Agape Coffee House - Recently Updated Pages

John Leighton

Barny — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:21:21 CDT

Leighton Barracks
Wuerzburg, Germany

Leighton Barracks was located in Germany,
approximately 70 miles southeast of Frankfurt
near the city of Wuerzburg. During World War II,
the German Air Force built a small air base here.
The facility was called Leighton Barracks
after CPT John A. Leighton,

John A. Leighton and his wife Gertrude Hayes.

Commanding Officer, Company G,
10th Armored Infantry Battalion,
4th Armored Division, who was killed in action
July 18, 1944. American troops occupied
the airfield on Easter, 1945.
The former Leighton Barracks now
(July 2009) will be named
"HUBLAND"...

Barnabas

More than 60 years ago Capt. John A. Leighton of Beverly, received one of the greatest honors when the U.S. Army named a military base in Germany after him, officially calling it Leighton Barracks.

John Leighton was the oldest of six children of Andrew and Ellen Leighton. The family grew up in a triple decker on Grant Street in the Gloucester Crossing section of Beverly.

When 2nd world war broke out, John volunteered to join the Army.
He enlisted as a private, then applied for and graduated from Officer Candidates School.

In a ceremony at Fort Hood, Texas, he married Gertrude Hayes of Lynn, a secretary at Hygrade Lamp.

Before leaving for Europe, John stopped home in Beverly and got a letter notifying him that he had been promoted to captain.

Capt. Leighton was assigned to the 10th Armored Infantry Battalion, a tank unit that was part of the 4th Armored Division led by Gen. George S. Patton Jr.

At age 25, Leighton became the commander of Company C, responsible for the lives of about 300 men.

His unit landed at Normandy, France, in early July of 1944 and took up a defensive position just south of the town of Carentan.

On July 19, 1944 Capt. Leighton's company and four others were given orders to "execute plan 'A,'" Missing in action

"The company was under heavy fire and the captain was hit in the stomach. This serious injury did not deter him from his duty. He continued to direct the operations of his company and when their position became untenable he directed the with drawal of his company to a better position.

Captain Leighton insisted on his being left there so as not to endanger the lives of any other men in his unit. It was only upon his assuring the men in his company that friendly medics would pick him up shortly that they left him there. The company made a successful withdrawal. Captain Leighton was reported missing in action as the medics did not bring him in that day."

"This was a hard blow to this unit as Capt. Leighton had been with the unit from the time of its activation on 10 September 1943 until killed in action in the preceding operations," the diary entry said. "He was a capable, understanding and courageous leader, well liked by those who served under him and worked with him. His
body was removed to a rear division burial collecting point."

Capt. Leighton's body was buried next to other American soldiers in a temporary cemetery in Sainte Mere Eglise, the town in Normandy that had been the landing point for U.S. Army paratroopers during the D-Day invasion.

A small air base near Wuerzburg, Germany, was officially named Leighton Barracks. The Germans had built the base during the war, but it was captured by American troops on Easter in 1945.

The orders naming Leighton Barracks were issued by the U.S. Army's European Command Headquarters and are signed by two generals. The orders recount the circumstances of the captain's death, calling him a "capable, understanding and courageous leader," and state that he was awarded the silver star.

"His gallant and heroic stand in the vicinity of Raids, France on 18 July 1944, which cost him his life, will ever be an inspiration to the men of his company and the entire battalion," the orders state.

The bodies of American soldiers eventually had to be moved when France wanted to reclaim the temporary cemeteries for farmland. In 1949, the body of Capt. Leighton was buried again, this time at Long Island National Cemetery in Farmingdale, N.Y.

Over the years, Leighton Barracks grew to become a major military base in Germany, about 70 miles south of Frankfurt in Bavarian wine-growing country. In 2005, the U.S. Defense Department announced plans to
relinquish control of 11 military bases in Germany.

video youtube
former US barracks in Wuerzburg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x7BN5HxvKY

Meditation

Barny — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:03:45 CDT

Good News

Barny — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 01:51:56 CDT

Whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Jesus in John 4,14

He Is Lord

He is Lord, He is Lord.
He has risen from the dead, and He is Lord.
Every knee shall bow,
every tongue confess,
that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they.

Jesus in Matthew 6,26

"I" become truly free
when "you" is all I see.
Larry

"Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come.
We have only today.
Let us begin."

Mother Teresa

Ask, and it shall be given you; Seek, and ye shall find;
Knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7,7
I am (Jesus) Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Revelation 22,13

Love is the fulfilling of the law.
Romans 13,10

Saint Barnabas

BARNABAS ("Son of Consolation")
Acts of the Apostles 4:36
We do not know much about him.
He was born in Cypress.
His name was Joseph. People called him Barnabas,
meaning "Son of Consolation."
He lived 2000 years ago.
He was a Christian before the name "Christian" existed.
He walked through towns and villages and encouraged people.
He is encouraging you also, that you can encourage others...
to go on also without success...
to forgive others if they harmed you...
The COURAGE to forgive is bigger than the courage of hatred:
It is better to learn again and again to walk the right direction in life...
every way to a new aim begins with the first step...
I will try ...
I have courage ...
Tell it to yourself!
-"I HAVE COURAGE"-
TO BE A HUMAN BEING MEANS
TO BE INVITED TO JOY

The road of merci

BETWEEN JERUSALEM AND JERICHO

Extract from a sermon by Fr. Barnabas Stephan
Medical Mission Institute
Wuerzburg Germany

" It is not in heaven, so that you need to wonder who will go up to heaven for us and bring it down to us, so that we may hear it and keep it?" (Dtn 30,12) "Nor is it beyond the seas, so that you need to wonder, who will cross the seas for us and bring it back to us, so that we may hear it and keep it" (Dtn 30,13)

The few sentences of this epistle are specially meaningful. They may remind us and relieve us if we picture life with God as too complicated, if we block our own way. They may encourage us if we place too high demands on ourselves and on others, if we overtax ourselves because we expect too much. They draw our attention to the most obvious thing to do, the one we sometimes overlook and by-pass. They refer us to ourselves. They are for me a fresh invitation to listen inwardly. "To fold my ears inwardly" as it is said in a modern poem by Huub Osterhuis.

