Family
My grand-nephew, Isaac Spethman has always been ahead of the game. He is highly motivated, and really very skilled, even though he is just turning fifteen today. Most kids, even at fifteen are still just interested in playing video games and hanging out with their friends. Isaac likes to do these things too, but Isaac started his first job when he was just seven. He walked just two doors down the street from his house, where the Grant Street Grocery was located. It was a place he and his siblings liked to go and buy treats, but Isaac had other ideas. He wanted a job. So, he “applied” for one. The owner, thinking that this was just a little boy who was playng grownup, told him to bring in his resume, and they would take a look. Well, they had misjudged Isaac. He went to his aunt, Liz Masterson, and ask for help with his resume. Liz is a teacher, so this was no problem, and when it was finished, Isaac took it to Grant Street Grocery and got the job, even though they had no openings. He helped out by sweeping, straightening, taking out the trash, and they even started teaching him about the cutting of the meat. It was a good job and Isaac learned a lot, about several things. He worked there until they sold the store, and the new owners didn’t see the value this young man holds. His work ethic has not changed, and today, at fifteen, Isaac has a job at Hardee’s in Casper…a job he started in August. He enjoys the work, and they like him too.
Isaac’s parents, Jenny and Steve Spethman, have taught him about hunting and gun safety. He has been hunting and been very successful at it. He has also put that “butcher shop” training to good use, because he knows how to handle a knife, both at home and in the field. Isaac’s dad has built a forge for himself and his boys. Isaac forged and sold his first knife this year, so now he will have his own little business, if he chooses to continue forging knives for profit.
Isaac is also in the ROTC at school and really enjoys the discipline and the training. This was something he has chosen to do, and he feels like he has made an excellent choice. Isaac has a mind of his own, and a good head 
on his shoulders. Isaac is in the process of buying his own truck from our neighbor. Once again, in his own personal style, Isaac is way ahead of the norm for his age. Most kids wait until they turn 16 and then after using their parents’ car for a while, they finally decide that they need a vehicle of their own. Not there is nothing wrong with that, but it just isn’t Isaac’s style. He likes to make his own way. It is a trait that makes me and all his family very proud of him. Today is Isaac’s 15th birthday. Happy birthday Isaac!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
My uncle, George Hushman has been in love with my Aunt Evelyn since the moment he met her. Aunt Evelyn is my mother’s sister, and the oldest of the nine children born to George and Hattie Byer. Uncle George was raised in the children’s home in Casper, Wyoming, after losing his parents when he was young. When he met my aunt, and the rest of the family, he knew that he had found his family. He would go one to find his biological family later too…another blessing, but he had never really been part of a family until he met Aunt Evelyn. He had been welcomed into his best friend’s family, but as a friend of their son. In Aunt Evelyn’s family, he was the newest actual member…their son-in-law, and much like a true son.
Together, Uncle George and Aunt Evelyn raised five children, who gave them many grandchildren and great grandchildren. They were very blessed with a large family. They lived a good life and throughout those many years together, they were always, first and foremost, madly in love. Unfortunately, as the years progressed, both Uncle George and Aunt Evelyn began to experience some health issues, and at some point, things like dementia and cancer, can take a toll on a family, just as it does the patient themselves. For many family members, dementia is as tough as cancer.
As Uncle George’s dementia progressed, he would often forget the names of his children and grandchildren. That is one of the hardest things on family. We don’t want to think that our own parents or grandparents no longer recognize us. I know this because of what my mother-in-law went through, but one thing I also know is that they seldom forget that you belong to them. That happened with Uncle George too, as my cousin Jamie Patsie experienced shortly before my Aunt Evelyn, her grandmother passed. She had gone over to visit her grandparents. Jamie tells me, “When Grandma was really sick, before she passed, they were sitting next to 
each other on the couch, listening to his old tapes of him singing, which was so sweet. As I was leaving, he grabbed my hand and looked at grandma and said, ‘See Evelyn, this is someone that we love,’ and kissed my hand. He didn’t want me to leave. Even with his dementia and not knowing exactly who I was, he knew that I was someone that he loved!” He knew she belonged to them and that they loved her, even if he didn’t remember her name. How very sweet!! Today would have been Uncle George’s 95th birthday. Happy birthday in Heaven, Uncle George. We love and miss you very much.
