You may wonder why I post stories from Paul McKellips. He’s the guy in Iraq reporting on agriculture and most importantly in my mind, the positive things our soldiers are doing that are changing people’s lives while helping protect us. Well, Paul has volunteered for a whole year in Iraq next year so I’m looking forward to a lot more to come.

He just sent out a letter to those of us who are using his reports and I’m going to share a few excerpts with you. Here’s why he’s doing it:

I feel a personal responsibility to serve my country during a time of war. I’m keenly aware of the sacrifices made by my father and his generation in World War II. When I load up with a couple of cameras and a Marantz PMD 660, my work pales in comparison to the men and women who load up with an M-16 and a 75-pound pack. But I can do this, and I should. It’s my duty.

I’m a man of faith. I put my trust in a Heavenly Father who is just as capable of protecting me at home as He is in Baghdad. This is my calling right now, to do whatever I can with the talents that I’ve been given, to make a difference.

But the greatest of these is love. I love being an American. I love my freedom. Most importantly, I love my wife of 25-years and my precious three, red-headed sons. Without their support I couldn’t possibly do this. I believe it’s important for a dad to demonstrate duty, faith and love to his children through everyday living. I’ve taught my sons that they must serve this country when they’re out of college. It can be in the military, or the Peace Corps, or the National Forest Service, the American Red Cross or any other organization. But I can’t ask Andrew (14), Ian (12) or Oliver (8) to do that which I wouldn’t do myself.

No matter how you feel about the politics of this war, or the presence of American or coalition soldiers, I suspect that you – like me – believe that our men and women in uniform have more than earned the right to have their “good news” stories reported in the American press.

You are darn right they’ve earned that right Paul and I’m going to do my part to help spread that word. Thanks for what you do and I hope to meet you in person.