We Are Grateful for the Patriot Guard; They Stand for Those Who Stood for Us

Unfortunately, terrorism comes back to the United States in the form of the Westboro Church, who despite claiming Baptist, are not affiliated with any Baptist organization. This heinous group has targeted not just the military, but their families as part of their anti-American, anti-gay campaign. They say they are better than the rest of us, that they are saving souls from damnation. I say they are wrong. My soul doesn't need any saving, not from them!

The newest victims of this group are the grieving families of fallen soldiers. They have targeted memorial services, causing intense pain to the soldier's loved ones. The young wives, the small children, the parents of these brave soldiers are being forced to endure outrageous propaganda by these radicals. The Westboro Church claims that the soldiers are being killed by God because God hates America and homosexuals. The Westboro Church believes that homosexuality is the biggest sin imaginable and should be punishable by death. It's a load of crap, people. They claim that God mocked those who died in 9/11 and cast their souls into hell. More crap. The harassment caused by Westboro Church has become so bad that laws have been enacted preventing these people from coming within 500 feet of a memorial service.

However, families of the fallen heroes have a champion! The Patriot Guard, which began in August 2005, has been a blessing to the families of our nation's finest; blocking protestors (mainly from Westboro Church) by forming a blockade. The Patriot Guard started as a band of American Legion Riders from Kansas, and has grown to include veterans, service members, motorcycle buffs and civilians. They shield the mourners from the attacks by waving flags, singing songs and even rev-ving their motorcycles to keep the protestors' message away from the memorial service. Yes, I said attacks. It's evil what they do, telling mourning family members that their beloved soldier was killed by God and cast into hell. It's not freedom of speech, it's cruel. What the Westboro Church needs to do is get away from these funerals! It's tragic what has befallen our troops and, dang it, they deserve our respect and gratitude for making that ultimate sacrifice. The Patriot Guard also welcomes home our deployed soldiers. This show of love and support touches even the toughest men, and enhances the morale of entire units.

The Patriot Guard's website www.patriotguard.org wrote the following mission statement:

We don't care what you ride or if you ride, what your political views are, or whether you're a hawk or a dove. It is not a requirement that you be a veteran. It doesn't matter where you're from or what your income is; you don't even have to ride. The only prerequisite is Respect.

Our main mission is to attend the funeral services of fallen American heroes as invited guests of the family. Each mission we undertake has two basic objectives.

1. Show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities.

2. Shield the mourning family and their friends from interruptions created by any protestor or group of protestors.

We accomplish the latter through strictly legal and non-violent means.

To those of you who are currently serving and fighting for the freedoms of others, at home and abroad, please know that we are backing you. We honor and support you with every mission we carry out, and we are praying for a safe return home for all. (end of mission statement)

(If you are interested in supporting or joining, please check out their website!)

The Patriot Guard, while originally started to attend memorial services to assist in keeping protestors at a distance, has expanded to include a wider range of missions. They are a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting all of our troops in various ways. From memorial attendances, troop "send offs" and "welcome homes" and even scholarships (the Fallen Warrior scholarship is for dependents of soldiers killed in the line of duty); the Patriot Guard embodies the american patriotic spirit.

If it sounds like I feel very strongly about this, it's because I do. My husband, my father and my brother-in-law have all served in Iraq and I couldn't be prouder of them. They are my heroes, and luckily they all came home safe. Our sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters are away from home serving our country. We all have our political views and opinions about the government, and even about the war. You are all entitled to it, and I won't say that it's wrong. However, this right is given to you by our soldiers. Democrat or Republican, Liberal or Conservative- please, take with you the message and inspiration of the Patriot Guard and support our troops. Our troops fight for you.