PGR_NTX Patriot Guard Airport Mission Article

[Mission Information For North Texas PGR]

Sorry about that.

 

Here's the article.

 

Steve

 

CELINA - More than a year after 2nd Lt. Peter Burks was killed by a roadside
bomb blast in Iraq, his personal mission continues. 

Lt. Burks' father is sending care packages to soliders and Iraqi children -
so many that American Airlines is donating a plane to fill from top to
bottom. It's a partnership with Operation Iraqi Children, a charity founded
by actor Gary Sinise. 

"They don't have pencils, the most basic stuff," explained Alan Burks, who
is transforming his Celina home into a massive storage unit for pens,
coloring markes, spiral notebooks - you name it. 

Over the last 16 months, he's managed - with the help of friends and famly -
to send four tons of care packages and school supplies overseas, not just
for U.S. soliders, but for Iraqi children. 

E-mail messages from soliders on the front lines tell Burks that the legacy
of his son Pete lives on. 

"Tonight, when i went out to the combat post, I was staring at over 30 boxes
from Pete's friends and families," one message read. "Thank you so much." 

Those are motivational messages for Alan Burks, and now Fort Worth-based
American Airlines is donating an jumbo jet to help. "We'd love to fill that
plane up - a 777 full of love to Iraq," he said. 

With no shipping costs to worry about, donations to the Peter Burks Unsung
Hero Fund go a little further. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for
us," Alan Burks said. "We're excited to gather as much as we can." 

The wish list includes soccer balls; Burks hopes that if a soldier
approaches an Iraqi child with a soccer ball in hand, it will break the ice
and allow for new friendships, which is what Pete was all about - living to
love and spreading that gift to anyone who would let him. 

"One person can make a difference, so I'm thankful for that," his father
said, knowing that the fallen soldier is still inspiring family members and
strangers around the country to stop, remember, and give back - just as
soliders like Pete have done so selflessly. 

"He was the envy of mail call," Alan Burks recalled. "When they had mail
call every day, he always had something - he had letters, cards, snack
packs." 

Burks said soldiers sometimes do feel forgotten, and the care packages can
really help morale. "From strangers across the country, stuff is showing up,
and the guy is going, 'This is for me,' and that makes them feel like we
care." 

The American Airlines jet loaded with Unsung Hero donations takes off on
April 8, and Burks needs your help. If you wish to donate money or supplies,
visit the Peter Burks <http://www.unsungherofund.org/>  Unsung Hero Fund Web
site. 

 
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