Soldiers stay in touch by satellite - Freedom Calls Foundation

Soldiers stay in touch by satellite
By Jim McElhatton
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Marine Capt. Greg Starace saw his
newborn daughter for the first time
yesterday.
Capt. Starace's wife Karina, 25, held the
5-month-old Maya in front of a laptop
computer set up in a small conference
room in the basement of the Hamilton
Crowne Plaza hotel in the District's
Northwest.
With the help of a satellite, the image
instantly bounced to the computer
screen that Capt. Starace, 27, was
viewing at his Marine base known as
Camp Fallujah.
"Look at that, Maya," Capt. Starace said
when he saw his daughter. "What a princess."
Karina Starace held up 5-month-old Maya, so husband Greg, a
Marine captain in Fallujah, Iraq, could see his daughter for the first
time via computer.
ROEY YOHAI (THE WASHINGTON TIMES)
Yesterday, the Staraces were one of five military families with members stationed in Iraq who spoke
with — and saw — their loved ones using videoconferencing technology. The event was set up by the
Freedom Calls Foundation, a New York-based nonprofit organization that links military personnel and
their families worldwide.
Ed Bukstel, co-founder and operations director of the organization, said the initiative began about a
year ago. It can take hours to get a good connection, he said. But when family members first see their
loved ones on the screen, they usually let out a holler.
"I love hearing that," Mr. Bukstel said.

The foundation has been holding such events nationwide, and the one yesterday was the first for the
District.
Mr. Bukstel said he has witnessed hundreds of special moments during the past year. He saw a
couple get married through a videoconference call. He has watched fathers see their newborn children
for the first time. And he has been on hand for many birthday celebrations.
But one moment stands out, he said.
"In Dallas, there was this 4-year-old little girl who had cancer," he said. "She stood right in front of the
screen with these pink crutches and kept saying, 'Wait, Daddy, let me tell you another joke.' They were
laughing and having a great time. The mother, she just sat off to the side with a tear rolling down.
Seeing that was a real punch in the gut."
John B. Harlow II, the foundation's executive director and co-founder, said the organization recently
helped a soldier talk his wife through 12 hours of labor. He said the group also received a request to
have a soldier attend his daughter's parent-teacher conference.
"It's our long-term vision that war fighters, with the technology that exists today, ought to be able to
finish a day on the battlefield and virtually come home to their family and tuck their children into bed,"
Mr. Harlow said.
Mr. Bukstel said it's common for servicemen stationed overseas to see their newborns for the first time
through a videoconference call.
Capt. Starace left for Iraq six months ago, just before Maya was born in July.
"It's sort of bittersweet," Mrs. Starace said after the family's 30-minute call. "It's kind of a weird way to
meet your father. But I think it's great. There's only so much you can see in pictures. I'm glad we got to
see him and he got to see and talk to us."
Mrs. Starace and her children, Maya and 2-year-old Marco, drove from the family's home in
Jacksonville, N.C., to talk to Capt. Starace, an intelligence officer for the Marines. His father, Ed, also
participated in the call.
Mrs. Starace said the family usually gets to communicate with Capt. Starace about once a week via e-
mail, so yesterday was a special treat.
Juliet Wolf and her four children from Oakton celebrated Christmas 13 days early, as they sang
Christmas carols and played the guitar for Marine Capt. Eric Wolf during the family's 30-minute video
phone call.

"This was great," Mrs. Wolf said. "It was just wonderful to be able to talk to him, especially this time of
year."
Capt. Wolf, who has been in Iraq for three months, calls home three or four times a week. But those
telephone calls usually don't last long, Mrs. Wolf said.
"The phone calls are usually pretty grainy," she said. "We've learned that when he calls, we say all the
important stuff first."
Videoconferencing can involve some glitches, especially if there are helicopters flying near the site
from where the troops are calling home.
Earlier in the day, Marine Sgt. Daryl Willis, 33, of Baltimore, was asking his aunts and cousins to send
him some beef jerky and the audio suddenly was lost. Sgt. Willis could hear his family, but they
couldn't hear him.
Losing the link isn't uncommon, Mr. Bukstel said.
"You must be near some helicopters," he said as he worked to fix the link. A few seconds later, Sgt.
Willis nodded yes.
Ten minutes later, the link was re-established, so Sgt. Willis and his family skipped the conversation
about beef jerky and got to the more important things in life.
"We love you so much, and we want you to come home," said Mary Lee, one of the aunts, as her eyes
welled up.
"Three more months," he said. "Just three more months."