| Cool
Update |
|||
|
All updates written by Sue, unless otherwise noted. For Immediate Release 29 August 2003 Mesa, AZ What an awe inspiring week Cool Our Troops has experienced. We have had the distinct honor of meeting so many "Angels" that are helping Cool Our Troops. A local radio personality, Bruce Jacobs KFYI had me on his show to discuss our desperate plea for help to get personal Misting Systems to all of our troops in Iraq. To date we had sent only 11,000 and our goal by this time was 50,000. Needless to say, being goal oriented as I am, I found this unacceptable. After his show aired, my phone lit up so fast with his concerned listeners that I couldn't even take all of the calls! Working my real job all day, I didn't even have a chance to start returning messages until that evening. There were so many heartwarming stories that gave us "goosebumps" that I can't begin to tell you all of them. However, there are two that I can't resist sharing. I had a lady contact me by the name of Kathleen. Her son had served in Iraq already and we had sent him and his buddies Misty Mates, personal cooling systems. He had left his behind for someone else to use when he went back to the States. Now he was going to be returning to the theatre and his Mom was once again trying to get one for him and his friends. I asked her our normal questions to qualify the "lead". How many men and women are in his unit, approximately when are they leaving and from where. She didn't have any info for me and was desperately trying to find the answers. The little voice inside told me to listen and help her locate them. Since her son was a SPC, he didn't feel comfortable to be asking the "guy in charge" to transport a lot of units. You see, it is always hard on us to see our fine men and women being deployed, but now those deployments also bring a new meaning. Vehicles to get misters to our troops in Iraq! I contacted the Public Information Officer at the base. He was extremely helpful and come to find out there were 5000 being deployed. Not quite the number I was thinking. My initial thought was somewhere in the 200 range. The bank accounts for Cool Our Troops had no where close to that much money in it to cover 5000 units. Instead of telling the Major that we couldn't possibly send that many, I immediately said that we would get one for all of them! Then I hung up and called Susan. I realized right then that I had just took a huge JUMP of Faith, not just a leap! After both discussing it, we decided that I did the right thing. I think Susan was just trying to comfort me so I wouldn't go further over the deep end since I just wagered my house on this deal! I was driving home when my phone
rang. It was Joe Pierce, a local business man. He had heard me
on the Bruce Jacobs show that morning and wanted to know how he
could help. My first thought was that we needed help putting our
"Cool Our Troops American's that care cool@coolourtroops.com"
stickers on all of these units that I had just promised! When
I approached him about getting a group of "Stickers"
together to help us, that didn't seem to be his cup of tea. He
then asked if we needed money. Of course, we all know the answer
to that question. Of course we needed money. Keep in mind that
I had just 10 minutes before this, authorized 5000 to be sent
with Kathleen's son's unit. When I told him yes, he told me that
he would like to donate $5,000 to help Cool Our Troops and wanted
to challenge all the Kathy and I showed up to the SMACK Down hosted by KFYI and our friend Bruce Jacobs to thank him for his support and tell him how his show was instrumental in getting the word out to Mr. Pierce. We were also met by another one of our Cool Our Troops members, Pat Wharton who has been instrumental in raising thousands of dollars from the congregation at St. Helens Catholic Church in Phoenix, at her kids schools and now at the KFYI Smack down. Everyone participated and donated to the account. It was truly an inspiration to see how many Americans really do care about our Troops. Come to find out, Pat's son and my son's best friend Bryant were buddies and had gone to the USMC MOS training school together. It is such a small world and I don't think it is just coincidences. Later that evening, Joe dropped off his very generous donation. It was not only very inspirational to meet Joe, but he surprised us once again. Instead of the $5000 he had promised, he donated $7500 with a promise of more help to come! This wonderful man didn't want the publicity or pats on the back. As a matter of fact he asked for nothing at all in return, but just offered to give more. What a outstanding individual who really did make a difference in the lives of our Troops. Susan and I were still faced with a huge deficit. This morning K-LITE broadcasted live from the Sonic outside of Luke AFB to help bring awareness to Cool Our Troops. They were awesome. Ray at Zebra Signs was once again Johnny on the Spot and had made up a huge Cool Our Troops/Quest banner for our event, once again at NO CHARGE. Mr. Pat Quinn President of Qwest and Jeff joined us there and had fun bantering with Mary Reilly and answering her questions. They informed us that Quest had raised a total so far of $7,000! He then put up his own $500 and challenged the listeners. That $500 was matched within an hour. By the end of the day, the total raised by our friends at Qwest was $11,000. This had been raised by them in just 2 weeks! Cool
Our Troops was invited to lunch by Warren of Adams Bros in Phoenix.
What an awesome lunch. They were having an awards luncheon for
all of their employees and they had decided that "Cool Our
Troops" would be the recipient of their fund-raiser for 9/11.
What an awesome show of the American spirit. What an awesome week.
