It's time for the Regional Get-Togethers! To register, see 2024 Upcoming Events on the blue bar above.
EVENT: DFW REGIONAL GET-TOGETHER
Saturday, February 3, 2024 11:30 A.M. - 3:30 P.M.
ADDRESS: FLIPS GRILL 415 W. St. Hwy 114, Grapevine, TX
EVENT: CENTRAL TEXAS REGIONAL GET-TOGETHER
DATE: Saturday, February 17, 2024 11:30 A.M. - 3:30 P.M.
ADDRESS: SALTGRASS STEAK HOUSE, 60 NE Interstate 410 Loop, San Antonio, TX 78216
https://youtu.be/yc5AWImplfE?feature=shared
Joan Kay (McCarter) Adrian, 91, a 1948 Nurnberg High School graduate, of Frankfort, Ky. died Sunday, July 16, 2023. Joan was active in the Overseas Brats organization after having spent most of her teenage and young adult life either being a child of a military stepfather or being married to a career U.S. Army Officer. For more information, please visit https://www.state-journal.com/obituaries/joan-kay-mccarter-adrian/article_9455ada8-24d3-11ee-98b6-136cd2398049.html.
Three of four that were good friends. George Vasil, Tom Freeman and Bill Lechner have all passed. The group, that ran together at Sembach and K-Town. Now only one remaining with the memories. Gonna miss them.
From Soldiers Angels:WWII hero, Alfred Guerra, is 97 years young and LOVES all of the cards sent by our Angels wishing him a Happy Birthday!
Mr. Guerra received a Purple Heart after being wounded by machine gun fire during an enemy ambush in the Pacific. He was also shot in Okinawa and instead of going to the field hospital, he was taken to a Navy hospital ship for surgery. During the transfer to the hospital ship, his records were lost, and they could not find him. Because of this, he was listed as Missing In Action (MIA). His mother was notified, and for seven very long months, she believed her son was, in fact, missing behind enemy lines.
Alfred Guerra is a decorated war hero and recipient of a Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Combat Infantry Badge, WWII Defense Service Medal, WWII Campaign Medal, and other medals and awards. We were so happy to help him renovate his home back in 2021 and continue to honor him over the years. Happy Birthday, Mr. Guerra!
It all started as a dream
Brat Friends,
LONG before there was Facebook and this Facebook group, and LONG before there was the internet – there was OVERSEAS BRATS.
The date was April 8, 1986. That was the founding date of OVERSEAS BRATS (OSB).
At the time – I wasn’t aware that then-Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger had declared April the month of the Military Child and specifically April 30 as the observance date. And of course, this was all before the activity on the internet and Facebook which now really focuses on April being ‘our month’ as Brats.
But before there was OVERSEAS BRATS there was something called OSCAR, which stood for Overseas Schools Combined Alumni Registry, the brainchild of David Thatcher, Jr., who went to the same school I did in Orleans, France. David realized in 1985 there were a LOT of former DoDDS students/Military Brats out there, and by placing them all in a database – it would help the different alumni groups then getting started.
Word of David’s plan got out – and a couple things happened. He became quickly overwhelmed by the response, and since he was doing a lot of this on government time, he got his hands ‘slapped,’ effectively ending OSCAR.
A positive aspect of OSCAR was that he identified like-minded Brats who were trying to organize alumni groups and reunions, so we now started actively communicating among ourselves. In doing so, everyone shared their unique heritage. These stories were GREAT!
So in early 1986, I approached the different military publications about doing articles about Brats and some of our unique stories in the hopes we could find more of ‘our’ people. They all came back and said they weren’t interested. So a notice was sent out to those Brats I was in touch with that maybe we should create or organization to serve the needs of all Brats, whenever/wherever they were.
Within a few months’ time, hundreds of Brats wanted to join and get involved. In a few years that was a few thousand. This includes ALL who were Brats, our Parents & our Educators!
Initially the plan was to publish a publication to update everyone. Then in 1994 with the advent of the internet – our outreach expanded. And since 2009 into Social Media.
Today – 38 years later – the mission remains the same:
-Uniting Brats;
-Educating the Brat community about various aspects of our heritage that make us unique;
-Publicizing who we are to the civilian and military media;
-Creating Brat-friendly events to bring the Brat community together;
-Sharing ‘our’ story through our publications;
-Seeking out Brats who share our vision to help enhance the organization;
-Recognizing Brats in a variety of ways through our publications and events;
Where can we get YOU involved?
Have a terrific day!
Brugs (Brat-hugs!)
Joe/OVERSEAS BRATS
U.S. Navy Reserve Lt., Navy SEAL, and NASA astronaut Dr. Jonny Kim.
As a Navy SEAL, Kim completed more than 100 combat operations and is the recipient of the Silver Star and Bronze Star with Combat “V." After receiving his 2016 Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School, Kim was accepted into NASA Astronaut Group 22 in 2017, and having completed his astronaut training in 2020, he is now eligible for a mission assignment with the Artemis program.
Gary Sinise Foundation: On #WarriorWednesday, we recognize