Michael Laubs, American Patriot in Afghanistan

The recent fund drive for me, put on by blogger friends, raised helpful amounts of cash.  It also introduced me to some great people across the nation and the globe.  One donor was Michael Laubs, who donated a whopping $150!  I noticed that Michael had a military address, so wrote and asked if he were in the military.  Here was his response:

Cougars at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan

No sir. I am a former Marine (a hundred years ago) who has experienced the hell that has currently engulfed you. After purchasing a home and paying for 2 years, my wife hurt her back and was no longer able to work. She couldn't prove it was work related and social security being the liberal institution it is, refused her claims for 3 years. During that time I depleted all savings, sold all possessions that had value and when I was to the point of bankruptcy, I told the bank to take it. I'm now working in Afghanistan with the Marines on the MRAP's, Mine Resistant, Ambush Protected trucks. I sure do wish you the absolute best and will pray that the Lord will continue to bless you and provide a way where there is none. Take care and keep up the good work. If McCain is pulling for you, I have no reason not to help.

I wrote back:

Well Mike, the work you are doing is far more important than anything I have ever done. I am grateful for your service to our country. My wife had a similar experience -- she became disabled through severe carpal tunnel and was required by the workers compensation insurance to file for disability with the SSA. She was also refused, so took it to court acting as her own attorney and won, was paid for four years of back social security disability. That was the major source of our savings and is now gone.

Your story is similar to my own, but you have now found work that is more than useful, it is essential to our armed forces. God bless you and everything you have suffered for and all that you have accomplished. May you be safe over there and return home safely.

I then asked Mike who he works for, the army, Dept of Defense?  He replied back:

MATV's at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan

No, actually, I am a contractor and work for a company called VSE. They are headquartered in Alexandria,Va. I had just spent 8 months building the RG-33 at Letterkenny Army Depot in Pa.,and was listening to the contractor stories from some of the guys there, did a little digging, and liked what I was hearing. My brother Ray found out about VSE, got hired, and told me about it all in one day. He went to Iraq and I came here. 

I got here Dec 2, 08. Spent 4 months at Bagram Air Base, a month at Kandahar and then came down south here to Camp Bastion, a British base. Camp Leatherneck was at the beginning stages of being a work in progress. Our job is to ensure that the trucks that come in get the white glove inspection, everything has to work as advertized, before it gets issued to the units. Once issued, we shift to sustainment of the vehicles. Something breaks, quits working or the truck gets hit (IED) we put it back together. Thats about the gist of it.

We work 7-12 hour days, although we have seen half days off for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years (ssshhhh.....). Some have questioned why the extreme work hours and it's simple....the kids don't get a break from war, we're here to support them, so we don't either. Sure would like to be about 20 years younger though. That pretty much sums up the biography.

Mike noted that he loves to read conservative blogs, and described some of his favorites.

I enjoy reading conservative blogs. Having just a taste of journalism in middle and high school, I had aspirations of writing so it's fun to read what LCR, The Other McCain, Powerline, Dan Riehl, Hot Air, Flopping Aces, Allied Liberty News, Ace of Spades and Reaganite Republican are writing about. Yours I hadn't stumbled into yet, but is now in the favorites column. I'm starting to get the guys around me reading these posts as well. I'm having fun. I want to encourage you and the others listed here to keep up the great and important work that you are doing. We here feel that this is the only legitimate source of news that hasn't been tainted with bias or been polished. Thank you for what you do. 

Thank you Mike!!

Photos above were supplied by Mike Laubs


Note:  This post was done with advance permission from Mike, and he assured me there was nothing in it that  would invade his privacy or undermine the security of U.S. operations in Afghanistan.