I am pleased to report that 11,000 units are already Cooling our
troops in Iraq and we have another 8,000 ready to go on the next
flight! This brings us to a total of 19,000 with 31,000 still
to go! It is amazing what Americas can do and so touching to see
how "Americans Care and Support our Troops"! One person
can seriously make a difference. Kelli Berry also heard us on
the radio this morning. In addition to her generous donation,
she has started an email campaign to make the media, friends and
family aware of the immediate need. and I am confident that with
everyone's help, we will get this taken care of within the next
week. I am also attaching a link to a website that I found very
moving. Thank you for your time in reading this and enjoy the
video. God Bless you and God Bless America and those who serve
us! ----- Susan and I have been up to our elbows in alligators these days, trying desperately to raise money so that we don't have to turn down any unit requesting relief. As of today, Cool Our Troops has sent 14,000 personal misters to our troops in Iraq. We have done this by the generous donations of people in primarily Arizona! WISH TV in Indiana did a story and raised $6,000 to help cool our troops. We recently received a call from Seattle where a group of Marines that formed the Evergreen Chapter, 1st Marine Division Association made a donation to help their fellow Marines currently deployed to Iraq. This Chapter received its' Charter on 11 August 1991 in Seattle, WA. Thirty-three Charter members were on hand for this occasion. Among the purposes of the Chapter are to foster, encourage and perpetuate the memory and the spirit of comradeship in arms of members of the 1ST MARINE DIVISION ASSOCIATION. Also, to preserve incidents and memories of their Association; to promote and safeguard the principles of justice, freedom and democracy; to foster patriotism and love of country; to perpetuate the spirit and tradition of the UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS; to promote and cultivate social intercourse and fellowship among the members; and to conduct meetings and social gatherings for the better realization of the above named purposes. Their current membership is approximately 120. A former Marine by the name of Boyce contacted Cool Our Troops after reading about our Operation in the Marine Corp Times. Just like the brothers we know them to be, these retired Marines exemplefy the true American Spirit and continue to give to their country and their brothers and sisters in arms. Not only did the Chapter donate money, but one of their members, Colonel George Flood, USMC retired contacted Pemco Insurance who was his former employer. Pemco Insurance immediately came to the aid of our troops and made a very generous donation, allowing us to send another 100 coolers to our troops. This personafies why America is the greatest country in the world. It is the people that make it so great. Our
goal as you remember was to send 50,000 personal misters to our
troops on the ground with no air conditioning facing the extreme
heat. Without the help and support of this whole Nation and more
people like You can still make a donation to any Bank of America by referencing account #004654811395, if outside of Arizona, please mention that it is an out of state account and make check payable to Cool Our Troops. You can also donate to any Bank One in the State of Arizona, account #640404737. Thanks again for your time and support. For
Immediate Release
Mesa, Arizona - Another exciting day for Cool Our Troops. Lt. General Conway has received the personal cooling device we sent him and he is going to get in touch with Ross Perot according to our sources. This will hopefully lead to cool relief for all of our troops and coalition forces serving in and around Iraq in support of Iraqi Freedom. Thanks to the support of Senator John McCain's office and the Southwest Airline employees, along with all of the wonderful people who have donated to this cause, the patients and staff at a hospital in Iraq that has been plagued with power outages and severe temperatures should be resting a little more cooler with in the next few days. The following is a letter received by Sue McCormick, Founder of Cool Our Troops today. "This letter was addressed to Cool Our Troops, but Susan and I share the praise with all of the wonderful people who have supported our efforts to "Cool Our Troops" states, Sue McCormick. "This project has been one of true inspiration to us and renews our faith in the American people. We can't thank everyone involved enough for their support and encouragement." One of our personal "Angels" has been Col. Len Fuchs, USMC retired, who has been so instrumental in helping us with the military aspects of this project and Bruce Jacobs at KFYI for helping us get our plea out to the public. Without his knowledge and guidance, we would certainly not have reached this point so quickly. More requests for coolers are being received everyday and hopefully we will be able to fill them shortly. Good morning from An Najaf, Iraq All our Marines received one and they are being put to good use; especially during this latest heat wave (beautiful timing). Sue, you are a great American! How incredibly thoughtful and kind you are for not only thinking of us, but for doing something so substantial and significant; something that has materially affected the morale of our men. Your selfless act is a direct reflection of what makes America great and reaffirms the reasons we so proudly serve our country. I want to personally thank YOU for the initiative you undertook and for caring so much for the many that still remain in country. It is for Americans like you that we so proudly serve our great nation. On behalf of the Marines, sailors, and soldiers that serve with us here, I extend my most sincere thanks and appreciation. Semper
fidelis, I know everyone's time is limited, but the following email that we received is well worth the read. Thank you all for your support. We aren't there yet, but I feel like we are on the right track and we will "Cool Our Troops" thanks to the effort of all of you! Keep up the awesome work! Sometimes
