The old man was looking at the engine. I put my groceries away in my car and continued to watch the old gentleman from about twenty five feet away.

I saw a young man in his early twenties with a grocery bag in his arm, Walking towards the old man. The old gentleman saw him coming too and took a few steps towards him.  I saw the old gentleman point to his open hood and say something.

The young man put his grocery bag into what looked like a brand new Cadillac Escalade and then turn back to the old man and I heard him yell at the old gentleman saying, "You shouldn’t even be allowed to drive a car at your age." And then with a wave of his hand, he got  in his car and peeled rubber out of the parking lot.

I saw the old gentleman pull out his handkerchief and mop his brow as he went back to his car and again looked at the engine. He then went to his wife and spoke with her and appeared to tell her it would  be okay.  I had seen enough and I approached the old man. He saw me coming and stood straight and as I got near him I said, "Looks like you’re having a problem."

He smiled sheepishly and quietly nodded his head.  I looked under the hood myself and knew that whatever the problem was, it was beyond me. Looking around I saw a gas station up the road and told the old man that I would be right back. I drove to the station and went  inside and saw three attendants working on cars.  I approached one of them and related the problem the old man had with his car and offered to pay them if they could follow me back down and help him.

The old man had pushed the heavy car under the shade of a tree and appeared to be comforting his wife. When he saw us he straightened up and thanked me for my help..  As the mechanics diagnosed the problem (overheated engine) I spoke with the old gentleman.

When I shook hands with him earlier he had noticed my Marine Corps ring and had commented about it, telling me that he had been a Marine too. I nodded and asked the usual question, "What outfit did you serve with?"

He had mentioned that he served with the first Marine Division at Tarawa, Saipan, Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal.  He had hit all the big ones and retired from the Corps after the war was over. As we talked we heard the car engine come on and saw the mechanics lower the hood. They came over to us as the old man reached for his wallet, but  was stopped by me and I told him I would just put the bill on my AAA card.

He still reached for the wallet and handed me a card that I assumed had his name and address on it and I stuck it in my pocket. We all shook hands all round again and I said my goodbye’s to his wife.

I then told the two mechanics that I would follow them back up to the station.  Once at the station I told them that they had interrupted their own jobs to come along with me and help the old man.  I said I wanted to pay for the help, but they refused to charge me.  One of them pulled out a card from his pocket looking exactly like the card the old man had given to me. Both of the men told me then, that they were Marine Corps Reserves. Once again we shook hands all around and as I was leaving, one of them told me I should look at the card the old man had given to me. I said I would and drove off.

For some reason I had gone about two blocks when I pulled over and took the card out of my pocket and looked at it for a long, long time. The name of the old gentleman was on the card in golden leaf  and under his name……..

"Congressional Medal of Honor Society."

I sat there motionless looking at the card and reading it over and over. I looked up from the card and smiled to no one but myself and marveled that on this day, four Marines had all come together, because one of us needed help.  He was an old man all right, but it felt good to have stood next to greatness and courage and an honor to have been in his presence.

Dad recently received communication from Mr. Allen Dutton, retired Navy Lieutenant Commander.  In it he says;

"…I’m the Veteran Liaison for the Mesothelioma Cancer Center (Asbestos.com); an organization devoted to assisting veterans through their application processes for VA benefits, and helping them obtain the maximum benefits for which they are entitled. I’m also a Veterans Benefit Counselor for the Veterans Assistance Network, and a retired Lieutenant Commander in the US Navy."

Allen goes on to say "Countless veterans are currently suffering from life-threatening illnesses that are a result of exposure to asbestos, a material that was commonly used in hundreds of military applications, products, and ships primarily because of its resistance to fire.  Unfortunately, asbestos-related diseases are not always recognized by the Veterans Administration, which is why I’m reaching out to veterans — in hopes of helping them win the rights to their veterans benefits."

"The Mesothelioma Cancer Center provides a complete list of occupations, ships, and shipyards that could have put our Veterans at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases. In addition, they have thousands of articles regarding asbestos and Mesothelioma and they’ve even created a veterans-specific section on their website in order to help inform them about the dangers of asbestos exposure."

This is a serious issue that affects all of us or at least someone we know. Mr. Dutton will be re-contacting me soon about the possibility of additional posts regarding  the Mesothelioma Cancer Center (Asbestos.com) and the many services they offer.  Dad would feel honored to be able to post any information that has the potential to help even one person get the help they so desperately need.