-5/13/03

      Marcel called from Kuwait today. He was excited to tell us that he will be arriving in the Fort Lauderdale airport through Continental Airlines on Thrusday at 5pm.

-5/13/03

E-mail: New arrival time!!

      Good Morning.
We have a new arrival time. It is 6am. They were held up in customs. Please let all family members and friends know that you have told. Rembember that this time can change as well. Stay flexible. I'll see everyone bright and early!
Kristi

-5/13/03

E-mail: Marines Arrival

      Hello Everyone!
Have you been counting the minutes until they arrive? I have. The Marine Corps is asking that you do not go to the Drill Center at all on Wednesday morning. Meet at the Family Readiness Center. That is where we said good-bye before. The faster they are able to get processed through, the faster they will be released. They do not want any distractions and will not let family members in the Drill Center. The Marines will be arriving at 5 am. I confirmed this with the unit today.
Please show how proud we are of our Marines. Wear your Marine shirts, hats and jackets. Bring balloons, posters, banners and ribbons to show how much we support our Marines. The media will be there in the morning and we want everyone to see that we are very proud of the Marines and Sailors. Bring your enthusiasm.
Colonial Flag has donated flags to hand out to the families. Be sure to grab one. If any one has connections with donuts let me know. We did have someone offer to bring 100 but we will need about 300 more. If you know of someone give me a call.
Thank you everyone for the response to making banners and posters tonight. It will be a lot of fun. Many have request my address. It is 5017 W Woodridge Drive. Woodridge is 9780 S.
The easiest way is to follow 9000 S all the way out to the Old Bingham Hwy. From there you turn left so you are heading west. At 4800 W you turn left. At Cindy Ln you turn right until you meet Skye Park DR (first intersection). At Skye Park DR you turn left. Follow Skye Park (heading south) until you meet with Woodridge Dr. Turn right on Woodridge (heading west). It is the gray 2 story on the South side of the road. Any questions call me. 801-282-3772 or 801-403-7595.
I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. Thanks for your support,
Kristi

-5/10/03

E-mail:

      Family Members, Be advised, our Marines are coming home. All family and friends that want to welcome C Company home needs to be at the Family Readiness Center on Camp Williams at 0500 on 14 May 2003!

Please bring anything that you need to support your family &friends while they are here. There will not be any refreshments, etc provided.

KVN please organize any welcome home activities or signs you would like to have for the homecoming. Let me know of any support you need.

More info will be passed as we are informed and PLEASE remember remain flexible, and know aircraft availability can change.

See you early Wednesday!

Maj Jennifer Blair Butler

-5/09/03

Email: Visit to Utah

     To the C/4LAR Family:
We will be in the Salt Lake City area conducting get-togethers with everyone, from Sunday morning on. If you would like us to spend some time with your family, please write back with the times that are best for you. We would like to visit with as many families as possible, both before the Marines arrive and after.
Additionally, if it is feasible, we would love to attend worship services if there are places of worship that groups of families attend (if this is appropriate and pre-approved by those places of worship). Also, if any mothers have special phone calls planned from any children on missions, we would also like to be present (if anyone is interested). We are definitely interested in learning more about the LDS religion as this has been such an important facet of life to these Marines as they have been away for duty, and we have highlighted the importance of faith throughout the documentary. Don't ever hesitate to help us better understand your beliefs.
Just e-mail back your preferred time and general home location from the center of SLC. Example: My name is SGT Smith. I would prefer that you be at my house at 5 pm on Sunday, as we are expecting a call from my son/daughter at that time, and I wouldn't mind you being present at this important family gathering. My house is approximately 15 miles Southeast of SLC.
I know this is a little basic, but it will make it that much easier for us to plan to visit interested families. Additionally, I will only have access to this e-mail address until early afternoon tomorrow. At that time, you can use my alternate travel address (militarymovies@hotmail.com), and you can always call me on the cell phone at: 310.486.0546.
Thanks again for your assistance! We look forward to meeting the Marines' families!
Warm regards,
Joe Talley