Sometimes, when a country is in turmoil, and there seems to be no way out, the only choice is to have an outside invasion…from a foreign power. Panama was in such a situation in 1989, and so on December 20, 1989, the United States Army spearheaded a carefully planned and well-executed attack designed to overwhelm the Panamanian Defense Forces (PDF) of dictator Manuel Noriega, who was a convicted drug trafficker and a brutal dictator. He rose to power when he joined the military and then quickly rose through the ranks. He was very motivated, and most likely had a planned agenda from the start. Once he was in power his brutality as well as his interference with activities in the Panama Canal area, got worse and worse. Something had to be done.
The election had been stolen, of course, and the United States, along with several other nations, needed to take back the area from the imposter, and restore the democratically elected government of Guillermo Endara, followed by the arrest of Noriega on drug trafficking charges. This was going to be the largest and most complex combat operation since the Vietnam War. Labeled, Operation Just Cause, and with nearly 26,000 combat troops deployed, just under half being from bases in the United States, the operation began. Two dozen targets were attacked throughout the country that day, using a wide spectrum of tactical operations including Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain (MOUT), Air-Assault, Airborne, and Special Forces. The operation was carefully planned out and conducted so as to take into account both parts of the mission…the operational aspects, as well as the political implications of forcibly removing Noriega from power. Not everyone in the world would look at this as being a justified operation. Through emphasis on realistic small-unit training, the U.S. Army successfully accomplished its mission. They decisively neutralized Noriega’s forces, restoring the elected democratic government, protecting American lives, and minimizing Panamanian casualties.
Initially planned as a gradual buildup of combat troops from the United States, the plan was significantly 
modified in early 1989 after Noriega increased attempts to intimidate American civilians and soldiers and after he orchestrated assaults against newly elected anti-Noreiga candidates. He was becoming too volatile to be allowed to continue his reign, so President George H W Bush ordered an additional 1,900 combat troops to Panama to increase security of American personnel and property, an operation known as known as Operation Nimrod Dancer…where do they get some of these names? He also appointed General Maxwell Thurman as the new US Southern Command commander. General Thurman envisioned the operation as a rapid take-down of the Panamanian Defense Forces, slightly different than President Bush saw it. Thurman wanted to capture Noriega quickly in order to prevent his troops from moving into the country’s interior in order to form an insurgency.
Training began in May 1989, and the early preparation and training was a key for the success of Operation Just Cause. The 193rd Infantry Brigade, which was the primary combat unit stationed near Panama City, increased the number of live-fire exercises and MOUT training. At that time, there were no MOUT training sites available, so battalion commanders adapted by constructing makeshift buildings for live-fire exercises. Soldiers practiced room-clearing as well as prisoner control, using the barracks. Soon to be sent to Panama…once the operation began, units of the 82nd Airborne Division and the 7th Infantry Division also increased training. The Panamanian Defense units were very close to the location of the American operations, so operational planners and unit commanders took advantage of increased security measures. These training exercises, Code-named Sand Flea, represented deliberate demonstrations of force aimed at securing American facilities. The good news 
was that troops were familiar with their targets, since many of these facilities needed to be secured or were used as staging areas for the invasion. In addition, the exercises were run with such frequency that the enemy became desensitized to rapid movements of troops, helping to maintain the element of surprise that was crucial to success. For me, it still seems like they should have suspected something.
In the end, the careful planning and intensive training paid off. The operation was a good success, despite its complexity. The plan showed the ability to work with the military and political goals to rapidly destroy the enemy’s ability to fight They also managed to fight without needlessly endangering Panamanian lives or property. The training was a great success. The troops were able to quickly adapt to the unforeseen challenges of combat. Major military operations took only five days. Noriega surrendered on January 3rd and by January 12tb, Operation Just Cause was over. In less than a month, the US Army and other American Armed Forces had achieved complete victory.
For many people, 2020 and 2021 have been hard and disappointing years, but for my niece, Michelle Miller, this past year has been a banner year. So many wonderful things have transpired in her life, that she can’t help but be jumping for joy, and excited for the future and all that it will bring with it. Michelle and her long-time love…literally since middle school, Matt Miller tied the knot this summer in a sweet ceremony on Casper Mountain on August 14, and they have been busy starting their new life as a married couple. They are so happy together and such great friends, on top of now being husband and wife. They are so perfect for each other. It is a sweet mixture of macho man meets the artist, and while the two things might seem very different, these two somehow blend together perfectly. While Michelle is an artist, she also likes to get outdoors with Matt…well, maybe not the hunting and fishing parts…more the camping part, but that works out well for both of them.
