KPLU Local News
(2009-12-10)
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SEATTLE, WA
(KPLU) -
Members of the Fort-Lewis based 5th Stryker Brigade will get a special Christmas surprise this weekend. They're in Afghanistan -- and will get to see their children via web-cam for the first time since July.
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Sabrina King's husband is deployed in Afghanistan. Several of her co-workers wanted to know what they could do for his unit. So she asked him the next time he called.
"And he said, you know, it's funny that you asked, because we just received computers that were given to them by morale, welfare and recreation via the army, but they didn't have any webcams. So they had 50 computers, but no webcams."
She says the 5th Stryker Brigade is at a newer base in southern Afghanistan where they're just now setting up a computing center. King happens to work for a small cable company, called Rainier Connect. The company donated 50 web cams. King says her husband has been deployed to Iraq three times over the past six years - so she knows what kind of emotional impact this donation will have.
"There's nothing like physically laying your eyes on the soldier that you have sent off to war and haven't seen for five months. You can't duplicate that in a letter or a text message or email - I see you and you're physically okay."
In a holiday surprise party on Saturday, the brigade's families will gather so the soldiers can talk with their kids and see them getting a special visit from Santa using the new webcams.
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