Miracle of Saudi
Last week, the ATD note contained Bob Green’s marvelous story “A Soldier Never Forgets North Platte,” a fantastic follow-up to his book The Miracle of North Platte. I received many moving responses, but the one below was a particularly powerful parallel. It’s from an Elder at our church, Schuyler Stuckey, who taught with Aramco in Saudi Arabia for 20+ years.
The North Platte story reminds of our experience in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield/Storm. Not long after the invasion of Kuwait on Aug 2, 1990, groups of Aramcons began serving our soldiers who were being deployed to Saudi Arabia to help free Kuwait from Iraq’s control. From mid-August to early January, convoys of private citizens made trips up north towards the Kuwait border to feed our soldiers.
Initially it was cold drinks, ice and snacks. The ice & cold drinks were especially welcome in the 110 plus degree desert. As time went on the meals became more elaborate. At Thanksgiving, we took out full turkey dinners. Some even deep-fried turkeys out in the desert. These home cooked meals were a real treat compared to the MREs they had. In exchange for the food we provided, we were treated to an MRE. We gave the soldiers magazines & books to help relieve the boredom of sitting & waiting, and Bible study with prayer were part of many of our visits.
Probably what meant the most to them was that we were there to visit and encourage these young men/women. I remember one encounter where the soldiers took turns driving my red Mustang convertible and they took us for rides in their Humvees. On many occasions we got the names and contact information of the soldiers’ families back in the U.S. We then wrote or called the family member to let them know how THEIR soldier was doing. We were also privileged to have many soldiers in our home once or twice a week. We fed them a home cooked meal, washed their dirty clothes, visited and normally had a prayer time. The soldiers really enjoyed playing with our pets and got a thrill out of playing with any little kids that might be there. Even though it was terribly expensive, we also gave them the opportunity to call home for a very short talk. This was a highlight of the evening.
Our final gathering in the desert took place after the freeing of Kuwait. Hundreds of us helped feed thousands of soldiers in the desert of Saudi Arabia. This was the only time the military helped with the expense. They provided the meat (hamburgers & hotdogs) and we did the rest. 28 years later we are still in contact with one of those soldiers. To God be the Glory!