Michelle is an artist, like I said, obtaining her art degree for Black Hills State University. When she and Matt moved back to Casper, Wyoming from Spearfish, South Dakota, she began to apply to the Natrona County School District. Unfortunately for the school district, they didn’t have an opening, and Michelle took a job with The Nicolaysen Art Museum as an Art Educator. While she had envisioned herself as a public school art teacher, Michelle quickly addapted to her new career, and…well, has this ever been a wonderful career move for her. In October 2021, Michelle received a huge promotion from Art teacher to Curator of Education. It was a very big promotion. Her boss was very much on board with her moving up, and her family is all very pleased with her new position too. Michelle will be writing grants and getting all parts of the education program’s set up. It rather like the type of promotion when a teacher becomes school principal, except that most teachers have to be teaching for years before such a promotion comes their way…but then Michelle is very a unique and special teacher. She is very happy with her new career and responsibilities. She also has the added benefit of being able to continue to teach some of her classes, something that she would have hated to have to give up. Michelle is and always will be a teacher first.
Michelle and Matt are currently living in an apartment, but they are beginning to put out some feelers concerning a home of their own They want a house, but they are actually looking for a piece of land where they can have room to have a big shop and maybe even an art studio…I hope, because Michelle, while she is Curator of Education, and an art teacher, is really, first and foremost, an artist. I have seen her work, and it is amazing. I believe she could easily sell her work, and I know people would be quick to buy. With their big future plans, 
they are actively looking around for that perfect property, but they haven’t found one that suits their needs yet. I’m sure that it is out there. God has the perfect place for them, and He will show it to them with the timing is just right too. Yeah, still in the same place. I know that when He shows them the perfect place, they will see that it is perfect too. We are very excited for them to be able to start their next chapter of their lives. Today is Michelle’s birthday. Happy birthday Michelle!! Have a great day!! We Love you!!
Today would have been my grandniece, Hallie Joy Moore’s first earthly birthday, had she not moved to Heaven shortly after her birth last year. I have been thinking about how different her life, and that of her family, has been because she is not here with us. For Hallie, I’m sure that her life now is more exciting than we could have ever imagined. We can only imagine what it would be like to live with Jesus in Heaven, but she is living that wonderful life right now. While she would just be learning to walk here, she would have mastered that skill immediately following her move to Heaven last year. There is no sadness there, so she has been very happy, and looking forward to having her family join her there one day, so she can show that all of the amazing things there are to do there. Her excitement about their future move to Heaven must be off the charts, because that’s just how kids are…always excited…about everything.
Hallie was a beautiful little girl. I think she looked a lot like her mommy, Lindsay Moore, with some of her daddy, Shannon Moore sprinkled in, and maybe some of her big sister, Mackenzie Moore in there too. It was a beautiful combination, for sure. She was born about two months before she was supposed to arrive, and I suppose that was just too early. While it made us all very sad to have her leave us, we also know exactly where she went, and that part makes us very happy…for her anyway. Hallie’s name was chosen for her with much love and happiness in mind. Her name Hallie means “Praise the Lord” and Joy, of course, means “happiness.” Both were perfectly chosen for her by her loving parents, and I think they are beautiful names. I can’t wait to meet little Hallie when I go home to Heaven. Today would have been Hallie’s 1st birthday. Happy birthday in Heaven Hallie. We love and miss you very much.
During their reign of terror, Japan, like Germany had their sights set on world domination. Japanese troops landed in Hong Kong on December 18, 1941, and an immediate slaughter began. The process started with a week of air raids over Hong Kong, which was a British Crown Colony at the time. Then on December 17, Japanese envoys paid a visit to Sir Mark Young, who was at that time, the British governor of Hong Kong.
The envoys’ message was simple: “The British garrison there should simply surrender to the Japanese—resistance was futile.” The envoys were sent home with the following retort: “The governor and commander in chief of Hong Kong declines absolutely to enter into negotiations for the surrender of Hong Kong…”
The unsuccessful negotiations brought a swift wave of Japanese troops, who in retaliation for the refused surrender, landed in Hong Kong with artillery fire for cover and the following order from their commander: “Take no prisoners.” The troops quickly overran a volunteer antiaircraft battery, and the Japanese invaders roped together the captured soldiers. In a complete disregard for human life, a complete disregard for the Geneva Convention rules, or any rules of common decency, the Japanese proceeded to bayonet them to death. Even those who offered no 
resistance, such as the Royal Medical Corps, were led up a hill and killed. They showed no mercy, just hate and evil. Following the initial slaughter, the Japanese took control of key reservoirs. With the water under their control, they threatened the British and Chinese inhabitants with a slow death by thirst. With their backs against a wall, the British finally surrendered control of Hong Kong on Christmas Day.
