The news, as I write this, is reporting over 12,000 confirmed deaths from the earthquake in Turkey. That is just so difficult for me to imagine, yet some are reporting that the final toll could surpass 40,000. I know there have been worse disasters in our world’s history, but to think of a natural catastrophe with a causality count almost equal to our losses during the entire Vietnam war is almost unthinkable. I talked with a UWG student this evening, from Turkey, who received word from her parents that they were alright. But she looked at me with sad eyes and said, "It feels like the end of the world."

Speaking of Vietnam, it seems sometimes that the only veterans of the Vietnam Era that "count" are those that served in combat. Sort of the attitude "If you don’t ride a Harley, you ain’t s _ _ _!" A little narrow-minded, don’t you think? Surely these combat veterans deserve our extra attention for their trials and sacrifices, but what about those of us that served, yet were lucky enough never to have received orders? I recently re-reviewed a Washington Post book, published in 1981, titled The Wounded Generation, and gathered these statistics: Of 8,615,000 who served during the Vietnam Era, just 1,600,000 served in combat. That means over 81% of Vietnam Era veterans never served in combat!

Sunday, I received the following information from my cousin, after she attended a recent conference of the Mississippi Employment Security Commission, in Vicksburg, Mississippi. One of the speakers was Tom Loland, Director of Veterans Benefits at the Veterans Administration Regional Office. According to Loland, a Cold War Certificate of Service is now being issued to any veteran who served from September 2, 1945 through December 26, 1991. If interested, he said to write to: Cold War Recognition, 4035 Ridgetop Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 . This award is being administered by the Army and takes about four months to come to you after your application.

Ah, back to education... The school year has started with all it’s bright promises. You may, or may not, remember that several weeks ago I wrote about some serious questions I had for the State Merit System retirement plan for teachers. I mailed my questions to them exactly a month ago, and have yet to receive a reply. Does this lack or response already provide an answer for us? I wonder? Would the response have been quicker if they knew I was writing about this in the paper?

Till next time, shalom. Try to remember back to the excitement, and also the fear, as you started a new school year. Now think of our kids, and help them get the best start possible!