-5/07/03

Email: Update

     Hello Everyone.
I wish I had the answer to your question. We still do not know when they will be home. The Marines are still waiting on transportation. It looks like they will not be here until next week some time. I know that is vague but we do not have any solid answers right now. Please be patient. I know it is very frustrating for everyone. We all want to make plans with our Marines. As soon as we get a definite date I will have everyone called with the news. Please remember that this is the Marine Corps and they run on their own schedule.
The Marines and Sailors are just hanging out waiting to come home. Everyone is in good health. They are PT in the cooler part of the day. That is about all that they are doing.
Amy Park had pins made that say "Support our Marines 4thLAR Charlie Co." If you would like to order one you can contact her at 801-963-5353 or her email is tylerandamy@attbi.com The cost is $2.00 If you would like her to ship it to you she will let you know the cost of shipping. I have sent an attachment of what they look like.
I am taking names down for those of you who would like to be interviewed by Joe Talley. Ssgt Watson will coordinate this. I hope to see all of you soon. Thanks for your support and patience.
Kristi Rohde

-5/05/03

Email:

     Family members the following information is passed:

Joe Talley, Tango Alpha publisher's reporter, was an embedded reporter hired by "Discovery" to document 4th LAR BN. He was lucky enough to be with the best Marines the MC has...Charlie Company. He worked directly with Maj Doug Clark, 1stSgt Dickenson (who played his bag pipes every morning for reveilie), and SSgt Rhode. Joe was assigned to the CO's vehicle, but sometimes when a vehicle went out on mission vice the CO's, Joe jumped aboard. P/s note his website address below: Pictures should be posted soon. Any family member that would allow Joe to interview you prior to the Marines return, p/s notify Kristi Rhode or SSgt Watson (PAO).

To echo Kristi's email this morning. We do not have any updated info, please hold down the phone calls to the Unit. The PWST team is trying to coordinate support for our Marines and UDP requirements. We will advise you as soon as we get an official date and location of the possible Marine's movement. We understand your frustrations.

Thank you for all your support!

Maj Butler

-5/05/03

Email: Joe Talley

     To the C Co., 4th LAR Bn Family:
My name is Joe Talley and I recently had the pleasure of spending the last month and a half embedded with Charlie Co. as we accomplished our mission in liberating Iraq. It was a wonderful experience that I know will not soon be forgotten by these Marines. We helped to restore security and safety to the people of Iraq's 3rd largest city, Al Kut, and we also protected the country by keeping certain bad elements from coming in and causing trouble. I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to develop such great friendships with these guys. I last saw the guys a week ago and arrived in the States this weekend.
I am a 7 year military veteran (as are most of my employees) and my production company, Tango Alpha Productions, focuses on producing military documentaries. In March, we were selected by the Department of Defense to embed with the 4th LAR Bn after the activation of C & D Cos. We have been filming the daily activities of the battalion since then in hopes of producing a series for Discovery. We have no more information than you do with regards to the unit's plans, but we want to be prepared to film the Marines and their families if they happen to come back to Utah over the coming week. We would especially enjoy sitting down with the families beforehand, as you all are the reason they are able to go out and do their duty as Marines. You were the ones who bought the baby wipes sunscreen and got the name tags sewn on. We want to hear from you how this deployment has affected your life and learn more about how the families have supported their Marines while they were called away to do their duty.
We would like to meet and talk to anyone who is interested, and we can meet you wherever it is convenient for you. As we don't have an exactly schedule yet, we can't give a solid date at this time, but it will most likely be later this week. Please feel free to call me at our office at 310.828.6723 or you can reach me on my cell at 310.486.0546.
Thank you very much for your time, and we look forward to meeting you all soon! Also, please refer to our website in the coming weeks for pictures and stories of the adventures of Charlie Co., 4th LAR in Operation Iraqi Freedom!
Semper Fi,
Joe Talley

