*Will you give this to my Daddy?

As a Company, Southwest Airlines is going to support 'Red Fridays.'

Last week I was in Atlanta , Georgia attending a conference.
While I was in the airport, returning home, I heard several
people behind me beginning to clap and cheer. I immediately
turned around and witnessed one of the greatest acts of
patriotism I have ever seen.

Moving thru the terminal was a group of soldiers in their camos.
As they began heading to their gate, everyone (well almost
everyone) was abruptly to their feet with their hands waving and
cheering.

When I saw the soldiers, probably 30-40 of them, being applauded
and cheered for, it hit me. I'm not alone. I'm not the only
red-blooded American who still loves this country and supports
our troops and their families.

Of course I immediately stopped and began clapping for these
young unsung heroes who are putting their lives on the line
everyday for us so we can go to school, work and home without
fear or reprisal.

Just when I thought I could not be more proud of my country or
of our service men and women, a young girl, not more than 6 or 7
years old, ran up to one of the male soldiers. He kneeled down
and said 'hi.'

The little girl then asked him if he would give something to her
daddy for her.

The young soldier, who didn't look any older than maybe 22
himself, said he would try and what did she want to give to her
Daddy.. Then suddenly the little girl grabbed the neck of this
soldier, gave him the biggest hug she could muster and then
kissed him on the cheek.
The mother of the little girl, who said her daughter's name was
Courtney, told the young soldier that her husband was a Marine
and had been in Iraq for 11 months now. As the mom was
explaining how much her daughter Courtney missed her father, the
young soldier began to tear up.

When this temporarily single mom was done explaining her
situation, all of the soldiers huddled together for a brief
second. Then one of the other servicemen pulled out a
military-looking walkie-talkie. They started playing with the
device and talking back and forth on it.

After about 10-15 seconds of this, the young soldier walked back
over to Courtney, bent down and said this to her, 'I spoke to
your daddy and he told me to give this to you.' He then hugged
this little girl that he had just met and gave her a kiss on the
cheek. He finished by saying 'your daddy told me to tell you
that he loves you more than anything and he is coming home very
soon.'

The mom at this point was crying almost uncontrollably and as
the young soldier stood to his feet, he saluted Courtney and her
mom. I was standing no more than 6 feet away from this entire
event.

As the soldiers began to leave, heading towa rds their gate,
people resumed their applause. As I stood there applauding and
looked around, there were very few dry eyes, including my own.
That young soldier in one last act of selflessness, turned
around and blew a kiss to Courtney with a tear rolling down his
cheek.

We need to remember everyday all of our soldiers and their
families and thank God for them and their sacrifices. At the end
of the day , it's good to be an American.

RED FRIDAYS ----- Very soon, you will see a great many people
wearing Red every Friday. The reason? Americans who support our
troops used to be called the 'silent majority'. We are no longer
silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in
record breaking numbers.

We are not organized, boisterous or over-bearing. We get no
liberal media coverage on TV, to reflect our message or our
opinions.. Many Americans, like you, me and all our friends,
simply want to recognize that the vast majority of America
supports our troops.

Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with
dignity and respect starts this Friday -and continues each and
every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening
message that.. Every red-blooded America n who supports our men
and women afar will wear some thing red.

By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make the United States on
every Friday a sea of red much like a homecoming football game
in the bleachers.

If every one of us who loves this country will share this with
acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family. It will not be
long before the USA is covered in RED and it will let our troops
know the once 'silent' majority is on their side more than ever;
certainly more than the media lets on.

The first thing a soldier says when asked 'What can we do to
make things better for you?' is...We need your support and your
prayers.

Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by
example; and wear something red every Friday.