It Just Needs To Be Said Taking a sip of my iced tea, I studied the crowd over the rim of my glass..I let my gaze linger on a few of the tables next to me, where several uniformed military members were enjoying their meals. Smiling sadly, I glanced across my booth to the empty seat where my husband usually sat. Had it had only been a few weeks since we had sat at this very table talking about his upcoming deployment to the Middle East? He made me promise to come back to this restaurant once a month, sit in our booth, and treat myself to a nice dinner. He told me that he would treasure the thought of me there eating a steak and thinking about him until he came home. I fingered the little flag pin I wear on my jacket and wondered where at that moment he was. Was he safe and warm? Was his cold any better? Were any of my letters getting to him? As I pondered all of these things, shrill feminine voices from the next booth broke into my thoughts. "I don't know what Bush is thinking invading Iraq. Didn't he learn anything from his father's mistakes? He is an idiot anyway, I can't believe he is even in office. You know he stole the election." I cut into my steak and tried not to listen as they began an endless tirade of running down our president. I thought about the last night I was with my husband as he prepared to deploy. He had just returned from getting his smallpox and anthrax shots and the image of him standing in our kitchen packing his gas mask still gave me chills. Once again their voices invaded my thoughts. "It is all about oil, you know. Our military will go in and rape and pillage and steal all the oil they can in the name of freedom. I wonder how many innocent lives our soldiers will take without a thought? It is just pure greed." My chest tightened and I stared at my wedding ring. I could picture how handsome my husband was in his mess dress the day he slipped it on my finger. I wondered what he was wearing at that moment. He probably had on his desert uniform, affectionately dubbed coffee stains, over the top of which he wore a heavy bulletproof vest. "We should just leave Iraq alone. I don't think they are hiding any weapons. I think it is all a ploy to increase the president's popularity and pad the budget of our military at the expense of social security and education.. We are just asking for another 9-11 and I can't say when it happens again that we didn't deserve it." Their words brought to mind the war protesters I had watched gathering outside our base. Did no one appreciate the sacrifice of brave men and women who leave their homes and family to ensure our freedom? I glimpsed at the tables around me and saw the faces of some of those courageous men, looking sad as they listened to the ladies talk. "Well, I for one, think it is a travesty to invade Iraq and I am certainly sick of our tax dollars going to train the professional baby killers we call a military." Professional
baby killers? As I thought about what a wonderful father my husband
is and wondered how long it would be before he was able to see
his children again, indignation rose up within me. Normally reserved,
pride in my husband gave me a boldness I had never known. Tonight,
one voice would cry out on behalf of the military. One shy woman
would stand and let her pride in our troops be known. I made my
way to their table, placed my palms flat on it and lowered myself
to be eye level with them. Smiling I said, "I couldn't help
overhearing your conversation. I am sitting over her trying to
enjoy my dinner alone. Do you know why I am alone? Because my
husband, whom I love dearly, is halfway across the world defending
your right to say rotten things about him. You have the right
to your opinion, and what you think is none of my business, but
what you say in my hearing is and I will not sit by and listen
to you run down my country, my president, my husband, and all
these other fine men and women in here who put their lives on
the line to give you the freedom to complain. Freedom is expensive
ladies, don't let your actions cheapen it." To
my surprise, as I sat down to finish my steak, a round of applause
broke out in the restaurant. Not long after the ladies picked
up their check and scurried away, the manager brought me a huge
helping of apple cobbler and ice cream, compliments of the table
to my left. He told me that the ladies had tried to pay for my
dinner, but someone had beaten them to it.. When I asked who,
he said the couple had already left, but that the man had mentioned
he was a W.W.II vet and wanted to take care of the wife of one
of our boys. As I drove home that night, for the first time in while, I didn't feel quite so alone. My heart was filled with the warmth of all the patrons who had stopped by my table to tell me they too were proud of my husband and that he would be in their prayers. I knew their flags would fly a little higher the next day. Perhaps they would look for tangible ways to show their pride in our country and our troops, and maybe, just maybe, the two ladies sitting at that table next to me would pause for a minute to appreciate all the freedom this great country offers and what it costs to maintain. As for me, I had learned that one voice can make a difference. Maybe the next time protesters gather outside the gates of the base where I live, I will proudly stand across the street with a sign of my own. A sign that says "Thank you!" Lori Kimble is a 31 year old teacher and proud military wife. She is a California native currently living in Alabama. ---- 16
August 2003 Hot idea Helps Cool Our Troops! Mesa, AZ - Sue McCormick of Mesa, AZ friend is currently serving in Iraq. According to Sue, he never complains about anything, but he mentioned in several conversations to her how hot it was. After hearing about the heat from him and the news reports, Sue decided to send him something more special for Father's Day than the simple care packages she'd been sending. With the aid of Susan Czubek, that one wish to make his Father's Day a little more special, eventually led to a nationwide campaign to send troops in Iraq some "cool" relief. McCormick sent her friend a Misty Mate, a device with a nozzle and hose attached to a water bottle. This personal cooling system is operated by a hand pump requiring no electricity and no batteries which are both in short supplies in most areas in Iraq. This device produces a mist so fine that small air movements, even from walking, evaporate the mist from a user's skin, lowering the temperature by about 30 degrees. One night when her friend Susan Czubek was visiting, McCormick pitched her idea of sending a Misty Mate to all of the troops. Czubek also has