Dear Mr. Stash:
I am a Sergeant First Class stationed at FOB O’Ryan about 50 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq. I arrived here last month for a one year tour of duty as an infantryman. My National Guard unit is out of Oswego, New York, with our headquarters in Albany.
I want to thank you for your magazine. We have one copy of the Spring 2004 edition and it is being circulated amongst several hundred troops from the Finger Lakes region.
I have seen soldiers showing pictures in your magazine to Iraqi interpreters with much excitement saying, “See, this is where I am from.” The expression in the soldiers’ eyes and the anxiety in their voices are a great tribute to your magazine. Homesickness is temporarily placed on hold as they flip through the pages, momentarily taking themselves away from this barren country to the rich and bountiful countryside pictured throughout Life in the Finger Lakes.
Morale of soldiers is a concern and responsibility of leaders at all levels. Your magazine helps contribute to a positive mindset for soldiers in Iraq and I thought you might like to know the effect you are having on soldiers away from their homes in New York.
– Sincerely, SFC Bobby Nolan, 2/108 Infantry
A quick note to let you know how much I enjoyed the four issues I’d received last year culminating with the Winter issue which featured the pond at the end of Benson Road in Fishers. I grew up on that road and recognized that picture immediately. It brought back summer walks where the snapping turtles sunned on the logs, how beautiful the trees were, and how much I envied the family who lived at the end of that long driveway.
– Jan, Hopewell
I got to see your magazine for the first time in my doctor’s waiting room. Wanted to take it home with me, but felt too guilty.
– Jim, Homer
Of course, we don’t recommend taking the issue from the doctor’s office, but there are three easy ways to contact us to get a valued subscription. You can take a card from the issue and send it in; you can visit our website at www.Lifein
theFingerLakes.com and sign up for a subscription; or you can simply call us at (800) 344-0559. You will be pleased with the results of your effort.
– Editor
Thank you for including the moving story of Safe Haven, Oswego, in your fine publication (“Safe Haven,” vol. 3, no. 4, Winter 2003, pages 39-43). Safe Haven is a part of U.S. history which should be publicized, and is an important site of historic interest in the Oswego area. To add to the data given on page 43, in the paragraph beginning “thirty-five years”:
The funds raised for the monument, and the arrangements for the dedication and the 40th anniversary of the refugees’ stay in Oswego, were the result of the work done by the Syracuse Chapter of Na’amat, with the help of Ruth Gruber. Na’amat is a Jewish women’s organization whose primary mission is to help support the varied social services needed by Israeli women and children. We in Syracuse felt that the need to mark the Safe Haven event was imperative. People came from Syracuse and Rochester, as well as Oswego, to participate with the former refugees in the dedication ceremony.
– A. Pearlman, Syracuse
I am a new subscriber and just received the Spring issue of Life in the Finger Lakes. It is all I hoped your magazine to be and more!
The photography is what I noticed first. Then the refreshing variety of articles. You do real justice for all the advertisements; the layout is classy and artistically done.
When I retired from work I had planned to travel all over the Finger Lakes region to learn and enjoy the beautiful area. I am originally from the Catskill area that has breathtaking views and harsh, windy winters. I moved to Liverpool so I could catch my breath in the winter.
I retired from work disabled and not able to travel very far, so the next best thing was to subscribe to Life in the Finger Lakes. I’m very happy I did!
Phyllis, Liverpool
