Locals marking Veterans Day differently Locals marking Veterans Day differently (November 11, 2005)

By Jon Wiener

Members of the Air National Guard 129th Rescue Wing celebrated their return home from the Middle East on Saturday with a troop appreciation day at Moffett Field.

The unit had deployed 200 personnel and three helicopters to Afghanistan and Djibouti to assist with military operations there. In two months, the unit made 20 combat rescues.

At the same time the unit deployed to the Middle East, 12 parajumpers flew to New Orleans to assist in post-Katrina rescue efforts, rescuing 212 people in a four-day span. One of three rescue wings in the country, the 129th has also done tours of duty in Turkey, Kuwait and Iraq.

Meanwhile, as the military was celebrating the airmen's heroism, others were planning to demonstrate against the war. Mountain View Voices for Peace was planning to join in the protests against Secretary of State Colin Powell's appearances at De Anza College on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Mountain View resident Karen Meredith, whose son Ken Ballard died in Iraq in May 2004, was scheduled to speak Wednesday along with Cindy Sheehan. The two last joined in camping out in front of President Bush's vacation estate this August and then following him to the White House for a massive demonstration on the two-year anniversary of the war.

Meredith was also scheduled to speak at a peace vigil the following night at Palo Alto's First Baptist Church. Protesters at De Anza were planning an interfaith service of their own for lunchtime on Friday, Veteran's Day.

E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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