a fiance who served in Iraq, but has since been re-deployed, and she loved McCormick's idea. With that, the ladies organized a non profit organization called "Cool Our Troops" on July 3, 2003. By the next day, July 4th, the pair had booked an appearance on a major Phoenix TV station to announce their idea. By the end of the day, $300.00 had been donated. Upon hearing about the plight and hardships that the 101st Airborne have endured, Sue and Susan made a decision to make the 101st Airborne one of the first recipients of the personal cooling devices. "We are happy to announce that 1000 units have been delivered to the 101st Airborne in Iraq" stated Susan. This effort was made possible by the generosity of the people of Arizona that have gotten behind the cause and made donations to Cool Our Troops. To date, 6,000 units have been shipped to Iraq. Senator John McCain of Arizona will be hand delivering 200 units in Iraq during his upcoming visit thanks to the help of Southwest Airlines who not only donated to the cause, but literally went the extra mile to fly them at no charge to Senator McCain. Another 3,000 units are going out on the next flight available. We now need help from other states to continue this Operation." says Susan. Letters of thanks have already been received by Cool Our Troops and they are being called "Angels" by many of the recipients, others are saying it is like Christmas and it is the gift that keeps on giving. "You could be saving a life out there. This is such a minimal thing, but it has a major effect." states Susan Czubek. With a true spirit of service, the Employees at Quest, The Thunderbird Council Telecom Pioneers, and the Communications of America Local 7019 have all pitched in to help Cool Our Troops. "We are going to put out a challenge to the employees that whatever groups donates the most money will have a breakfast cooked for them," according to Dave Meyers, Quest. "This is just an awesome show of patriotism! In less than a week, they have raised $3,000 with a promise of more to come. Their goal is to sponsor an entire Battalion! I am sure that they will be that lucky battalions heroes, they certainly are one of ours!" stated Sue McCormick. Cool
Our Troops is asking for your help so they can continue to "Cool
Our Troops" serving in Iraq where the temperature soars to
135 degrees. You can make a huge difference in the life of a soldier
by dropping off a donation at any Bank of America. Your donation
is tax deductible and 100% of the proceeds go to cool our troops.
The account number is: 004654811395. Please make reference that
it is an out of town account "The need is urgent as we want to get these Misters to the troops while they need them and that is now. We don't want to loose another soldier to heat stroke." says McCormick. ------ 14
August 2003 Congressman John Shadegg is just returning from Iraq. Senator McCain will be going over to Iraq soon. Just ask them how hot it is in Iraq. When Congressman Shadegg was there temperatures reached 133 stifling degrees. I am pleased to say that Congressman Shadegg's office and Senator John McCain's office have both responded to our urgent plea for help. We will be working closely with their offices to get our Troops some Cool Relief. The first thing John Shadegg's office did was to put me in contact with Southwest Airlines. Susan and I had already contacted them with a letter sent in late July and had not heard any response yet. I have flown Southwest Airlines for years and as anyone else who has flown with them knows, they always deliver and have a spirit of service. Susan and I were originally approached by Joan Carns, who is a flight attendant for Southwest, to contact them. I have to admit we were hesitant. You see, Susan and I are strapped to the limit on time, getting 2-3 hours of sleep at night and we didn't want to wait for the slow corporate wheels to turn. Our troops need these now, not 3 months from now. I shouldn't have been surprised to learn today that Southwest Airlines acted immediately. The following is an email that we received from Southwest after Congressman Shadegg's wonderful office staff gave me Fiona's direct number. Here is the immediate reply I received from her: I am just
so moved by everything that you are doing for our troops in Iraq.
Thrilled to hear that 3 checks from Herb, Colleen and Southwest
Airlines were sent to Bank One on August 8! Sue, I know the troops
are ever so thankful for you and Susan. Keep up the great work! Fiona Our heartfelt thanks go out to our Friends at Southwest Airlines who are always there supporting the troops. Shame on Susan and I for ever doubting! On a very personal note: After starting this email to thank Southwest Airlines and the Carns Family for making this happen, I received a call from my new friend Joan. You see, CWO4 Ron Carns, son of Wayne and Joan Carns of Mesa, is a Apache Helicopter pilot serving in Iraq. His helicopter went down yesterday and as of this writing, he is being air evaced to Germany. Wayne called last night and still had no update on Wayne's condition yet. Please help me pray for him and his family. The Carns have become like family to me since starting cool our troops. Always helping, always caring about everyone else. The following is the original email I received from Ron's wife Lynda after Joan had given her my phone number and we talked and instantly became friends. This family is so special and my heart goes out to them. Hi Sue, It was great to get a chance to get to know you a little over the phone. Again I just wanted to tell you that I think you and your friend Susan??