Photo By Sgt. William Hill | Terry Whittaker, from Franklin, Ind., hands out books to Pfc. Caleb Charron, from...... read more read more
EDINBURGH, Ind. — Deploying soldiers spend countless hours on completing tasks and training while focusing directly on the mission they are about to endure. Tasks become second nature to them, but what about their free time. Some soldiers battle the homesickness and boredom by playing video games and cards or watching movies, but some escape into a book.
That is why Terry Whittaker, from Franklin, Ind., a retired Vietnam veteran, donated more than 70 books to the USO at Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center April 23 during what he called, World Book Night. Whittaker said he donated because he knows how important reading is to mobilizing Soldiers.
“I chose the USO because when I was in Vietnam, reading was extremely important to me in my off time,” said Whittaker. “I did a lot of reading and it helped me a lot when I was over there. Some people used off duty time in less productive ways and got into a lot of problems and I think reading saved me in some ways from those bad things.”
World Book Night is a nonprofit, annual event started last year in United Kingdom to spread the love of reading and books. The significance April 23 is symbolic date for world literature. It is both the birth and death day of William Shakespeare.
This year the United States embraced the event and gave out over a half of million books throughout the nation, according to the organizers of the World Book Night.
Whittaker said that his bookstore was a pickup location for more than 800 books that were distributed throughout Indiana communities by people who also had a passion for reading.
Whittaker and his wife, Susan, were two of tens of thousands of people who participated in the World Book Night event, handing out free books throughout their communities.
Douglas Warnecke, the executive director for the Camp Atterbury USO said the USO is honored to participate in the World Book Night event.
“Well, I think from the USO perspective, we are just proud to be part of the effort and happy they considered us a source to get the books to the troops,” said Warnecke. “Ideally, we are suited to do that, so many other organizations come to us with the same kind of things, not especially books, but because the USO touches troops in so many different ways. So we are proud to be associated with the event.”
What makes the USO ideal is the fact that last year the Indiana USO served over 170, 000 troops, according to Warnecke.
He said the books will be distributed to soldiers throughout Camp Atterbury, and some will be taken to the USO at the Indianapolis International Airport, which is visited regularly by soldiers.
Pfc. Caleb Charron, from Clinton, Mo., with the Missouri Agribusiness Development Team said, he chose the book The Things They Carried because it is about the Vietnam War, and his grandfathers both served in that war.
“Both of my grandfathers served in the military and would not talk about it so it is kind of nice to read something from a perspective of a person who served back in Vietnam or Korea,” he said. “I can see how it was back then versus how it is now.” He is scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan within the month.
He said after he reads the book, he will continue the chain of giving and give it to his younger brother.
“I will probably pass this book on to my little brother, because he graduates here in a few years from college and he is going to become a history teacher, so I think he will enjoy reading it,” he said.
For more information and how to get evolved visit the World Book Night website at www.us.worldbooknight.org.
| Date Taken: | 04.23.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 04.26.2012 08:12 |
| Story ID: | 87372 |
| Location: | EDINBURGH, INDIANA, US |
| Hometown: | CLINTON, MISSOURI, US |
| Hometown: | FRANKLIN, INDIANA, US |
| Hometown: | OZARK, MISSOURI, US |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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