Christians are idealists. We have high ideals as followers of Christ. This should not be given up. Similarly, we should not start out assuming that ideals could be completely fulfilled. It is our task to live with this incompleteness without dropping the ideal and without suffering permanently because it is unattainable. We experience daily how demanding this task is. The story of the good Samaritan (Lk 10,25-37) brings us immediately in touch with our own everyday life. One may hardly talk about this story without being reminded of some examples in one's own surroundings.

The first point the story wants to tell us is this: The acid test of our faith takes place everyday. "Who is my neighbour?" This cannot be answered theoretically or through clever academic utterances but solely through my life, my commitment. My neighbour is the one who needs me, the one who needs me urgently, independently from how far away he is. "Who is my neighbour?" This is also a fundamental question for us as individuals, as the Medical Mission Institute and the Medical Mission Hospital. Fantasy and courage to choose new ways are needed again and again. Frequently it weighs heavily on me when I watch how often people waste their strength unnecessarily. There is a blind eagerness which goes too far and deeply hurts and blocks others. A hyper-sensibility which expresses itself in feelings of "not having been noticed" and "not having got one's due". There is a wrong competition between different persons and groups, a wrong anxiety towards other ways than one's own. All this blocks forces - forces which could be made use of in favour of the neighbour. The neighbour has many faces. It is not important to define who is my neighbour but the urgency with which I am expected to do something in an actual situation, in a concrete need. I cannot choose the neighbour because he is there. Frequently the neighbour is uncomfortable to me, he is troublesome, he makes me feel uneasy, his prattle gets on my nerves, his manners make me see red. But: He is and remains my neighbour. My neighbour, that is the son who turned out quite differently from what I had imagined. My neighbour, these are mother and father who cannot understand the opinions their daughter has. My neighbour, that is the elderly colleague at work who realizes that he has reached his peak and who worries about the ditch he falls in when going into pension. My neighbour, that is a woman in our street who can no longer cope with the many demands put on her. My neighbour is the one living next to me who leads a different way of life and also has different political views. My neighbour remains my neighbour also when his distress is no longer reflected in the headlines or talked about publicly. For instance, this is important in many cases of bereavement where the actual misery, loneliness and sadness are often only experienced after four to six weeks, or with the many chronically sick where a lot more staying power is needed for paying a visit again and again. Unfortunately, such events are often too quickly forgotten.

The second point which struck me in the story of the good Samaritan is this: True help does not calculate what do I get for it, what is the other one doing for me. These are understandable but unsuitable questions. Generosity of spontaneous giving and giving away, of letting go - these are signs of real help.

The third point which appears important to me in to-day's gospel is this: Love of God, the neighbour and myself cannot be separated. It says "You should love your neighbour as yourself". This has meaning. If I quarrel badly with myself and am totally divided, I lack the ability to approach others. "I too am somebody." Therefore, I should not put myself too far back as I can then no more help the other. And I too depend always on assistance. Furthermore, the love of God and the love of the neighbour cannot be played off against each other. Dorothea von Gaza uses a very striking comparison: "Imagine a circle which one scratches with a stick into the ground. The middle is God, the circle line the world where people live. If they wish to approach God they have to move to the center of the circle. And they experience: The closer they come to God the closer they get to each other, and the closer they get to each other, the closer they will be to God.

Another important point of the interpretation of this parable of the good Samaritan was shown by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the theologian murdered in 1945. Bonhoeffer said that the one who wants to help his neighbour, will certainly start by pouring balsam on the wounds and dressing them. But the good Samaritan must not stop there. He is obliged to ensure that such attacks as told in the parable do no longer happen. He must also take steps that the evil is rooted out. Thus, we see: The acid test, the test if we take our faith seriously, takes place in everyday life. Real help does without mutual counting. Love of God, love of the neighbour and love of oneself are inseparable. If we wish to help properly we have to help comprehensively. Dressing wounds leads to preventing wounds. These are the four fundamental statements of the story of the good Samaritan.

Perhaps we realize the explosive force of this story even more if we visualize some of its main actors: Not the servants of Jewish worship, not official representatives of the Jewish hierarchy who knew and confessed the commandment of the love of one's neighbour but a Samaritan, a foreigner despised by the Jews, a religious heretic, an enemy of the people and friend of the Romans helped the man who had fallen among the robbers, and put into practice the commandment of the love of one's neighbour. The story is located between Jerusalem and Jericho. This, I think, is a symbol. The area around Jericho - there is desert, heat, hardly water, an environment hostile to life. The way between Jerusalem and Jericho - this is for me a symbol of our world, of the life-threatening dangers of our time. The way between Jerusalem and Jericho is everywhere, is there for everybody wherever he lives and acts.

Come to the living water!

HUMILITY – COURAGE
TOWARDS OUR OWN TRUTH

Comment to Mathew 11, 25-30

"A king, simple and ready to help, destroys everything that reminds of war, makes for an unlimited peace, reigns world wide and that in great humility.

This you don’t find even in the world of fairy tales. Is it not full of contradictions? Above all a king and being humble! Humility – weakness and cowardice may be associated with it. One thinks of submissiveness and surrender. What is humility in the eyes of God? Especially as God holds the humble in great esteem as the bible tells us. What then is humility?

The Latin word for humility is humilitas and that originates in humus – earth, soil. In a biblical sense humility means the courage to accept our own connectedness to earth and to look at our own human truth. Humility is the courage towards our own truth, our own humanness. It also means to say yes to conditions of our being human, such as to be in need, to be vulnerable, limited, mortal. At the same time we harbour in us the longing that all may end well. Humility entails that we cannot bring everything to a good end ourselves, that we cannot play God.

In the word humilitas there is also the word humour, which stands for being at ease, modesty, composure. The person who can thus accept his earthliness and humanness, yes, even love it, is not fixed upon himself; he can very well take himself aback, have a good laugh at himself, he will be free and even ready to encourage others for life. Humility is very different from despondency and haughtiness. The latter two although being dichotomous have one human weakness in common. In both attitudes man keeps himself busy with himself, despondent or arrogant.

Humility is evidence of inner greatness and liberty."

