December 2011 Newsletter

Anita Dixon's Corner
Hello to Everyone!

The Holiday of Thanksgiving was good to me and my family was all here to celebrate. Then on Monday 11/28 I went into Wesley for a tonsillectomy, yes I know a little old, but I am sure this will fix my problem that I have been having for 2 years now so I am recouping at home.

OFM will be selling some firearms to raise money for the building fund. More information on this can be found in this newsletter below.

We have updated our flyers and literature to reflect current events, the most notable change is the removal of the verification requirement when purchasing a memorial paver.

We have placed some donation boxes out around town; see OFM Merchant & Retailer Donation Boxes for more information about this topic.

We’ve just heard from Cargill and their Veterans Week fundraiser made $2,385.00 for OFM. There will be a presentation Dec. 19 Monday @ 10:00am @ Cargill (151 North Main Street, Wichita, KS) for those wanting to attend.

I have done some visiting with the Wing Command at McConnell AFB and have talked and sent letters to some large corporations and organizations here in Wichita.

Everyone we need your help raising funds for the memorial. What can we do get the big money coming in? What can you do to help us? Besides money our biggest challenge is publicity, you can help the public become aware of our mission to build the OFM Memorial by spreading the word to your friends, family and business. Download one of our flyers from our website to email or to print and post on bulletin boards.

Happy Christmas Holiday to all, and we will be getting together after the first of the year.

Blessings!

Anita Dixon

Pearl Harbor Ceremony
OFM will be at the 70^th anniversary Pearl Harbor ceremony at Robert Dole Regional Office and Medical Center Auditorium, 5500 East Kellogg, Wichita, Kansas, Wednesday, December 7, 20ll, 10:55 a.m. start time.

Speakers: Congressman Mike Pompeo, Col. Riclcy Rupp (22ARW Commander, McConnellAFB) and past state VF\f Commander Lewie Cooper. Honor Guards, Air Capital Choral Group and soloist Mr. Don Baker. Informational displays, fellowship, anl lunch. Join us for a day ofAmerican Tribute and Patriotism. Remember Pearl Harbor.'. Keep America Alert!

OFM Raffle Fundraisers
OFM will be hosting a series of raffles to generate funds for the OFM building fund. The first raffle will be for a Taurus 1920151GR17 M92 9mm. The fixed sight Taurus 9mm pistol is based on the most extensively tested, duty proven, and widely used double action auto loading design in history. It has been refined and enhanced by Taurus to surpass the original. Most notable on the Taurus is the innovation of a three position frame mounted ambidextrous safety which allows this gun to be carried in classic double action(cocked and locked) mode, as well as functioning as a double action decocking lever. Other features include accessory rail, loaded chamber indicator for added safety, and the Taurus security system.

Click here for the Operation Freedom Memorial Gun Raffle Flyer

This raffle will be limited to 150 tickets at a suggested donation of $10 per ticket. The drawing for the winner will be held Feb 1, 2012 or whenever the 150 tickets have been distributed whichever comes first, hopefully by Christmas 2011. The winner of this raffle need not be present to win. Winner must comply with all state and federal laws and is responsible for any additional costs including but not limited to taxes, shipping and transfer fees. You must make arrangements with dealer to receive the firearm and transfer it to you.

Nick Williams Marathon Run Fundraiser
Nick Williams is a marathon runner who is donating his efforts towards OFM. Nick says: Provided my deployment schedule complies, I’m traveling to the sunny desert of Phoenix, AZ to run the Rock and Roll Marathon on January 15th, 2012. By reading my posts, you will observe days when running feels great and days when running feels difficult. You’ll observe runs on insufficient sleep and runs where everything inside me clicks and I feel on top of the world. As a part of my team, I ask you to simply donate per mile I run.

Memorial Veteran Pavers
The Operation Freedom Memorial has been designed to include over 600 granite paving stones in the central walkway surrounding the Battlefield Cross and Kneeling Soldier. These solid granite pavers are larger than a normal sized paving stone at 6 inches tall by 10 inches wide, 2 inches thick and are cut from gray granite.

Honor any of your relatives or friends, living or deceased, from any state, who have served our country by acquiring a solid granite paver for them to be placed in the Operation Freedom Memorial central walkway. These granite pavers can be engraved with personalized information to honor a veteran for generations to come. Reserve your paver today for only $100. Click here for more info.

Memorial Veteran Organization Pavers
In addition to the individual Veteran Pavers, OFM is also offering a larger paver that will be set in the sidewalk leading into the memorial. These pavers are available to any legally chartered veterans’ organizations such as an American Legion or VFW post, business or corporation and cities - townships. Click here for more info.

In Honor of Fallen Soldiers Medallions
If you haven’t seen them yet you will definitely want one when you do. The medallion is a somewhat heavy metal concho hung on a V shaped hanger suspended by a Dog Tag chain. The center is a raised battlefield cross on a flag background with the words In Honor of Fallen Soldiers Medallion written in the border. When you see them they make you feel very humbled by the sacrifice made by our military sons and daughters. The medallions came about from a mother searching for a meaning to her son's death. When she came across the concho she knew she had to have one, and that she had to share its healing comfort with everyone she met. She was recently honored to present a medallion to the Iraq veteran who received a new home from the Extreme Makeover Home Edition right after he saw his new home. The very first one she put together was given to a veteran to take to the Vietnam Memorial Wall, so what better way to carry on than to sell them to raise money for our own Memorial wall here in Kansas. There has been a tremendous amount of support from the local veteran community and the general public is now finding out about these small treasures. We may not make a lot of money with them, but it gives everyone a little piece of the memorial, and every time you see one it reminds you of the names on the wall and why we are doing this.

Several people have recently asked about how to obtain an In Honor of Fallen Soldiers Medallion. As of this time you must get them directly from Gold Star Mother Denise Lange. This can be done by sending an email to denise@ofm-ks.com.

How to support Operation Freedom Memorial
You can check our web site and Facebook page and subscribe to our mailing list to keep on top of our development. You can help us raise the money needed to construct the OFM memorial by Memorial Day 2012 by donating, telling your friends and associates about us or by purchasing a granite paving stone for the memorial.

OFM - PO Box 782414 - Wichita, KS 67278

info@ofm-ks.com - www.ofm-ks.com - Calendar - Donations - Memorial Pavers - Join Mailing List

The Operation Freedom Memorial Foundation, Inc., is a non-profit organization (501C-3) established to plan, design, fund and construct the Operation Freedom Memorial in Veterans Memorial Park, Wichita, KS.

The memorial will be "Dedicated in Memory of the Kansas men and women of the United States Armed Forces who sacrificed their lives in the terrorist attack on the Pentagon September 11, 2001 and during Operations Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and New Dawn. And in sincere appreciation of all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces during the war on terrorism."