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A Little Can Mean A Lot
We received a hand written letter from a GI that was forward deployed
at Camp Doha in Kuwait. A copy of his letter is attached. He wrote
that while he was there to deal with the
Saddam Hussein problem a buddy of his had a pair of Flying Fisherman
Viper sunglasses..."I think they are great!" He said "...I would like
to be wearing a pair of them when we roll into Baghdad."
Our response was to send him a dozen pairs of our Viper sunglasses
for his unit, along with some Key Lime candy. Flying Fisherman sunglasses
have been produced and distributed worldwide from the Florida Keys
since 1985 offering polarization features that not only work on the
water…golfers use them as do snow skiers and many others in situations
where flat surfaces cause glare, like while driving. Why not in the
desert? Lots of sun and glare there!
His email response follows, along with attached photos of him, Captain
Michael Meskunas, and other officers and NCO's wearing the Vipers.
It proved a couple things to us…it didn't take a whole lot to give
some of our troops a good feeling way over there…and letting them
know that we care does make a difference.
Alison,
Sorry for the long delay in getting back to you. We only get two days
each month to come back to Camp Doha from the border. So, I did not
have access to a computer until now. I just wanted to thank you and
your company, so much, for the act of kindness and support of U.S.
Troops. As I passed out your sunglasses, I could see the morale in
the unit rising with each little gift given. It really is good to
know that Americans understand why we are here. The acts of 9-11 were
intolerable, and we must ensure that nothing like that ever happens
again, not only in our great country, but anywhere in the world. The
reason there are only five of us in the picture is because not all
of us could take our down time at the same time. We had to borrow
the digital camera once we got here to Camp Doha. If the print quality
is not good enough, I can send the actual disk. Just let me know if
you need it. Once again, Thank you so much for your big heart. At
the completion of this campaign I will write you again and let you
know how "your crew" is doing. You all are great Americans. We are
jealous of your location! Thanks for everything.
Sincerely,
Michael Meskunas
PS. The Key Lime candies were awesome! Everyone agreed. :)
Dear Flying Fisherman,
I'll be honest, I had never heard of your company or your website
until a friend directed me there to look at a picture. I followed
the on screen directions to find the pictures attached to the "Flying
Fisherman goes to Baghdad". Much to my surprise, I discovered a couple
of pictures that included my daughter, Capt Janet Anderson! I read
the story of your generous gift to her and her friends and I wanted
to add my thanks to you and your company for adding a little bit of
fun and happiness to their time in the desert. She wrote us about
it when it happened and I made a note of it but never followed up
to thank you...the web site finally reminded me of what I needed to
do.
For your information, the group in the photos are safely back to Fort
Bliss Texas where some are preparing to return for another tour. They
are all assigned to the same Patriot Missile unit that included the
ill-fated 507th Maintenance Company. That incident that resulted in
the loss of some of their fellow soldiers was but one of many terrible
experiences they endured before returning to the USA. But...one of
the memories they will talk about for many years to come is the arrival
of the fabulous, stylish Vipers!
Thank you very much!
Col Jack Anderson
USAF
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