These thoughts are taken from a sermon given by

Fr. Barnabas Stephan, Wuerzburg.

Fr. Engelmar Unzeitig CMM (1911- 1945)

Father Engelmar has been called the “Angel of Dachau.” He was arrested by the Gestapo on 21 April 1941 and sent to the concentration camp of Dachau in the same year. In the autumn of 1944 he volunteered to help in the typhoid barrack. He had studied Russian whilst in Dachau in order to be able to help the prisoners from Eastern Europe. He died on 2nd March 1945. He was regarded as a holy man. In his desire to help the typhoid victims he contracted the disease himself. His beatification process was initiated on July 26. 1991, in Wuerzburg, Germany. And its second stage was officially opened at the Vatican in May 1999.

The Bible is the Only Truth—Jesus the Only Savior.
My name is Stephen Cobb—I was stationed in Wurzburg, Germany, Emery Kasern, 6th Bn, 52nd ADA and HHB 69th ADA Gp, 1970-'71.

In 1976 my wife left me after many years of drinking and drug abuse on my part (which had increased greatly in the Army stationed at Emery Kasern, that was a hellish place to be, and I was totally out of control by this time in 1976). I was not a Christian and hated anything to do with what I called religion (man's attempt to find God through his own self effort). Actually like many people I really needed a reason to live. I had often wondered what was my real purpose in life was — actually my life hadn't turned out as I had so carefully planned. I had the education, money, everything the world said I needed to be happy — but I certainly was NOT happy. I know this sounds like many peoples testimony, but that's really how it was with me as I now think back on my situation. My Army experience did not help me in anyway to find God, most of the so called "religious" people only thought they were Christians but their actions proved otherwise, these are the people I call the "very religious/unrepentant sinners" they give God an intellectual nod, but their hearts and wills are far far from Him. These types also think that the physical act of water baptism will justify them, but in reality this only produces a "wet-sinner". These religious hypocrites only further increased MY RELUCTANCE to find the truth, which is found only in a relationship with the Jesus of the Bible.
I didn't start out to find "religion" but really started on a search to fine out the truth of life (if there was any). The BIG why to life, that is what I was searching for. I really wanted to kill myself, but wondered what would happen after that, if anything? I read many books on life after death. At that time there were many on the market to read. I begin to notice that all were quoting scripture from the Bible to prove their points. So I thought (now I know it was the Holy Sprite leading me) well I'll just get a Bible and start reading—bad idea—It made no sence to me at the time. I had seen a late night Merv Griffin talk show on TV, he had had a guest that talked about the end times, the Bible, and Bible prophesy, the man's name was Hal Linsey, and the book he had just written was named "The late Great Planet Earth". I was very interest and finally found a copy of the book and read it three times. God used that book to present to me the gospel as I had never heard it before. It made perfect sence why my life was a mess, who I was, and importantly where I would end up if I did not admit the fact that I was just a poor sinner all along and needed forgiveness through Christ.
Jesus had live a life I couldn't have, what a great bit of good news, I could now have God's gift of eternal life FREE! I would give Jesus my sins in exchange for his righteousness. God had treated Jesus on the cross as if He was me, so God could treat me as if I had lived Jesues life. It was hard to believe...He had been there all along......it was so simple. Well I asked Jesus to forgive me that day and make me the person He wanted me to be that was around August of 1978 and the rest is history.
My wife never returned after our divorce, but she has heard the gospel many times from me over the years. Even though a person is forgiven and is a child of God the consequences of our sins will live with us in this life. God has graciously retored the things that Satan had stolen from me because of bad life choices. I now know the truth which is in Christ and Him alone, I now have faith for a great future with Him in this life and eternal life to come. It's like the old saying that goes: "life on earth will be difficult but the retirement is out of this world". I attend a Christian and Missionary Alliance church in Ithaca, NY and have been remarried for 22 years to a great Christian lady have two girls which are grown and love the Lord too.
I survived Emery Kasern and my tour of duty, and finally meet Jesus, you too can do the same... take care my friend...
Jesus is not a church, or a religion, He's not headquartered in some big city, HE'S THE TRUTH—trust only in Him today, there might not be a tomorrow! Remember, those who plan for this life, and not for eternity, is wise for a moment, but a fool forever.
Steve (Just another needy person, saved by God's Grace alone)

Eph. 2: 8-9

Here you will find Barny

Emery Barracks Wuerzburg

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 08:40:19 CDT

The Nord-Kaserne was named Adolf-Hitler-Kaserne in 1938, which is shown by the name plate on the gate post on the other side of the entrance. Hitler's name and the accompanying swastika were chiseled off after the war. The gate post also features an Iron Cross in a shield and a relief of a medieval standard-bearer. The Reichsadler at the corner of the other gate building presumably once grasped a swastika.

The U.S. Army used this post as Emery Barracks until ca. 1995. One very special person at Emery Barracks was the librarian who came to mean so much to American GIs, here is a posting from her. When I got that job I hadn't worked since I got married so I was very nervous my first morning and if you remember when I met you (Chaplain Autry) I was taking a paper to HQ and I asked you where it was and you kindly offered to take it and off you went with it ???

As I went back in the library I got worried as I was in awe of the service club personnel and I thought , "Gosh, if he loses that paper, I am in trouble." So, like a nitwit I had to lock the library and go find HQ and make sure they had the paper. I expect they all thought, "what an idiot she is." I tell you this because it helps to know my personality. I was and still am very naive and trusting but thats what took me through four and half years at the Emery library. Each day was a joy and the boys were all friends. I never had a days trouble with any of them and no bad language. In fact, my daughter says, "you are the only librarian that never put a book on a shelf" which is true. By the end of the day, the soldiers used to tidy up and file the books away. This gave me time to talk more during the evening with them. They helped keep the library shipshape--we always sailed through IGs (Inspector General) inspections with flying colors. I tell you this as a background. Next time I will be able to say more about the library. We were nothing like the service club across the hall. The Library really was a home away from home for so many of our soldiers, many just back from Vietnam. *** Mavis

