Posted: 5/7/03

Letter means much to East Bethel mother

Cliff Buchan
News Editor

A letter from Baghdad can mean a lot ó especially for a mother who has not talked to her son since late in February.

Carolyn Kraft understands the feeling of not knowing, and wondering and worrying about a Marine sergeant who was in harmís way against Iraqi forces in March and April.

But now Kraft, 50, can relax. An e-mail from her son has brought reassuring news that Sgt. Timothy P. McNeely, 26, is fine and OK while on duty with the 1st Marine Division in Baghdad.

ìI was thrilled to hear something from him,î Kraft said this week from her East Bethel home on Coon Lake. ìIt was such a relief.î

The e-mail arrived on April 24 to Timís father, Jim McNeely who lives in Florence, KY. He forwarded the message with numerous photo attachments to his ex-wife in Minnesota.

The photos as much as the words hit home, Kraft said. ìTo get pictures with it ó it really gave me some peace of mind,î she said.

As the parent of a Marine serving in Iraq, Kraft takes pride in the efforts of her son and the other military personnel in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The letter was reassurance that her son, too, believes in his mission, she said.

ìHe takes everything very seriously,î Kraft said. ìHeís very intense.

ìWhatever he does, he takes to heart. Heís incredibly proud of what he does.î

When the letter arrived last week, Kraft said she wanted to share the words and photos to help those parents and siblings who eagerly await word from their loved ones.

ìI wanted other parents to see this,î she said of the letter which accompanies this story. ìHeís a mouthpiece for the others (soldiers).î

A tough winter

It has been a tough winter for Kraft and her husband Doug and their merged families.

Timís grandfather, Austin McNeely, 79, a former St. Paul police officer, died on Jan 24 and the funeral was the last opportunity he had to see his Minnesota family. The Marine returned to Camp Pendleton, CA in late January and by the end of February had been deployed to Kuwait.

At home in California awaits his wife, Heather and son Connor, 2. They are expecting their second child, Moya Claire, on June 13, Timís 27th birthday.

Heatherís mother, Jan McMillan, owns the Corner Coffee House in Little Canada and it is the patrons of this coffee shop that are mentioned in Timís letter home.

The Marine has not yet learned of the death of another grandfather.

Carolynís father, Dean Wiesner, 77, of Brainerd, died on March 2 just days after his grandson had been sent to Kuwait. The family chose to not tell Tim of the death to ease the burden of being at war and not feel the pain of his grandfatherís death.

Both grandfathers meant much to the Marine, Carolyn said.

Her father was a World War II veteran who took pride in his grandsonís military career in the Marines.

Austin McNeely, her former husbandís father, was a fourth generation police officer in St. Paul and Ramsey County and Tim had worked for the St. Paul force for about 18 months before joining the Marines full-time, Kraft said.

During the funeral for her father, Kraft said the minister compared Wiesner and Austin McNeely as guardian angels who were looking out for their grandson in Iraq.

Flashback

In one of the photos sent from Baghdad last week, Sgt. McNeely and a close buddy, Sgt. Jake Aldean, 27, of St. Paul, are shown holding captured AK-47 automatic rifles and a rocket propelled grenade launcher used by Iraqi forces.

Timís father is an Army combat veteran who was wounded in Vietnam. His scrapbook contains photos of Americans holding captured Vietnamese weapons and the similarity with the photos received last week was a parallel that took her back almost 30 years, Kraft said.

It is such emotions that have made life difficult with her son at war, Kraft said.

She has found comfort through a support group and volunteer efforts at American Legion Post 225. Post 225 has mailed 135 care packages to Forest Lake area troops serving in the war zone with each box containing gifts for five to seven buddies.

It has been such time outlets that have enabled Kraft to cope with the uncertainty this spring.

ìI needed something to help me quit sitting here driving my husband crazy,î Kraft said.

She said the parents are most grateful to the efforts of groups like Post 225 and VFW Post 4210 for their willingness to help the troops at war.

Kraft said she has enjoyed helping with the care package shipments. It was a way, she said, to do something that made her feel good.

ìIt was very good therapy for me,î she said.

As she awaits the return home of her son, Kraft says she will continue to take pride in the military and wonders about the mindset of some who are opposed to the war or just plain mean-spirited.

A few weeks back the Marine flag she displayed proudly from the garage near the street was stolen. The next day it was found.

The flag, along with stolen mail, had been doused in gasoline and burned in the middle of her street, not far from the Kraft home.

While the cruelty of this act is hard to figure, Kraft says there are other kind acts that more than make up for it.

They are the acts of the veterans at the Legion and VFW or the neighbor who stopped at Kraftís door one day with a basket of homemade jams and jellies as her way to say thanks for what Kraftís son was doing for his country.

ìIt brought tears to my eyes,î she said of the surprise gift from a stranger. ìThe community is so close-knit.î

Kraft continues to proudly display her Blue Star flag on the familyís front door, signifying to all that the Krafts are the proud parents of a soldier serving his country.

ìWhen you are the parent, you are extremely proud,î Kraft said.

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