(or is it also Sue) are both incredible ladies. I know that my husband and many others view you as their own personal angels. I will be doing what I can to get the information out to as many people as I can concerning cool our troops. I would like to ask you to include me on your update list. I belong to a couple of groups that like to show their support of our troops I will be directing them to your site as well as my family and friends. I'm going to forward your email address to my husband I'm certain that he would like to send you an email but as his email access is very unreliable I'm not certain how long it will take for you to receive anything from him. I wanted to let you know that he distributed the Misty mates you sent to him to some off the other soldiers in his unit. He wants to get as many as possible for another unit. This other unit has provided maintenance support to our company when they have been separated from our own support logistically. They have also allowed our soldiers to use their phones and internet access so that our soldiers could contact their loved owns at home. This unit didn't have to provide our soldiers with any type of support but they did anyway. My husband would really like to have their unit taken care of as a way to say thank you to them. I have sent you all their information in a previous email but I just wanted to remind you of our conversation concerning them. I'm also asking my husband to send me some pictures of the soldiers with their Misty Mates. Hopefully someone with a digital camera can send me the photo. When I get one I'll send it to you as well. Hopefully a photo will be worth a thousand Misty Mate donations. I look forward to being able to meet you and express my thanks to you personally. I know that the next time we are in the Phoenix area to see Ron's parent's we will be contacting you because I know that Ron would love to take you and Susan out to dinner. I wanted to tell you that you and your fiance are in my prayers. God Bless, Lynda As you just read, isn't it amazing how everything comes full circle. This other unit had no idea that they would ever be "repaid" for their acts of kindness, but Ron is obviously a very special man that appreciates everything people do for him. He is a true American Hero! Please keep Ron and his family in your prayers. Your Fellow
Patriot, *********** Cool news! We have had the honor of being on the air with our new found "Angel" Bruce Jacobs at KFYI Radio in Phoenix. Bruce not only had us on the air, but also provided "Cool Relief"to a lot of soldiers serving in Iraq with his generous donation. The employees of Charles Schwab are getting involved along with Foxworth Galbraith, and Quest. We are looking forward to their donations to help Cool Our Troops. I spoke to Congressman Shadegg's office today and Berget his assistant is being very helpful. She already placed a call to Southwest Airlines and is put me on the phone with Shawn Noble, The Chief of Staff for the Congressman. I just talked to Shawn and he is coming over to my house tonight to pick up a unit to show the Congressman when he returns from Iraq. He had heard about Cool Our Troops and actually talked with a serviceman at his barber that had just come back from Iraq. Apparently this soldier had the opportunity at 15 minute intervals to share a personal cooling system with some buddies and he said those 15 minutes were like heaven. He is going to get the Congressman involved at his upcoming press conference to endorse us and also contact their corporate connections to help with donations! Life is getting better my friends! I met with Senator McCain and his staff yesterday on the issue. He said he will help. Cindy McCain responded and is having her office cut a check. They have been on vacation, and I will let you know how many service people they made cool! Thank you for everyone's support, we are making headway! Sorry for the short update, as you can imagine, life is very hectic for Susan and I. We are not complaining, just stating a fact! : ) Your Fellow
Patriot, August
11 Mesa, AZ Cool our troops through the generosity of
the American people were able to successfully provide the 1st
Battalion, 7th Marines with their own personal Misty Mate, a personal
cooling system. The Misty Mates got to the unit before they were
redeployed to Iraq thanks to the persistance ---- August 9. Mesa, AZ The United States Marines stood guard while the band, The Nasty Boy's Roared, Misty Sang the National Anthem and Corp. Dylan Sharp USMC and Private Bryant Crowley USMC were given a heroes welcome home at the Alaska Bistro in Mesa. These brave Marines served our country in Iraq and just returned home to a standing ovation by the fine folks in Mesa. The buffet served to all of the guest was equivalant to that seen at a 5 Star restaurant thanks to the generosity of Shamrock Foods and Advantage Marketing and to the Alaska Bistro's very own Chef Pete who did a fabulous job of preparing such a succulent meal. Throughout the night raffle prizes were drawn, stories were told, and friends were made and a COOL time was had by all. The
entire night was dedicated to our men and women serving in the
Armed Forces around the Globe. A lucky couple danced off with
the grand prize, a trip for 2 to Alaska donated by our fellow
patriots, The If you missed your opportunity to support our troops at the Alaska Bistro, you still have another chance to show your support at our next event which is: Tuesday, August 12 from 5-8 PM, at the beautiful Stonebridge Manor donated by Michael Mills and Jim Flake 4000 E. Palm St., Mesa (Between Val Vista & Greenfield on the North side of McDowell , North on Norwolk in The Commons) . $30 Admission Includes: $20 towards any NuSkin Products and a Biophotonic Scan to determine your body's defense score (as seen on News Channel 15 and News Channel 3). Find out what's your number! Each Ticket sold provides 3 Soldiers or Marines a Misty Mate! To top it off, Hundreds of $$ in Products will be awarded! Please bring your friends and get pampered and bring relief to our Troops! Just think, you missed out on the trip to Alaska and the opportunity to really make a difference in the lives of our military, now here is another chance. With so many prizes to give away and all for such a great cause, you are sure to go away a winner. Please help us help our troops by attending. Don't make me have to call you in person and beg! A huge thank you to Channel 12 for having us on this morning. The phone didn't stop ringing all day and that is way coool. Sue and Susan with the help of close family friend, Retired Col. Len Fuchs, USMC, have reached the top brass in Washington with our plea. Col. Fuchs contacted a friend of his who happens to be a General at the Pentagon on behalf of Cool Our Troops. A meeting was held in Washington D.C. last night and the wheels are in motion to get our troops relief! Stay tuned ! Sue
McCormick and Susan Czubek would like to thank all of the special ------- Cool Our Troops Fundraising Events: Please bring friends and join us to show support for our Troops! !
Tuesday,
August 12 from 5-8 PM Help Cool Our Soldiers in Iraq while experiencing
the latest in Health and Skin care technology at the same time!