***The significance of Mavis and the Emery Barracks library can never be underestimated. Many GIs, just back from Vietnam, were often simply "shell shocked." We now call it PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). Here they had been off at war for a year and now they were in a peacetime environment where they were expected to perform peace time duties, soldier, stand in formation, and all kinds of things for which they were not emotionally prepared to do. Most crashed and burned. The military made terrible decisions in sending these young soldiers to Germany. Some had a few months to complete their obligations but were sent anyway. It is a blight on the active duty Army in my view. It was dedicated people like Mavis at the Emery Library and those fine young troops who developed commitment to the faith and established a place for GIs to retreat too such as the Coffee House. The Coffee House was the forerunner to the Jesus Movement.

www.usarmygermany.com/Sont.htm

Use this link to view more images of Emery and surrounding US Army Millitary Kasenes

Agape Coffee House, Emery, Wuerzburg, Germany (circa 1971-74)

Emery
is a very hard rock type used to make abrasive powder. It largely consists of the mineral corundum (aluminum oxide), mixed with other species such as the iron-bearing spinels hercynite and magnetite, and also rutile (titania). Industrial emery may contain a variety of other minerals and synthetic compounds such as magnesia, mullite, and silica.

It is black or dark gray in colour, less dense than translucent-brown corundum with a specific gravity of between 3.5 and 3.8. Because it can be a mix of minerals, no definite Mohs hardness can be assigned: the hardness of corundum is 9 and that of some spinel-group minerals is near 8, but the hardness of others such as magnetite is near 6.

Wuerzburg is a beautiful Baroque city, the capital of Unterfranken (Lower Franconia). Although there were some military installations in the city, it was not an important target, and it largely escaped the repeated bombing that devastated many German cities. A few bombs had been dropped, and lives lost, in June 1944, and heavier bombing came in February 1945, but the destruction had not been widespread. Until, that is, 16 March 1945 ... on that night, a fleet of 280 British RAF bombers dropped some 1200 high explosive and 380,000 incendiary bombs -- 927 tons of bombs -- on Wuerzburg. The incendiaries started a firestorm in the old wooden houses that eventually consumed nearly 90 percent of the city. The total civilian casualties will never be known, but numbered at least 3000, and perhaps as many as 5000.

When the U.S. Army entered Wuerzburg on 3 April 1945, the soldiers found little more than a ruin of rubble and ashes.

Die Nord-Kaserne in Wuerzburg wurde 1938 "Adolf Hitler Kaserne" genannt, was durch das Namensschild auf dem Eingangspfosten des Eingangs gezeigt wird. Der Name Hitler und ein Hakenkreuz wurden nach dem Krieg weggemeisselt. Das Eingangstor wird gekennzeichnet durch ein Eisen-Kreuz in einem Schild und einer Einbindung einer mittelalterlichen Standard-Stuetze. Der Reichsadler an der Ecke des anderen Eingangs griff vermutlich einmal nach einem Hakenkreuz.

DIE ARME DER VEREINIGTEN STAATEN VOM AMERIKA
BENUTZTE DIESE KASERNE ALS EMERY BARRACKS BIS 1995..

Wuerzburg ist eine schoene barocke Stadt. Sie ist die Hauptstadt von Unterfranken. Obgleich es immer militaerische Einrichtungen in der Stadt gab, war sie nicht ein wichtiges Ziel fuer einen Angriff, und sie entging wiederholt einer grossen Bombardierung, die viele deutsche Staedte verwuestete. Einige Bomben waren dann und wann aber doch im Juni 1944 gefallen. Schwerere Bombardierungen fanden dann im Februar 1945 statt. Diese richteten keine grossen Zerstoerungen an.
Bis der 16. Maerz 1945 kam ... In dieser Nacht, liess eine Luftflotte von 280 britischen RAF Bombern ca. 1200 hochexplosive Sprengbomben und 380.000 Brandbomben -- 927 Tonnen -- auf Wuerzburg fallen. Die begannen einen Feuersturm in den alten hoelzernen Bauten, der schliesslich fast 90 Prozent der Stadt verbrannte. Die Gesamtzahl der Toten ist nicht bekannt, aber es waren mindestens 3000, und moeglicherweise sogar 5000 Menschen.

Als die US Armee Wuerzburg am 3. April 1945 betrat, fanden die Soldaten nicht mehr als eine Ruine aus Schutt und Asche.

_________________________________
city archiv / stadt archiv, Wuerzburg Germany
___________________________________________

Barnabas Stephan

Wuerzburg

Anonymous — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:24:42 CDT

Emery Barracks
Wuerzburg Germany

Here are some pictures from Wuerzburg.

Pictures around the former Agape Coffee House, Emery Barracks, Wuerzburg.

The Emery entrance to the left was taken in June 1970 by Spec.4 Stephen Cobb. I still remember the day I took it with my newly purchased polaroid camera from the Leighton barracks PX.
www.usarmygermany.com/Sont.htm

Greetings from Wuerzburg, Barnabas

sdfds

Anonymous — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 05:02:37 CDT

A-C

Term	Definition

D-G

Term	Definition

H-L

Term	Definition

M-Q

Term	Definition

R-Z

Term	Definition

US Hospital Wuerzburg

Barny — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:27:24 CDT

US Army Medical Department Activity, Wuerzburg
Originally, the Garrison Hospital Wuerzburg (Standortlazarett) was located on the Schottenanger, the site of an approximately 600-year-old former Scottish Monastery. With the buildup of the Germany Army (Wehrmacht) in 1935, it became necessary to build a larger, more modern hospital. An opportune site was the northeast side of the Galgenberg, which, at that time, was owned by the Mariannhill Institute. Once the property was in hand, architects and engineers from the German Army developed plans for the 300-bed hospital. The curved form of the building fit nicely into the layout of the grounds, with the main entrance on Mariannhill Street. Originally, a six-story building was planned, with 1200 rooms at an estimated cost of 5,500,000 Reichtmarks. The entire complex consisted of a main building with a service wing; a small, detached building for the motor pool and carpentry shop (previously the morgue); a fuel storage building and a generator house. A large beautiful park of nearly 53,000 square meters surrounded these buildings. The entire complex was fenced. There were living quarters for the hospital commander and two comptrollers, but these structures no longer belong to the hospital and are privately held.