On that same day, the War Powers Act was passed by Congress, authorizing the president to initiate and terminate defense contracts, reconfigure government agencies for wartime priorities, and regulate the freezing of foreign assets. It also permitted him to censor all communications coming in and leaving the country. President Franklin D Roosevelt appointed the executive news director of the Associated Press, Byron Price, as director of censorship. Although invested with the awesome power to restrict and withhold news, Price took no extreme measures, allowing news outlets and radio stations to self-censor, which they did. Most top-secret information, including the construction of the atom 
bomb, remained just that…strangely, but then those were different times.
“The most extreme use of the censorship law seems to have been the restriction of the free flow of “girlie” magazines to servicemen…including Esquire, which the Post Office considered obscene for its occasional saucy cartoons and pinups. Esquire took the Post Office to court, and after three years the Supreme Court ultimately sided with the magazine.” It amazes me just how much times have changed. These days the “girlie” trash is totally acceptable, but truth is censored and lies are allowed. Too bad we are so far out from those days.
We all know what it means to travel faster than the speed of sound…at least in theory. And most of us believe that it takes an airplane to accomplish that feat. That said, I wonder how Hollywood stuntman Stan Barrett felt when, on December 17, 1979, he blasted across a dry lakebed at California’s Edwards Air Force Base in a rocket and missile-powered car, becoming the first man to travel faster than the speed of sound on land. The reality is that there is no proof that he actually accomplished what he set out to do, which was to see if he could go faster than the speed of sound, because unfortunately, the radar scanner was acting up, and so Barrett’s top speed of 739.666 miles per hour by the most reliable measure, ended up being no more than an estimate. In addition, he only drove his rocket car across the lakebed once, while official record guidelines require that it be done twice. Also, none of the spectators heard a sonic boom as Barrett zoomed across the course. Nevertheless, it is believed that he did indeed break the sound barrier.
Barrett, who was a 36-year-old stuntman and ex-lightweight Golden Glove champion, was introduced to auto racing by Paul Newman in 1971. At the time, he was Newman’s stunt double for the film “Sometimes a Great Notion.” Barrett’s car, the $800,000 Budweiser Rocket, was owned by movie director, Hal 
Needham, who was himself a former racer. Needham had broken a nine-year-old world land-speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats the previous September. The car he drove had a 48,000-horsepower rocket engine and, to give it a little extra kick, a 12,000-horsepower Sidewinder missile.
December 17th was a dry day with temperatures around 20° Fahrenheit. Because of the cold, Barrett would actually have to go faster than the 731.9 miles per hour required, in order to break the sound barrier under those conditions. He started the rocket engine and stepped on the gas. He counted to 12, pushed the button on his steering wheel to fire the Sidewinder, so he could go even faster. After he zoomed past a battery of timing devices, Barrett deployed a parachute to help him slow down. It took only a few seconds for Barrett to blast across the 5¾ mile long lakebed. Most of us would have a hard time wrapping our heads around that.
The run was perfect, but unfortunately, the radar speedometers on the ground malfunctioned. Instead of recording the Rocket’s speed, they captured the speed of a passing truck, which was only 38 miles per hour. They would have to look elsewhere for confirmation, and in the end, the speed estimate came from data by the Air Force, whose scanners seemed to indicate that the Rocket had “probably exceeded the speed of sound.” The controversy over how fast Barrett actually went is still disputed to this day. It took until October 1997 for another driver, in a British car called the Thrust SSC, to officially break the Mach 1 sound barrier.
Any army is going to try attack the enemy in a sneaky way, so that their enemy is not ready…and indeed, has no idea the enemy is even nearby. When it comes to sneak attacks, we often think about the Japanese and Pearl Harbor, but they were not the only ones to do it. The Germans were just as likely to sneak up on their targets as the Japanese.
