Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/46658
have even given my personal GPS away, because I can't imagine turning down a brave solider. The chal- lenge, as with most nonprofits, is maintaining enough donations to support the program effectively." Meyer has provided excerpts from several e-mails writ- ten to him thanking the program and requesting a GPS. "Thank you so much for all of the support that you and your members are doing," writes one such e-mail. "I was just telling my guys that I was waiting to hear from you to see if we were going to get lucky. This is like Christmas in July for us. P.S., I will try to make a call when we receive the GPS unit and let you know how we are doing. You have really done a great deal for us, and we appreciate it very much." "Here's a request directly from Iraq," adds Meyer. "'Thanks for your support for troops. I am currently deployed in Iraq. I am with the North Carolina National Guard aviation unit. We are currently flying all over the whole country with our missions. I read the articles of troops that have received the units—very impressive. We are covering a lot of area each day and night, and this would be very helpful to my unit. I know we are using high-tech Blackhawks now, but there is always something going out on them, due to hours or just vibration problems. If you could e-mail me back on this matter, I would be very pleased. The guys liked the sand-proof part; we get sand storms regularly, and that's when we need an 'ace in the hole.' If we can't see lLowrance Endura Safari, the current GPS handheld model being donated by the program to deploying troops, includes cartography for Afghanistan. to navigate, we have to land where we are, and not all places are friendly. Thank you so much. God Bless!'" "Not only do our heroes constantly express their gratitude, but we also hear regularly from their par- ents," notes Meyer. "Knowing that their sons and daughters are equipped with handheld GPS units that can aid them if they are lost or in trouble greatly increases their confidence that their children will remain safe while serving our country." "It makes me feel a lot safer as a parent that if he would get out by himself someplace by accident, that he could find his way back," says Bonnie Mauritz, mother of National Guardsman Matt Mauritz. Branching Out The most asked question is why doesn't the military pro- vide this modestly costing technology to every solider? "The program can be a hard sell to get support, because people wonder why this isn't something that's already being provided to soldiers," says Meyer. According to Sgt. Heacock, "There is no question lEd Meyer gives soldiers from the D Company of 1-194 Combined Arms Battalion of St. Cloud a lesson on how to use their new GPS units. 28 GEO W ORLD / O CTOB E R 2O11 the military provides us with outstanding equip- ment. I think of the GPS as a tool in those 'what if' moments—something to fall back on if you got sepa- rated from the vehicle or as backup if the GPS in the vehicle failed. We've been over there almost a decade, and this equipment has gotten a lot of use and even- tually will breakdown. In the most-dire circumstances, you want all the possible tools available to you. This is an outstanding program to give men and women serv- ing and their families extra peace of mind." Hardware