The ground-breaking ceremony for this hospital occurred on 24 December 1935, with construction starting on unit 7 January 1936. After a two-year construction period, the hospital was completed on11 November 1937 and turned over to Dr. Reiter, an obstetrics/gynecology physician and Corps Physician for the 2nd Panzer (Tank) Division under General Guderian. Due to the occupation of Austria, Dr. Reiter subsequently had to deploy with the 2nd Panzer Division. He was later promoted to General. Dr. Reiter died several years ago in Wuerzburg.

The successor to Dr. Reiter was Dr. (COL) Willy Rau, ENT specialist, who until the beginning of World War II, was Chief and Commander of the Medical Squadron, Wuerzburg. The Medical Squadron, Wuerzburg originally was part of the Medical Department 15, which later was transferred to Frankfurt. The Medical Squadron, Wuerzburg was then assigned to the Medical Department 17 with headquarters in Nuernburg. In July 1938, they were assigned to Medical Department 40 of the 4th Panzer Division, which had offices in the "Roten Bau" (red building) in Wuerzburg. The Garrison Hospital Wuerzburg was responsible for providing medical care to the soldiers and civil servants of the German Army. An Obstetric station was available for wives of soldiers and civil servants. The hospital provided services in the following departments and clinics: Surgery, Orthopedics, Dermatology/SDT, ENT and Opthamalogy, and OB/GYN. Radiology, Lab, Physical Therapy, and Pharmacy were also available. It also included a school for medics. Nursing personnel were obtained from the Catholic Order of the "Barmherzigen Schwestern" (Sisters of Mercy) of Wuerzburg. During WWII, independent nurses and nurses’ aids were also recruited. The civilian sector supplied the buildings with electricity, gas and water. It also had an emergency battery-powered power system and an emergency generator. Four water tanks were available to provide steam for heat and hot water.

At the beginning of WWII, the Garrison Hospital Wuerzburg was under the control of the German Army (Wehrmacht) and converted to a main reserve hospital for Wuerzburg and the surrounding area. During the conversion, the number of beds increased from 300 to 700, and by the end of the war, reached approximately 2,000 (by placing patients in hallways and in the basement). Medical Department 40 of the 4th Panzer Division provided the last command of the Garrison Hospital Wuerzburg. This unit was responsible for medical care for soldiers and civil servants of the German Army stationed in Wuerzburg, Schweinfurt, Bamberg, Bad Kissingen and Hildburghausen. It also provided services for other troop elements of the 4th Panzer Division that were stationed in Munich, Boeblingen and Vaihingen. With the arrival of American troops to this area, the hospital was occupied by American Infantry troops and the German patients were transferred to other hospital in Wuerzburg and the surrounding area. On 8 April 1945, the Garrison Hospital Wuerzburg (under control of the German Army) was occupied and operated by the US Army’s 124th Field Hospital. Between 1945 and 1974, the hospital then was operated, in succession, by: The 57th US Field Hospital, The 10th US Field Hospital, The 10th Evacuation Hospital and The 33rd Field Hospital. The official designation as a United States Army Medical Department Activity (USAMEDDAC) occurred on 21 November 1975. At that time, the USAMEDDAC Wuerzburg was responsible for providing medical care for an area covering approximately 2,500 square miles and providing a mobile field hospital in case of an emergency.

With the drawdown of the U.S. Forces in Europe and the closure of the Augsburg and Nuernburg Hospitals, USAMEDDAC Wuerzburg assumed responsibility for all forces in Bavaria in 1994. Currently, the USAMEDDAC Wuerzburg consists of the facility in Wuerzburg and ten outlying health clinics supporting 62,000 soldiers and family members in Bavaria, Germany. The ten clinics are located in Bad Aibling, Bamberg, Giebelstadt, Grafenwoehr, Hohenfels, Illesheim, Katterbach, Kitzingen, Schweinfurt, and Vilseck.

The US Army Hospital in Wuerzburg, Germany, was closed October 22. 2007!

Barnabas

Barnabas

Barny — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 01:15:40 CDT

Barnabas in Wuerzburg Germany

Father Barnabas Stephan (Barny!) opened up a completely new ministry to American GIs, many under the bondage of drugs. What the military did to American soldiers after they had served their time in Vietnam was unconscionable. Many had a few months to do or as much as a year and so many were assigned to Germany. Get this picture: after being at war for a year or more, everyday, fighting, fearing for their lives, living in the jungles or worse; facing combat and various rigors of war every day, now, they are in Germany expecting to "soldier." To stand in formation, "yes sir, no sir." Many crashed and burned. Vietnam, with all its hell, has also meant that they survived, lost friends, and faced early on the problems of going straight from war to a peace time existence. The military did this to them with no reentry, no preparation: one day they are in the war, the next day they are in Wuerzburg, Germany. When they crashed, the Agape Coffee House was there - and that led to Father Barnabas, "Brother John Barnabas" at the time. God bless him.

Your friends in Christ Jesus.

Die Jesus People sind eine christliche Gemeinschaft, die sich in den 1960er und 1970er Jahren an der amerikanischen Westkueste aus der Hippie-Bewegung herausgebildet hat und sich schliesslich auf Nordamerika und Europa ausweitete.
In Wuerzburg begann die Bewegung 1967 im Missionshaus Mariannhill unter der Begleitung von Frater Barnabas Stephan. So etwa ab 1970 wurde daraus bei uns die Bewegung um die Charismatische Erneuerung der Kirche. Aida Fritze aus El Paso in Texas pflanzte diese Bewegung ein.
Barnabas

Poster
by Gregory (Greg) Lewis 1969

Life in this world can bring you down so hard.
There is nothing you can do.
There is nothing you can do.

I was worried down with the blues.
I was worried down with the blues.

Took my soul up to Mariannhill.
About ready to break.
HE (JESUS) took the pieces in his hands,
you know, and took the trouble away.

There is an oasis of peace in this world.
There is a calm in the midst of the storm.
You can see the words on the wall.
Jesus loves all and love begets love.
Love begets love. Love begets love.....