Scientific Breakthroughs - Skin Care, Weight Loss and Nutritional Rosita's
in Mesa on Dobson and Guadalupe and Rosita's in Tempe on University
and Hardy are busy working on "Our Troops are Hotter than
a Chili Pepper Fundraiser!" All proceeds from the purchase
of Green, Red, Yellow and Orange chilies are going to help cool
the troops ! For any donation of $1.00 to $20.00 Rosita's customers
not only get to display a message, name or business card on the
chile, which adorn the walls of the restaurant, They also receive
a variety of free items from a Cheese Crisp to a Fajita ----- For
Immediate Release Mesa,
AZ An American hero, Robert L. McKinley dies of heat stroke suffered Associated Press
McKinley's grandfather, Robert Feller,
had many memories to share of the "He wasn't an angel but he wasn't
a bad boy," Feller said. "He stumbled McKinley had only been in the Army
for eight months and was a member of the The 1998 Peru High School graduate
suffered heat stroke in Mosul, Iraq, in "When he joined the military
he grew up in a very short time," Feller said. Two
Arizona women, with the support of family and a wonderful Sue McCormick's big sister Mary Ann
Spencer is doing her part to make that Please visit their website at: WISHTV.COM
for more details on this For More informaton on how you can
help Cool Our Troops, please contact: For Immediate Release Mesa,
AZ Cool Our Troops is heading East to Alaska! That is the Alaska
Bistro in East Mesa on August 8 from 5-9. That is this Friday
folks. Please bring your friends and family and join us to show
our support of our troops serving in the heat of Iraq. For a $20
donation, you will have a really "Cool" time, lots of
food donated by Shamrock Foods, and Advantage Marketing, including
a king salmon, drinks, music and raffle with a GRAND PRIZE IS
A FISHING CHARTER TRIP FOR 2 TO ALASKA with all of the trimmings
donated by Alaska Bistro . This will surely be another memorable
event. We are hoping to see a lot of the Phoenix Firefighters
there showing their support of our troops since several of their
own have been called up to active duty and are currently serving
in Iraq. During the last event at the Marco Polo Supper Club,
the Marines stole the night, but guarded the donations! They swayed
with the music for $5.00 a turn to help "Cool" off their
brothers in arms. Girls lined up to dance with a man in uniform.
A call was also received today by Grace Chapel. "I had stopped into their church last Sunday and told them about Cool Our Troops and asked for their help. Today I received a call from them and they have already taken up a collection for our troops with a promise to get more. Dr. and Mrs. David Kipp of NuSkin have also stepped up to the plate by donating thousands of dollars of skin care products to be raffled off at makeover clinics they will be holding with the proceeds to go to Cool Our Troops This is the American spirit that makes us so proud." said Sue McCormick and Susan Czubek founders of Cool Our Troops. As
of today 6000 personal cooling systems that don't require any
electricity or batteries have been sent to our armed forces in
Iraq. Another worthy cause has been created called Operation AC.
This non-profit organization is sending air conditioning units
to our troops in Iraq. Unfortunatley, approximately 50,000 of
our soldiers and Marines do not have access to electric rendering
these Air Conditioning units useless to them. The following paragraph
was taken directly off of Operation AC 's website. Please NOTE I have no way of finding out if they have a generator or local 220 power - YOU must do that and then go to the SEND MY SOLDIER an AC form on this website. While Operation AC takes care of the units fortunate enough to have power, Cool Our Troops takes care of the men and women on the ground, the trigger pullers and the flight personnel. Both groups are working on the same admirable goal, to COOL OUR TROOPS. Please come to Alaska Bistro and bring your friends for a Cool Night in support of our service men and women. Alaska Bistro is located off of US 60, take the Sossaman exit and head South. You will find the coolest place in town just before you get to Baseline Road on the East side of Sossaman. If you need directions, please call Alaska Bistro at 480-354-9752. The address is: 1925 S. Sossaman, Mesa, AZ. For additional information, please call Sue at 480-239-9364. ---- For Immediate Release Iraq, A heroes call home. Sue McCormick's friende Marine Reservist Rick called her today from Iraq. Although he had been up for hours working in the Iraqi heat, Rick wanted to let his friende know that he was alive and kicking so that she wouldn't worry. Worry, why should she be worried. You see Rick and many of our troops just like him, are stationed in a "hot" spot. Not only are they running into enemy fire from all directions, but the weather there is just as "hot". These true heroes serving us, the citizens of the United States of America, don't ask for much. They serve their country proudly and don't complain. Even in Iraq, our troops are hearing about the prisoners in Arizona's Tent City which is run by Sheriff Joe Arpio complaining about there conditions. Rick mentioned that he had heard about their complaining and commented that they would never make it in Iraq where the living conditions are even worse. Like Sheriff Arpio pointed out, these heroes serving our country abroad in these conditions didn't commit any crimes. The other day, Susan and I went to lunch with my teenage boys Joe and Jim. Joe was sporting a new hat. When I asked him what the hat was about, (he never wears hats), he informed me that it was a Philadelphia Flyers hat! After reading the following from Flyers player Robert Esche, I am sure you can relate to why Joe would want to sport their hat! When
Philadelphia Flyers goalie Robert Esche sees teammates signing
autographs for kids, he thinks about how athletes are widely viewed
