Page 127 - Clearwater Christian College 1991

During the special Veteran’s Day Director of recruitment Mr. Youstra

Chapel, Mike Smith, wearing his also serves in the Army Reserves.

“ dress blues,” leads the honor He delivered the message, with its

guard as they march into Chapel at emphasis on patriotism, during the

the beginning of the service. Veteran’s Day Chapel.

The U.S. Armed Forces commissioned commercial carriers to transport

thousands of troops to Saudi Arabia. It was the most massive military

campaign in which the U.S. was involved since the Vietnam War.

Mr. Youstra and students represent­ Good friends Tony Schell and Mike

ed the different branches of the Smith share a laugh outside Cath-

Armed Forces. Mike Smith — Ma­ cart Hall. The two were high school

rines (reserves), Jonathan Damron buddies but registered to attend dif­

— Navy (reserves), Matt Williamson ferent colleges. The fall of his fresh­

— Air Force (ROTC), Mark Spear — men year, on the way to his college,

Army (veteran), Dan Pacheco — Air Mike stopped by C.C.C. to visit

Force (ROTC), and Dean Updegraff Tony. Tony convinced his friend to

— Army (reserves). stay and register.

time in many years our country reclaimed the phrase

upon which it was built, "In God we Trust." While we

prayed for our troops, they too were praying. Months of

training in the desert and uncertainty of what the next

day would bring caused many of the soldiers to think

about their souls' condition. As a result, many accepted

Christ as their Savior.

The threat of war also sparked a new sense of

patriotism. Yellow ribbons, in honor of the troops,

decorated almost everything. People bought

memorabilia including clothing, hats, posters, and

jewelry emblazoned with our flag or slogans such as

Support our troops and/or the title Operation Desert

Storm. Billboards, bumper stickers, and even grocery

bags constantly reminded us to pray for our troops.

President Bush declared war on January 15, 1991.

Operation Desert Shield became Operation Desert

Storm. Aggressive allied air raids were extremely

successful, and loss of lives was minimal. As days

turned into weeks it was obvious that Sadaam's army

was crumbling from within. A "cease fire" was declared

one week and a few days after ground war began; allied

forces had expelled Iraq's forces out of Kuwait.

Campus life was not left untouched by the war. Two

members of our immediate college family were pulled

from reserves and ordered to report for active duty. Jim

Towler, a 1990 graduate, and sophomore Mike Smith

received orders just before Thanksgiving. Jim was

engaged to junior Jennifer Chapman and planning a

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June wedding. His brother Mike had just entered

Clearwater as a Freshman. Mike Smith, from

Greenville, South Carolina was in the middle of soccer

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season when he was called up. Mike was sent over to

Saudi Arabia a week and a half before Christmas. Jim

was held back at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina until

further notice. Because of the delay, he and Jennifer • a" /• - A

married over Christmas break. Jim was eventually

stationed in Norway for a month of cold weather

training to prepare for a northern Iraq invasion;

however, upon completing his training, the war had

ended. Mike arrived home safely in the summer and

enrolled for the fall term.