Larry 1970

Barnabas--das ist so sehr gut, was du hier geschrieben hast. Nicht ich habe geschrieben. "Good Hands" (Gute Haende) haben den Song komponiert. Entschuldigung--mein Deutsch ist ganz schlecht! Dein Freund und Bruder in dem Herrn Jesus.
--Larry
Minnesota, 24. April, 2007

Mariannhill in Wuerzburg Germany

Pater Barnabas aus dem Mariannhiller Missionshaus war fuer mich ein wichtiger Baustein in meinem Leben. Durch ihn habe ich so viel Neues erlebt aber auch so viel Waerme und Liebe erfahren. Noch an vieles kann ich mich sehr genau erinnern. Ich habe Dich, Pater Barnabas, mit einem sehr grossen Herz erlebt, in dem so viele Menschen Platz hatten. Und wer ist nicht alles zu dir gekommen, so unterschiedliche Persoenlichkeiten und Charaktere. Und zu jedem hattest du deine ganz eigene Beziehung. Und da oben in Mariannhill hattest du deine so ganz eigene Welt. Der Clubraum, Dein Buero, der Meditations-Raum,das Jugendkino, immer wieder hattest Du neue Ideen.
Ich moechte Dir an dieser Stelle noch mal danken fuer alles was ich durch dich erleben durfte. Und durch dich habe ich auch gelernt, "gebt in Fuelle, denn ihr empfangt auch in Fuelle".
Liebe Gruesse
Stefan Schranner

Wuerzburg 26. April 2007

Die ehemalige Teestube der Jesus People,
Wuerzburg, Friedrich-Ebert-Ring

A TIME TO REMEMBER

It must have been autumn of 70 when we got the first Tea Rooms for a large Lutheran District of 33 churches in the Wuerzburg aera. The District set aside a two room apartment right next to the big YMCA Center in Wuerzburg.

For the first time I read stories about the Jesus People revival in America. Incredible stories! The believers there trusted the Power of God and experienced wonderful deliverance from heroin and other addictions, it sounded similar to what we experienced.

We started to fast and pray a week long for a Youth Center. The churches bookkeeper had told us there was no money at all for it.

Only one week later the miracle happened. We got the former YMCA House with a little garden on a strategic street and had more room also for the Tea Rooms. I found out later, my own uncle had helped to build this house right after WW II. Today he lives in Canada.

One day a few young people told me that there is Mariannhill. They let me know, they too have worship services like we do with lots of young people. A catholic priest, a Father Barnabas spoke good English. The American soldiers came as well to Mariannhill. “Joanna, come with us on Tuesday night,” they begged. That's how I got introduced to Mariannhill, to Father Andreas and Father Barnabas.

Gods Spirit was openly welcomed to work freely in Mariannhill. There was room, more than in our Tea Rooms. They too had cushioned pieces lying on the floor in circles.

Young people, catholic or lutheran, from Free Churches or with no religious back ground, they came and became quiet. They sang songs with guitar, often played by an American, Alan Vera, just as we were used to. A Bible text was put out for all to consider. We felt quickly at home.

The young people either brought their own Bibles or were given one. The gifts of the HOLY Spirit became visible, especially when each circle pored over the text in the Bible. It became also clear, to read the Bible was not a new fad. We understood, it was God who spoke with us. God wanted to be our closest friend. As the Fox wanted to tame the Little Prince ( in Saint Exuperys “The Little Prince” ) , in the same way God wanted to come very close to each one of us in Jesus our Messiah and free us from all we ever owed and make us whole and blessed people.

Someone in the circle may have come up with a picture in his understanding and risked to tell about it and sometimes to the whole group. Some one else got an interpretation from the scriptures to highlight what the picture might say. The young believers got blessed.

But it was not only nice things we learnt. We met our eternal Father, as Dad, who loves us dearly and personally, but who also trains us up, matures us and was not afraid to put us, his children in our place.

The Bible talks from being separated and from being near to his heart; it talks about Gods raising up his children and about his unbelievable great LOVE , which He demonstrated giving Jesus.

After several songs and experiencing the reality of Gods Word we got invited to celebrated Gods Presence and his great Love in Jesus Christ, we heard anew to be forgiven and experienced great Joy and Peace, which almost visibly hovered over all the different people in the room.

“The Peace of God be with you,” that's how we blessed each other, often with a hug. Healing and deliverance became real experiences. As people, we felt like touching Gods power who positively changed all of us. There was much reason to worship, to sing praises and to thank Him over and over. More music instruments were brought and joyful expressions created.

Older people came also. Barnabas and Andreas and others of the Mariannhiller brothers were there to serve the young people with counsel and practical ways. That's how we celebrated Worship Service Tuesday Evening at Mariannhill and Saturday in the Tea Rooms.

One could meet Barnabas often upstairs in the Tower of Mariannhill Mission house (in the Upper Room) and myself in the Tea Rooms. Gods heart became so visible amongst us, it didn't matter to which church one belonged anymore. We experienced True Fellowship and remembered the Christians 2000 years ago. Young American families and Germans invited gatherings to their homes.

Here in the US, God gave us open doors to Jews, to students from over seas, to private guests and those who love to come for Shabat and the wonderful biblical Feasts. Like John we also say: HE must increase, we must decrease.

Jesus, our Messiah, who said in Isaiah and Luke 4:18 “ The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me to preach the Good NEWS to the poor, He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

This his power we experienced in Mariannhill without a doubt as in the Tea Rooms. HE is the same today. Our life in the dimension of the Living Lord, this is our greatest treasure.

Peace be with us all!

2007 - Joanna and Larry in Oregon, USA -

Here you will find Barny

Mother Mary

LeoWong — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 21:13:11 CDT

The magnificat.
Luke 1.46-56.

46 And Mary said: My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoiced over God my savior, 48 because he has looked upon the humility of his servant. For behold, from now on all the generations will bless me, 49 because the powerful one did great things for me, and holy is his name, 50 and his mercy is unto generations and generations for those who fear him. 51 He made might with his arm, he scattered those proud in the thought of their heart. 52 He brought down powers from thrones and exalted the humble, 53 he filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. 54 He aided Israel his child, to remember mercy, 55 just as he spoke toward our fathers, to Abraham and his seed unto the age. 56 And Mary remained with her (Elisabeth) about three months, and returned unto her house.

