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W.A.F.A.W RELIEF PROJECT

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I met Diane on a sad day I said goodbye to my son Al, and other Airmen of the 920th Rescue Wing. Another Airman's mom and I were trying to figure out a way to delay their flight..or just go with them...you know how mothers are!!! Diane laughed and said to everyone around just send a Puerto Rican mother to Iraq..she'll kick ass and watch our backs!!

We're glad your home Diane..we love you and your in our prayers!! ~Pauline ( a Puerto Rican Mother)

Section re: Senior Airman Diane Lopes, taken from a Commentary by Brig. Gen. Susan Helms
45th SW commander- Changing times equal training time

2/7/2008 - PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- It's been said before that: "The only real constant is change." .....................................................

.........Sometimes, there's a sense that Airmen aren't really in the heat of the fight and therefore only perform a supporting role in our combat theaters around the world. Nothing could be further from the truth. Just look to Air Force Reservist Senior Airman Diane Lopes, of the 920th Rescue Wing.

Airman Lopes, who had the honor of sitting with First Lady Laura Bush during the President's State of the Union speech last week, was awarded a Purple Heart last September after a mortar landed less than 30 feet away from her at Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq.
A full-time Tampa police officer just last March, Airman Lopes had only been in her unit for three weeks when she was called to duty. She is currently recovering from extensive injuries and the initial medical attention she got at the scene may have saved her life.

Her personal prognosis is good and she expects to come back to work ...both with the Tampa police and the 920th. Speaking about her experiences, she said this: "It's not going to keep me from doing my job.

That is a warrior's mentality and I see it among many of you, too. So, keep working hard and keep making realistic training a routine part of what you do. Go Sharks!