as heroes. Two women with the support of local Arizona business and donations from the public are doing something to bring some relief to the troops in the form of a personal cooling device called a Misty Mate. Sue McCormick had sent one of these to her friend Rick, her hero, for Father's Day. He l oved it,however he said he couldn't use it because all of his Marines didn't have one. This prompted Sue and friend Susan Czubek to initiate a non profit organization called: Operation Cool Our Troops. Since its inception on July 3, they have shipped 6,000 units to our troops. They know that the Misty Mates are successfully arriving where they need to because of the call home today. Apparently Rick had run into someone that just arrived from Kuwait and he had told him that on the ride to the camp, that all of the soldiers and Marines had a Misty Mate from Cool Our Troops attached to their cammies. The men and women were cooling themselves from the blazing sun as they drove on their way! He told Rick how much it helped not only to cool them off, but they were all in good spirits even though they were heading to the "heat of things". It is amazing how such a little device can bring such relief to those in need, Our Troops. The momentum is growing in support of the operation, but not fast enough if you ask Sue or Susan. They started this operation on July 3 and were hoping to have the mission completed by August 1 because of the intense heat that our troops are facing now. For everyday that passes, we have soldiers and Marines that are miserable. According to most, Operation Cool Our Troops has done extremely well, some would even say they have done enough. But well isn't good enough for these heroes! Misty Mate Inc, is selling the units to Cool Our Troops at cost and the women have arranged for free shipping to our troops, but unfortunately 44, 000 of our ground forces are still in the heat of things with no relief. Support has been coming in from Arizona businesses and today Susan even received an offer of help from a Casino in Louisiana that had heard about it. A printer in New York had heard about it and donated the first 6,000 flyers, radio stations across the country are starting to join the cause. "To get this operation accomplished in time, we need the support of all Americans", says Susan Czubek. "We are pleading with individuals, professional athletes, movie stars, corporations, churches, clubs, etc. to show the troops that you care by helping us cool them off. 100% of the proceeds go to the troops. There are no hidden administrative fees or salaries that come out of this account. As a matter of fact, Cool Our Troops is working on a leap of faith after just sending another 1,000 Misty Mates over via a Military transport flight. "We didn't want to miss the opportunity to get these on the flight, so we decided to go ahead and send them and pray that the donations come in to cover it, if not, that is why I have a Master Card for emergencies!" said Sue McCormick. "Please help us cool our troops,
our true heroes. You can help by making a donation to Cool Our
Troops, by talking and emailing your circle of influence, your
co workers, your teammates, your family, etc about this very important
operation. Have a drive to raise money, sponsor a battalion or
unit, it is tax deductible and it is truly the gift that keeps
giving. Lastly, but most importantly, keep them all in your prayers.
They need our help and they need it now." stresses Sue. FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE Mesa, AZ Some American Troops serving in the desert heat of Iraq will be cooler tonight thanks to the efforts of a group of Americans that are getting behind operation Cool Our Troops. These soldiers and Marines are the lucky ones! Others have hope that their personal cooling devices, a product called a "Misty Mate" will be on the way to them soon. That is the goal of Sue McCormick and Susan Czubek, founders of the Non Profit organization called Cool Our Troops. Once just casual acquaintances, these two women decided that they couldn't just walk past a problem, they both agreed that if you see it, it is yours! Recognizing what our troops serving in the heat of the Middle East are facing daily, Sue sent a Misty Mate to her friend currently stationed in Iraq. He loved it, but being a true Leader, he said that he couldn't use it because it wouldn't be fair to his Marines since they didn't have such a luxury. This prompted Sue to enlist the help of Susan to provide one to all of our service men and women. They are getting these units from the Manufacturer at cost. Sue's friend and Susan's fiance are United States Marine Reserves who were called up to active duty after that fateful day in September. The Americans that have responded to the plea for help all have one thing in common, they want to show the United States military that they care. According to Lt. General Robert Johnston, USMC retired, showing the men and women of our armed forces that we care is very important to their morale. Cool Our Troops is receiving letters daily thanking the American people for their efforts. This in itself is remarkable. "Having 3 teenage boys, I know what it takes to get them to sit down under good conditions to write thank you letters. Here you have men in the heat of things taking time out to write and thank us!" said Sue. The women had hoped to have had enough funds to send some relief to all of the troops by August 1. To date they have shipped over 6,000 cooling devices. They aren't giving up hope that the spirit of America will prevail and they can take care of the rest of the 44,000 troops left in the heat! Cool Our Troops is like a ski boat pressing through the water creating a wake behind it that touches people that it didn't even know existed. Think about your wake and who all it touches. One-thousand little things do make a big difference, just ask 1st Sgt. David J. of the 7th Marines or Lt. Col. P. whose units are both "Cool"! To help cool one of our "hotties",
please drop your donation off at any Bank One in Arizona. By mail
please send donation to: If you have a loved one currently
serving in Iraq or the Middle East that is in need of a Misty
