times of stress by opting for self-sacrifice over self-preservation. At times of crisis, there's an "eerie kind of blind courage that comes to the fore."

Whether it's bombs overhead or a smoldering unknown, it's these kind of situations that force an "unconscious transcendence in which the individual loses a sense of 'I' and focuses solely on the 'we' for the sake of the 'all,'" LeTourneau said with a slow and breathy sign.   

Having established the DuPage County-based, home-grown, non-governmental organization three years ago for the purpose of filling in the gaps that the Veterans Administration and related agencies can't quite pigeonhole, LeTourneau said Salute the Armed Forces stands at the ready to assist those who fought for "our freedom."

The fact that the smoke from artillery, improvised explosive devices or the black plumes from burning buildings often permanently damaged their eyes or scorched their lung, as well as their heart and soul is something that he can't help but to consider, something to remember, something in which to respond thoughtfully.  

A plumber by trade, 46-year-old LeTourneau  and a handful of the organization's leaders, are piped-into the three-day-long 10th anniversary memorial celebration at Darien Community Park at Plainfield and Clarendon roads. The event is intended to honor the courage of 9-11's first- while paying homage to the 2,752 people who lost their lives in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.

Salute the Armed Forces is slated to have a booth in the park. There, LeTourneau said he hopes to spread the word that the organization is ready to assist veterans from World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and the current conflicts in the Middle East, including Iraq and Afghanistan.   So far, they've offered up more than $200,000 (all donations) to assist veterans with immediate needs and have helped many veterans regain a productive and independent lifestyle.

In essence, the veterans' needs are varied, but mostly the organization targets job placement assistance, military records research, housing and health care. Obviously the Veterans Administration and the Disable Veterans Affairs organizations are available, but Salute the Armed Forces is prepared to take immediate steps when the situation demands it.          

Although LeTourneau never fought in a war or never served in the military, he looks to his two uncles, both of whom served in Vietnam and elsewhere, for inspiration. One suffers particularly from chronic health and addictions issues, the likes of which are commonplace with combat veterans. After LeTourneau learned that a mere "typo" in his uncle's social security number prevented the man, who prefers not to be publicly identified, from receiving earned VA benefits, he went into battle mode.

It was like working from ground zero to gain access to his uncle's military records, said LeTourneau. But that wasn't the only bomb that moved the dedicated nephew to work through the bureaucracy. A casual conversation between the two further revealed that the uncle, a former US Marine, had never been formally presented two of the three Purple Hearts that he was awarded for bravery in 1967 in Vietnam. 

"I went to Congresswoman Judy Biggert," R-Willowbrook,  and she got a hold of the right people. Then LeTourneau arranged to have a Marine Master Sergeant from Chicago show up unannounced at a veterans fundraiser  that his uncle had attended. Some 40 years later, the former US Marine stood tall in disbelief. He was personally presented with two Purple Hearts and finally recognized for the "valiant service he provided for the country he loves and has paid such a price for."

"The look on his face brought tears to my eyes. My uncle cried." He told me that night, "I owe you."

LeTourneau said he took advantage of the debt. "I told him, 'Yes you do.' I want you to close out that (depressive) chapter in your life. And put the past behind you and  he did."

It seems that the recognition gave him the acknowledgment he  needed. It set him free.

LeTourneau's uncle is just one example of how the organization is willing to assist veterans. But, of course, Salute the Armed Forces needs funds. While at the park in Darien, the group will be selling 2-inch, 9-11 10^th Anniversary  commemorative coins—A Tribute to 9-11. A group of students from Hinsdale South High School have  offered to walk the perimeter and pass a few military helmets to collect donations as well.

"Salute the Armed Forces has helped many more veterans and needs your help to continue to do this great work," he said.

For information about Salute the Armed Forces, check the website at: http://www.thestaf.org/index.htm .