NOVEMBER 15 2009
AMERICANWAY 13
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5x775.06.09.09 6/9/09 5:40 PM Page 1
on his elbows during his squadron’s family
picnicbeforedeploying— this timewithhis
daughter, Taylor, bymy side.
Iwrote down thesememories andmore,
tore out the last page of themagazine, and
mailed it andmy note toAfghanistan from
Charlotte, NorthCarolina, using a stamp a
stranger gavemewhenhe heardwheremy
letterwas going.
Thanks for this inspirational edition of
AmericanWay
, andGodbless our troops.
H. stEpHENjoNEs,WYLIE, tExAs
ADAM pItLUK REspoNDs:
It’s hard to truly
thank the soldiers and sailors for the job
they do for us. They are America’s best. We
Americans are lucky to have Orion in our
lives, as theworld isamuchbetterand safer
place with him in it, just as he is lucky to
have such a proud and supportive father.
Pairing those two articles was no accident.
It was a subtle move to try to inspire the
same patriotism this country showed eight
years ago, when American flags hanging
outside homeswere as commonasmailbox-
es. Sinise isan inspiration to laymenand to
Hollywood elite, as he’s unselfishlymaking
a difference. Carlton Stowers’s story about
a grandfather and his grandson enjoying
baseball touchedmeaswell.Please relaymy
thoughtsandprayers toyour sonand tohis
platoon.
llll
I’ve beenflying onbusiness since 1966, and
I’veneverhad the inclination towrite to the
airline I’m flying, much less its magazine.
So this is a first forme inmy 43 years (and
twomillion to threemillionmiles) spent on
airplanes. The August 1 article about Gary
Sinise was excellent. It’s refreshing to see a
successfulcelebrityputothersabovehimself,
particularly regardingan issue99percentof
Hollywood types hate. And instead of just
turning to the crossword puzzle after read-
ing that article, Inoticed the
AA Insider
sto-
ry “AA Supports the Troops.” After reading
that article, I gained a tremendous respect
forAAand its employees,which Ineverhad
before. I’ll stillget frustratedwhen itrains in
Dallasandmyflight is late (youknow itonly
rains at the airport!), but it makes me feel
goodaboutthispositiveserviceAAperforms
for the troops.Keepup thegoodwork.
tERRYHUtCHINs, fRANKLIN, tENNEssEE
staff isfiercelypatriotic, andwe’ve shifted to
doing more consequential stories. I’m glad
you enjoyed it somuch.
Butwait ... there’smore!
Want to read even
more letters from our readers? Just go to
to see what
else your fellow travelers are saying.
ADAM pItLUK REspoNDs:
Terry, I’m honored
to be helming this magazine as you wrote
your first-ever letter to an in-flight, espe-
cially since you’dalready beenflying for 10
yearswhen Iwas born.We turned this issue
out for the very reasons you’ve mentioned
here. Thiswas a slightlydifferent
American
Way
fromwhat we’ve done in the past. Our