Acts 1:14
14 These all with one accord continued stedfastly in prayer, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

Hail Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Home

Barny — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 10:00:07 CDT

Jerry Autry was the battalon chaplain at Emery Barracks. He was the enabler of a group of GIs to found the Agape Coffee House. He gave us this wonderful place to meet. We all affectionately remember Jerry as being "always for the troops" - always there for "us GI's." We could go to him with any problem. I remember, Jerry would sweep into the snackbar on Sunday mornings trying to round up us lost sheep, shouting, "AIRBORNE!!!" and "Okay guys, why you all sitting around here doing nothin' ... get on up there to chapel!" - Dan Brake, Firstmate of the Coffee House Gang

Emery Barracks, Wuerzburg, Germany (circa 1971-74)

Poster
by Gregory (Greg) Lewis 1969

Welcome all you Jesus people ...

Emery Barracks, Wuerzburg, Germany

Dan Brake and Carl Glass

Greg Lewis and Aida Fritze.

Brother John Barnabas Stephan, 1972, Wuerzburg

The Upper Room, Mariannhill Mission, Wuerzburg.

Youngest member, Stacee Brake
being dedicated to the Lord,
with Linda (mom),
Rockee ("godmother")
and John Barnabas

Bud McGriff, John Barnabas and Jerry Autry

========================

In memoriam for Craig Tell.

========================

Agape
is a Greek word translated in the New Testament of the Bible as "love" or "charity." Agape is ranked by Christian moral theologians with faith and hope as a basic virtue, and Saint Paul called it the greatest of the virtues. The name agape was given, also, to an early Christian love feast, an evening communal meal held in connection with the Lord's Supper. Its origin is found in the chaburah, a fellowship meal of late Judaism. If, as is probable, the chaburah was observed by Jesus and his disciples, its adoption by the young Christian church was entirely natural. At the agape, food brought by the people was solemnly blessed in advance of the repast. The Eucharist (consecration of bread and wine) either preceded or followed the agape. About the beginning of the 2nd century the Eucharist was detached from the communal meal and transferred to the early morning. The agape lingered in some Christian communities until the 3rd century.

Barnabas

Agape As Refuge

Barny — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 06:35:45 CDT

"How great is your goodness ... which you bestow ... on those who take refuge in You ... [the Lord] showed his wonderful love to me ... Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord ...
(Psalm 31:19, 21, 24)

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD,

I shall not want;
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for His name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil;
for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the
Lord forever.

Psalm 23

In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence,
and his children will have refuge.
Proverbs 14:26

God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea. though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surge.
Selah --Psalm 46

Then and Now

Barny — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 12:14:47 CDT

DAN BRAKE AND CARL GLASS - BAKERSFIELD, CA 2007

THIS IS A LITTLE SCARY CARL: CHECK HIS WEBSITE AT

http://glasshousepresents.com/

As a private investigator, I find it easier to blend in ...
what am I doing today?

See my website

www.McSleuth.com

Visit this wonderful Mandala!
Barnabas

Tim Mazac with little Tim, July 1972. First day stateside after two years.

Tim today, planting trees in Roswell, Idaho.

Here you will find BARNY

Dan Lewis

Barny — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 11:20:14 CDT

I met Dan Lewis at the A Btry 6 / 52 ADA Tac Site, which was just up the hill from Emery Kaserne, in late summer of 1973. He was married to Geri, and was the 6 / 52 ADA battalion medic. He left the battalion and Germany within several weeks of our first meeting. A photo of he and Geri can be found in the People section of this website.

My name is Clif Heeney. I was originally assigned as a Military Policeman providing site security at the above mentioned Tac Site. I arrived in Wuerzburg in June of 1973 and worked at the Tac Site until October of that same year. Then went to work in S-2 at 6 / 52 ADA until my DEROS in December of 1975.

I was born and raised in Utah, as a Roman Catholic, in a state that was overwhelmingly Mormon. There were not many Roman Catholics in my small town and we were definitely in the minority. I had never had a religious conversation with anyone not of those two religions prior to entering the Army.

I remember well the day that I first met Dan. I was working at the Tac Site, having just come on duty when Dan came to the front gate. I did all the things that I was required to do and signed him into the site. I did notice, as I let him in, that he was carrying a giant brown leather bible under one arm. A short time later I saw him approaching the gate and I went from the guard shack to unlock the gate and let him out. Instead of going out the gate, he asked me if I was a new guy, where I was from, what I liked about Germany. Lots of questions and all of them because he was interested in me.

We got to talking and he told me that he was originally from San Fransisco. By this time I had invited him to sit in the guard shack with me as we talked. He kept his bible on his lap, but didn't begin to even talk about "religion". We talked about his life and very naturally I opened up due mostly to his interest in and concern for me.

I was intrigued by this guy who obviously was a Christian, both by the carrying of his bible, but more importantly because of the radiance in his countenance and his love for God and the love that he was showing to me. He was so open and honest and non-threatening. He just loved me and was concerned about me, the new guy in the battery. He asked me several times if there was anything that he could do for me. I kept telling him "No", because I really didn't need anything or so I thought. But in truth, what I really needed was a true friend, one who would tell me the truth and one who would love me for who I was.

We talked for about two hours and I finally got my nerve up enough to ask him some questions about God. He answered very gently and showed me in his bible where God answered the very questions that I had. He showed me that God was love and that Christians could be loving and caring about others. I'll never forget what he said to me as he left the guard shack, "God loves you!!"

After Dan left the battalion to return to the US, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit (although I didn't realize that it was Him at the time) from time to time that God is love. Dan's words rang in my ears and I couldn't get away from the love of the Father or from his!

What I know was that God in His abundant graciousness sent Dan to the Tac Site that day at that time to show as well as tell me of His love for me. I will always be grateful to our Gracious God and Father for sending His Son Jesus to die for me and for Dan to witness to me that truth.

Some 18 months later I came to the Lord and was born again - 10 March 1975 kneeling down in the front room of Harry Mapps' apartment. By the way, last week, 20 May 2007 I located Harry and spoke with him. I had been searching for him for almost 32 years -- but that's another story!