-5/02/03

Email: KVN INFO

      Our Marines are coming home sometime between the 5th and 9th of May. Upon arrival to the RTC they will be released on leave for 10 days. The ten days of leave commence on the day after they return to the RTC. They will be given a date to report back to the RTC for processing (Admin, Shots, etc) this process will take approximately 2 days, if plans do not change, they will be allowed to go home at night. After processing they will be participating in a UDP to Okinawa, Japan for 6 months.
The KVN training scheduled for 10 May has been postponed until further notice. We do not want the training to interfere with the Marine's leave period.
VR,
Maj Jennifer Butler

-4/26/03

Email: From the Commanding General of TF TARAWA

4th LAR’s Charlie, Delta, and H&S are attached to this task force)
     (Greetings from Iraq! I apologize that it has been so long since my last letter; but as you can imagine, current operations have kept us busy. We are now starting the fourth week of Operation Iraqi Freedom. As expected, the temperatures are increasing, but they are no worse than a summer exercise in 29 Palms which most of us have done or will do in our careers. I would have to say our biggest environmental challenges are the flies and other insects, but the Marines continue to adapt and overcome as they make massive fly swatters from MRE boxes and poles.
As I am sure you have heard on the news, our first objective was a strong point of resistance, and it was critical to our efforts further north. The Marines were primed and ready to take the fight to the enemy. We named Task Force Tarawa for a battle where Marines exhibited courage and honor, and there is no doubt that the Marines and Sailors of our Task Force have lived up to that reputation.
No one likes war, and no one likes being away from his or her family. As I ’ve told the Marines, we would rather come this far to remove the regime and its reign of terror before we are forced to deal with it on our home soil. As our Commander in Chief was recently quoted, “Peaceably if we can. Forcibly if we must.” If any gratification can come from this, it is the look of relief and joy as we liberate, feed and take care of the Iraqi people and they realize that the regime is losing control. There are cheers of joy from crowds as we enter new areas. Although no amount of gratification can ever fill the void or ease the sorrow of our fallen Marines, their names and memories will live w! ith us forever.
I know that there is one prevailing question on everyone’s mind, and I am sorry that I do not have an answer for when this operation will be over and when we will be coming home. I can only assure you that we will be home as soon as our work here is done.
I have had the opportunity to frequently walk the lines and personally talk with and thank each Marine for the effort given over the previous weeks. I have been telling you through these letters that I am proud of every Marine and Sailor, but I wanted to make sure that they heard it directly from me. As I walked among them, I could see that morale and spirits were high. They know that they are making a difference, and that is what they joined the Marine Corps and Navy to do. They have measured up to their predecessors who have proudly worn the eagle, globe and anchor in combat. As always, you are in our thoughts and prayers. Please keep the mail coming to your loved ones. I have seen the smiles a letter can create. As they continue to receive your letters, I remind them that you would love to hear from them just as much. God Bless and Semper Fidelis. Your continued support and sacrifice on our behalf is greatly appreciated.
Richard F. Natonski, Commanding General
Task Force Tarawa

-4/21/03

Email: update on our Marines

     Hello-
I heard from Doug on Saturday. Our Marines are in a city called Kut, population 300,000. It is located 100 miles South of Bagdad on the Iranian border. Everyone is doing well. They currently are looking for and finding caches of weapons and are patrolling the area to maintain law and order. Some Marines are also involved with local Iraqi's in helping establish a new system of government. The Marines have been well received by the locals in this city. There is an article in Saturday's NY Times about Kut if you would like to learn more about the area.
Please pass this information along to all interested parties.
Thanks!
Valerie Clark

-4/18/03

Email: H&S, C & D Company's Addresses!!!

     Hello Ladies, Just heard from one of our H&S Marines in Kuwait. They are still waiting for all of our Marines/Sailors to get over there, but they are all on the way.
Also, I was just informed that the mail you send to them will get their faster if you add the following onto the address that we have given you: TF Tarawa! See below for the address you should now use for your Marines and pass to your KVN as soon as possible. Thanks, hope this gets mail to them faster.
S/F,
Mike

-4/12/03

     Marcel flew from Camp Pendaltin in California to Delaware and is now in route to Spain from where he will go to Kuwait.