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R. M. Wright |
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Published Articles |
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European Edition Letters for |
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January 7 Military wives I’m the wife of a soldier in the U.S. Army. I’m proud to say that, and I don’t regret one decision made along the way. My story no doubt resembles that of most military wives. We’re the wives who support our husbands. We’re the transient wives who tag along with our husbands from assignment to assignment, holding it all together. I’m by no means bragging or boasting. It’s by choice that I support my husband in his career. In fact, as the wife of a soldier, it’s become my mission to make sure that my soldier — my husband, my friend — has no stress. My soldier’s duty is to be the best he can be and meet the high standards that are set for him and to protect our country. Those are responsibilities that are difficult enough to meet. So here we are, the military wives who choose to take the long, hard road. It takes courageous individuals to keep it all together and not just be satisfied, but also be grateful. We move wherever our country sends us, and we find ways to make sure our families are pleased about it. We uproot our children from their schools on every tour, and we find ways to make it exciting for them. We change jobs from place to place, and we find ways to tell ourselves that it will better our own careers to work in new environments. We make and lose friends from post to post. But again, we find ways to get through it. We move out of houses that we’ve made into homes to start over in new and foreign places, and we find ways to make it an adventure. We wait in our new homes while our soldiers are on deployments or in training schools, and we use that time alone to enrich the relationships we already have. We are away from our families for years at times, but we use that time to fine-tune our letter-writing skills. We military wives play an enormous part in the security of our country. It’s our responsibility to make sure that our soldiers know their families are safe and comfortable. If our soldiers are worried about us, they won’t be exceptionally worried about our country. So I tip my hat to the rest of the military wives who are taking care of their soldiers so that my soldier has a unit he can count on. Ronni M. Wright
Stars and Stripes European and Pacific Everyone Has a Choice I have lived in Hohenfels since November of 2001 and I feel like I just have to share this story with you. To lay down ground work I have lived all over the United States and I have had to work under many circumstances. I have worked every job from telecommunications on up to office manager and every shift that is offered; graveyard being my least favorite. We do what it takes to raise a family and for me it is a good thing that I am flexible. We don’t always get to choose where we live but we do have the power to choose how we behave and how we react to any given situation. I feel like I am lucky that my parents raised me to "rise to the occasion". In fact, my parents worked incredibly hard and never complained about having to do that. So with that in mind I want to say that it is such a pleasure to work in the CMTC Hohenfels community. I have found that it is far easier to survive in this world if your surroundings are comfortable. I work for Social Work Services in Hohenfels and I have to say that I am not only comfortable but I feel needed. I work with an exceptional crew who are all highly intelligent and who have work ethics that surpassed my expectations. You see, this is the first GS position I have been given and I’ve got to say I was a little intimidated by the idea of working for the Government. Sure my husband is in the military and I see his rules and regulations and I understand that there are specific ways things need to be done in order to have a smooth running military, but I was not sure how I would fit into that scenario. As a military spouse I have heard it all, the complaints, the arguments and yes, even the whining, but here I was about to see first hand what all the fuss was about. Come to find out, if you work with a unit that runs things by the book, with the outcome being the main objective, the whole thing simply flows into place. So for those of you who are the complainers, the arguers and the whiners, you might try getting the cohesion back in your unit, because I am here to tell you, it makes all the difference in the world to work side by side with someone who you trust and can count on. I work hard as do the rest of the Social Work Services employees and still I love my job and can’t imagine being happier. The funny thing is, no one grows up thinking about who we are, we are just who we are, but we can choose to make things better, even if we think we can’t change, we can choose.
Ronni M Wright Hohenfels, Germany
Stars and Stripes European and Pacific
Adios Mi Amigo SPC Gamberdella, Here First Sergeant, SPC Mancini, Here First Sergeant, SPC Rice, Here First Sergeant, SSG Roff, Here First Sergeant, SGT Lopez, SGT Lopez, SGT Lopez, First Sergeant, strike him from the roll. You cannot even begin to know how hard those words are to hear when it is someone you love. I feel compelled to tell you about a great soldier, SGT Anthony Lopez, stationed in Hohenfels Germany, who purchased a brand new Harley Davidson that he had been dreaming of for 20 years. Anthony was an experienced rider who shared his passion of motorcycles with his father. In fact, Anthony in Germany and his father in Chicago would talk nearly every night about where they had been riding and where they would go next. Unfortunately, Anthony only had two glorious weeks with his shiny new toy. Regrettably, we lost our soldier to that shiny new toy this past weekend and we will never be the same. I’d like to say that it is my great pleasure to have had him as my friend. Anthony was straightforward, you never had to mince words with him, we’d just tell it like it was, and that’s how he wanted it. That is what I’m doing in this letter, telling it like HE was. You see; he was the husband of my best friend and the father of a beautiful 5-year-old girl. Our first encounter with the Lopez family was the beginning of an incredible journey, a kinship, if you will, between two families. Not once, from the time we met, was there a moment’s doubt about the friendship, not a single snag along the way, not even a slight misunderstanding, we were friends and that was that. Nothing came between the Lopez family and the Wright family. It will always be that way, even though one piece of the puzzle is now missing. Anthony would have wanted it that way and we wouldn’t have it any other way. SGT Anthony Lopez was a great man, a wonderful father, and an amazing soldier. He was a husband first, a father second, and a soldier all the way. He was intelligent, brave, thorough, and kind and will be missed significantly. The Anthony we knew had such a free spirit. He loved to play, laugh and win, yes he loved to win. He was so funny; you could tell how much he cared for you by the amount of razzing he gave you. If he wasn’t giving you a hard time then you weren’t his friend. We loved every goofy thing that he said and did. I cannot imagine him gone and I know that there are a great number of people today who will not be the same without him. So good night our dear friend, and sweet dreams. Originally from Anthony: VROD Baby!!!
Ronni M Wright Hohenfels, Germany
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