Mate, please contact Cool Our Troops at: ------ 2 August 2003 Mesa, AZ Could it be that apathy and the lack of respect will bring America to its knees? Someone recently stole the American Flag with a yellow ribbon on it, out of Sue's front yard. At first she thought that the Boy Scouts might have come by and taken it by accident. After receiving a threatening letter today, she realized that presumption was wrong. Someone deliberately took the American Flag and if that wasn't bad enough, they are holding it for ransom. The payment of "Candy" was to be left at a local park and the family was told to "Watch Their Backs". Who would pull such a sick prank? The Mesa Police will be looking into that. Is it someone with different political views, is it someone that has it in for one of her sons, or is it someone who has a total disregard for the American Flag and what it stands for. I would say that no matter what their reason, the latter is true. "I can understand that people have different political views, in fact right before the war started and the protestors were all over the media, I spoke to Rick about it. He said to me ""Sweetheart, it is their very right to protest that I am willing to sacrifice my life to defend"". That put it into perspective for me. But I can't understand the apathy that is taking hold in some Americans today. I have heard several comments from people stating that they don't know anyone over there and that it was their choice to be there. Referring to our military stationed in Iraq. Other comments when asked to donate to Cool Our Troops is that I have already given enough. Thank God our military, after serving a day in the deserts of Iraq, sleeping in hot tents with the bugs, eating MRE's (Meals Ready to Eat), taking a shower on occasion, walking or driving without the benefit of air conditioning, being away from their loved ones, missing birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, funerals, and Holidays, and on top of this making less than most civilians and getting shot at, don't say "I have already given enough!" It is amazing to Sue that the majority of the people who have donated to help "Cool Our Troops" are from military families. It seems like it is always the same people that are always sacrificing and giving. Do you feel like you have contributed something to your country or are you just here in America to take? If you would like to sponsor one
of our troops serving in Iraq by providing them cool relief from
the 120+ heat with a Misty Mate, a personal, portable cooling
device, you can do so by dropping a donation by any Bank One in
the state of Arizona in care of: Cool Our Troops. If you are out
of town, you can mail your donation to: For
Immediate Release Phoenix, AZ Cool Our Troops Sue McCormick and Susan Czubek were honored to be the guest of Joe P. at the Phoenix Rotary Club Meeting held at the Phoenix Country Club. They were invited to speak to the members about their mission to "Cool Our Troops". The timing for their invitation couldn't have been more perfect. The guest speaker at the meeting was Lt.General Robert Johnston USMC (Ret). General Johnston ended his remarks by commending Cool Our Troops and all of its supporters for what they are doing, showing the United States Military that America does cares! It was a huge honor for Sue and Susan to be in the presence of such a knowledgeable, inspirational and patriotic group of Americans. Cool Our Troops also solicited the help of the Arizona Diamondbacks by going directly to the top of the organization. Michelle, Richard Dozer's personal assistant, has taken the torch and promised to get the message out to the organizations leaders and players on behalf of Cool Our Troops. We are looking forward to them joining the team. We will keep everyone posted on their generosity. Cool Our Troops also received an email back from Cindy McCain's assistant who writes, " Cindy thinks your idea is great, however, she said that she can't cut any checks unless it's to a non-profit." We are looking forward to her help in "Cooling Our Troops". With Senator McCain going over to Iraq in August, he will experience first hand the extreme heat that our military stationed there is facing. Hopefully he can bring the remaining troops a Misty Mate to give them instant relief. It was a very "Cool" day for Cool Our Troops and the night got even cooler! Sue received a call from Jane Kirkaldy from Rosita's Fine Mexican Food. Apparently someone had faxed a copy of the Cool Our Troops flyer to them. They took it upon themselves to organize a fundraiser and surprised Sue tonight. Sue and her son Jimmy went to their Mesa location off of Guadaloupe and Dobson for dinner. They had already raised $150.00 with their Our Troops are Hottier than a Chili Pepper Fundraiser! Sue and Jimmy were so surprised to see the Chili's that were already on the wall. The Rosita's Customers had already started to show their support for our men and women in the armed forces by purchasing different colored chilies in denominations of $1 to $20. Rosita's is donating all of the proceeds to help Cool Our Troops from both of their location! All of the employees were working hard to get the word out to their customers including former Marine Frank Parra who had served in the first Gulf War and can relate to what are Troops are currently facing. What an awesome show of the American Spirit! The top event of the day for Sue was this evening when she received an email from Rick, her friend with a recent picture to share with the family and friends. Anyone with a loved one serving our country abroad knows that these occasions are priceless. An updated report from our Kuwait connection just came in as this release was being written. It is as follows: Yesterday I repalletized the shipments so that I had the 1200 needed for Lt. Col P's men ready for delivery. Although some of the boxes from the bottom of the stack had burst open, all the misters appeared to be undamaged. As of yesterday, I have roughly 600 misters on hand. I will attempt to track down the physical location of the 101st so that I can coordinate getting them their misters. Keep up the good work! This has all been made possible by the donations of our fellow Americans! Way to go and we still have a ways to go! Please join us for our Trip to ALASKA, Alaska Bistro in Mesa, AZ off of Baseline and Sossaman on August 8, from 5-9. There will be lots of food, fun and the coolest Raffle with the grand prize being a trip to Alaska including accommodations and a charter fishing trip for 2 donated by Alaska Bistro! Please visit the website, coolourtroops.com which has been updated today by Susan and I encourage everyone to log on and check out the pictures of the Misty Mate delivery to March AFB in California. Pictures are truly worth a thousand words and I will close on that note. Thank you for your continued support of Operation Cool Our Troops. |
|||