At approximately 8am on December 16, 1914, Franz von Hipper sent German battle cruisers from his Scouting Squadron to attack the British navy. The attack caught the British completely by surprise, as the Germans began heavy bombardment of Hartlepool and Scarborough…two English port cities on the North 
Sea. In the attack that lasted an hour and a half, the Germans killed more than 130 civilians and wounded another 500. The attack brought a swift and vicious response from the British press, who called the incident another example of German brutality. The German navy countered that the two port cities were valid targets due to their fortified status. It didn’t justify the attack, but it was the excuse the Germans used.
The attack was quickly answered by the British. Two defense batteries in Hartlepool were dispatched to attack the German vessels, damaging three of them, including the heavy cruiser, Blucher. Hipper’s plan was to draw the British forces to pursue them across waters freshly laced with mines. They also had another German fleet, commanded by Admiral Friedrich von Ingenohl, waiting offshore to provide support. The plan fell through when the hoped-for major confrontation did not take place. Instead, the British decided to keep most of their fleet, which had been depleted by the dispatch of their major cruisers to pursue the dangerous squadron of Admiral Maximilian von Spee, in the harbor.
The Scouting Squadron attempted a repeat attack one month later using the same tactics used to surprise the British at Scarborough and Hartlepool. That attempt resulted in the Battle of Dogger Bank, where Hipper’s squadron was defeated, but unfortunately managed to avoid capture. The biggest drawback of a sneak attack is that it can really only be used once. After that the enemy is prepared and watching.
Over time, architecture has taken many turns. Some buildings last for thousands of years, and others struggle to last a hundred years. Also, some structures go through more things that can degrade them, such as the elements and usage. Such as the case with the Silver Bridge. The Silver Bridge was built in 1928 and connected Point Pleasant, West Virginia with Gallipolis, Ohio via US Route 35, taking it over the Ohio River. It was an eyebar-chain suspension bridge. The bridge got its name from the color of its aluminum paint.
The bridge was less that 40 years old when disaster struck on December 15, 1967. It is said that the bridge 
collapsed under the weight of rush-hour traffic, but that seems extreme to me. How many cars would it take to break a bridge, and how would they all fit on the bridge to make it break? When the bridge came down, 46 people lost their lives. Search and rescue operations were immediately put in place, and 44 people were found, but two of the victims were never found. When the bridge was rebuilt in 1969, it would be both a bridge and a memorial to those who lost their lives that fateful day.
No such disaster can take place without an investigation following it, to determine the cause. The causes of these disasters actually help to correct the flaws so that things like this don’t happen in the future. The investigation into the cause of the Silver Bridge collapse came down to the failure of just one eyebar. I suppose that once that one gave way, the load was too much for the rest of the eyebar links. It was further determined that the eyebar that failed had a 
small defect 0.1 inches deep. The analysis showed that the bridge was carrying much heavier loads than it was designed for. Cars were heavier too and there were more of them, putting more strain on the small defect in the eyebar. In addition, the bridge had been poorly maintained, further weakening the structure. These days, bridges can still fail, but they maybe don’t quite as often, and most last longer than 40 years.
I find it so hard to believe that my great grandniece, Reece Balcerzak is four years old. Her life started out pretty scary, but she is a strong girl, and she pulled through, quickly proving that a premature birth and a long hospital stay was not going to stop this “little firecracker.” She is full of life and energy. She is her mommy, Katie Balcerzak’s mini-me, and her daddy, Keifer Balcerzak’s pride and joy. This precious little girl definitely keeps her parents on their toes.
These days, Reece has a new title. She is big sister to her brother Aysa Balcerzak, who arrived on November 8, 2021. I really think Reece feels like this is her most important title. Having a baby brother means that she has lots of new jobs. She can go get things for her parents, entertain her brother, and generally love on her brother…which she does very well. Reece and her parents might not have known how much they “needed” Aysa, but I think they do now. For Reece, having a sibling is very cool…for now. We all know how 
siblings can get, but they always love each other…always. Aysa is going to be very blessed to have such a sweet big sister as Reece, and she will be very blessed by him.
Reece is spreading her wings these days to find out what kinds of things she likes to do. She tried t-ball and had a good time. I’m not sure how she felt about the game itself, but she has plenty of time to explore athletic ideas. One thing that Reece has already perfected is her great…and I really mean great smile. That little girl is always happy, and her face is always lit up. Not everyone has such a gift. Reece is a joyous little girl, and a great blessing to her parents, grandparents, and everyone who knows her. Today is Reece’s 4th birthday. Happy birthday Reece!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