Shortly after coming to Christ I realized what a true friend to me and grace filled servant of the Lord Dan was, even though our relationship lasted only 2 hours or so. The only thing that I could recall was that he was from San Fransisco and that his name was Louis. I remembered that Louis was his first name not his last.

In the intervening 34 years I have tried many times to find "Louis" from San Fransisco, but without any success. I wanted to find him to tell him "Thanks" for sharing as well as demonstrating the love of God with me that day on the Tac Site.

About 6 weeks ago I saw a photo of Jesus that was painted on the south wall of the Agape Coffee House on a website (Classmates.com). I contacted the poster, Dan Brake and began an email exchange about times at Emery Kaserne during the early to mid-70's. Shortly afterward he told me about this website. I looked at the website and clicked on the page entitled People. As I scrolled down I didn't know any of them save for Tom Hartmann. Then there came a photo that took my breath away, a photo of "Louis!" Here was the photo of Dan Lewis and his wife Geri. I got all excited, now I had his entire real name and also the knowledge that Dan Brake knew him. I created the original Dan Lewis page asking for information about him. Within a few days Mike Conley emailed me to tell me that he had recently talked to Dan and told him that I was looking for him. Mike also passed on to me Dan's telephone number.

Last night, 26 May 2007, I telephoned Dan and thanked him for sharing himself and the love of God to me on that long ago afternoon at the Tac Site. I was filled with joy over the goodness of God allowing me to find Dan, and grateful to Dan that he demonstrated the love of God to me in such a loving way. We had a wonderful tear filled reunion, celebrating God's goodness to both of us.

People

Barny — Wed, 23 May 2007 09:02:33 CDT

Wally Knable (his wife Fran, and Linda Brake) ...

Wally was the first "convert" at the coffee house.

Ron and Kay Springs Wedding inside Emery Barracks Chapel.

Bestman and groomsmen: Don Purcell, Tim Carney and Ernie Green.

(Don's wife was Maid of Honor)

Ron and Kay outside the chapel.

Mark and Joannie

The Pratt's

Dave, Carol, Roxanne and Steve

Dan and Geri Lewis: "ministers of hospitality"
making everyone always feel welcomed!

Tom and Rita Hartmann: Tom was a chaplain's assistant,
and then became a Chaplain.

Jim Monoghan: Jim painted the beautiful portrait
of Jesus on the south wall.

Alex and Bonnie Schmidt's: the "first couple"
of the the coffee house. Before they showed
up it was just us single soldiers -
they provided us a picture of a loving family.

Jymme Morgan

Tom Morgan

Retreatants at the Religious Center in Bavaria:
Chaplain Schmidt, YWAM-ers, Greg Lewis ... Dave Thompson,
Craig Teel, Dan Brake ... who else? )

Bruce

Bud McGriff: Bud was stability and balance for us "crazy-fanatics".
He would spend countless hours at the coffee house teaching,
counseling and discipling us in God's Word.

A YWAM-er sharing his testimony at an concert
event featuring "Mephibosheth".

The Crew @ Berchesgaden Religious Retreat Center

A typical Bible Study night

I am assuming this is a YWAM-er as I do not recognize her.

Bud at his best, passionate about the Bible.

Craig and Kay: the coffee bar was the cornerstone of the coffee house.

"God is the Refuge of Humanity"
"Gott ist die Heimat der Menschen"

Barnabas on the road in this world.

Coffee House Artwork

Anonymous — Wed, 16 May 2007 09:15:21 CDT

Outside the coffee house you can see our attempts
at stained glass artwork.

The front door as you enter
(notice "the Army" right outside)

Our first "Jesus Mural" - a copy of the Time Magazine cover.
Visitors viewing at it probably thought we were still on drugs ...
so we repainted it with the first good artist that came along
(see next picture - done by Jim Monoghan).

Jim took this picture from the artist "Hook."
Great job Jim!!!

The Cross on the ceiling was a classic.

Inside view of our stainglass windows -
looked pretty cool from the outside at night when the lights were on.

Another piece of original artwork -
replaced after about a year with the "Rejoice" mural.

East Wall - replaced after about a year
with the painting below:

Wall Painting and some "advertisement-evangelistic" posters.
This was probably right around Octoberfest
- we would hang out each night at the Beer
Tents passing out tracts and inviting the GI's "to turn or burn ..."
(back in the good old days!)

Hey, plenty of these in the parking lot

(remember, this is Germany,
1972: buy one for $200, and drive the heck out of it)

Events

Anonymous — Fri, 04 May 2007 01:47:52 CDT

WE ARE THE JESUS PEOPLE ...

(if you know who these brothers are, please note here)

Carl Glass, Ernie Green, Tim Carney, Ron Spring ...

BAPTISMS IN THE MAIN RIVER

Poster
Wanted Jesus Christ - in many languages
by Gregory (Greg) Lewis 1969

THE COFFEE HOUSE NEWSPAPER
Jim Monaghan, Wally Knable, Dan Brake
and
Greg Lewis

This third edition (above) gave Jerry Autry a bit of grief:

Wally and I snuck into the Main Chapel at Leighton Barracks in the middle of the night on Saturday, we put 200 papers throughout the pews for Sunday morning's service ... the Post Chaplain came unglued and took it out on Jerry (Jerry was only a Captain then, he being yelled at by a full-bird Colonel). Needless to say, Jerry passed along this unhappy news to Wally (you once again screwed up in our misguided zealousness). Of course, Wally and I thought we were heros, we loved to torment the establishment. Jerry was always taking heat for us. - Dan Brake -

COFFEE HOUSE OPEN FOR SEEKERS
We met in the converted Dayroom of A Btry, 6/52 ADA, which drove the First Sergeant nuts ... someone was always around drinking coffee and chating with walk-ins; the military probably saw no strategic purpose in our function.

NO SHORTAGE OF ARTISTS

OUR "DEEP" THEOLOGY

KUDOS TO JACKIE AUTRY
After we "got Jesus!" we were still a bunch of high school drop outs and unproductive soldiers. People like Jackie offered their time and education to teach, tutor and encourage us ... as a result some of us went back to school and got our High School diplomas -

Thanks Jackie!!!