Trying something a bit different on this blog ... I've been asked so many times ..."Why do you do it?" I decided to try and answer... so here goes ...
So... on 9/22 I am going to chase this
group of men up a mountain on an 11 mile obstacle course trying to
take photographs.
Aside from the obvious reason... I mean
did you look at those guys?!... you are probably wondering why I
would do such a thing. Am I a glutton for punishment? No, actually
I don't have a prayer trying to keep up with them – thank God they
have short cuts for the 'spectators'. Am I a camera bug looking for
that most amazing shot? Well, no on that one too, in fact I am still
counting on my son giving me a very speedy tutorial session on his
camera that I am borrowing for the trip. So why? To answer that
question I need to tell you about a journey that started 12 years
ago.
I was on my treadmill one night in
April 2000. I was watching the TV show JAG. See, I am a military
brat and I married a military brat so the military theme is a welcome
one around our home. My father was fighter pilot for the Air Force
and my husband's father was a pilot for the Navy. So yes... JAG was
a staple in our household. This particular night the episode was
“King of the Fleas”. It was a rerun (thank God for the USA
network) however I had not seen it before. In the episode, Harm
(Harmon Rabb, Jr. played by David James Elliott – yes he is in the
photo above, 5th from the left.) is confronted by a
veteran in a wheelchair who needs help but is also very arrogant.
Typically, Harm had a soft spot for veterans because his father was
MIA in Vietnam. (Harm's search for his father was an underlying
story arc in the first few seasons of JAG) however on this particular
day Harm blows him off until he realizes there is something to his
story and decides to help. Rosco, the veteran, has murdered a man he
claims was the camp commander at the POW camp he was held in many
years ago. As Roscoe starts to understand that Harm's interest is
more about what he may be able to tell him about his father instead
of listening to his story he plays a very cruel joke on Harm. That's
where my story begins.
See – in the show, Harm looks out the
window, starring into nothingness as he defends his father. I
recognized those faraway eyes – I saw them in the mirror on many a
day. I recognized the look, the look of a child; scared yet strong,
helpless but hopeful, confused and questioning but at the same time
an understanding that couldn't really be understood by such a young
child, alone. I stumbled off the treadmill, shaking and sobbing.
Memories came flooding over me. Images in my head that were
startling and odd but familiar. I cried for hours, remembering the
nights before my dad left for Vietnam, his face, his voice, his
promises. For weeks after that I was haunted by nightmares; swirling
images of Harm's (David James Elliott's) face my dad's face, my Dad's
voice promising me he would come home, promising he would not be shot
down, Harm's voice my dads face, on and on they went. I struggled
with the nightmares. Why were they happening? My dad came home! I
had one of the happy endings! So why? I did talk to my mom and dad
about them, learned some things I didn't know, apparently I have
blocked many of the memories of the year my Dad was gone. But beyond
that, I've never really figured anything out. I wish I could say
there was some stunning revelation but I can't.
It did, however, lead me on a quest to
figure out who this David James Elliott fellow was and how his
performance could affect me the way it did. I was not one who had
ever been much of a celebrity hound so I really wasn't sure how to go
about that although I did realize that the first step was to find out
his name. Yes, ashamed to admit, I never paid that close attention
to the credits, so up until then I didn't know Mr Elliott's name.
So, armed with his name I set out on the internet to find him out.
And find him I did! What a presence he and JAG had on the net! Soon
that quest to know who he was turned into a quest to meet him. I had
a burning question to ask. I knew enough from other actors and from
watching some behind the scenes or how it was made type segments etc
that actors pull from personal experience when they need certain
emotions. I had to know what was in David's past that allowed him to
understand me so well. OK so he didn't understand 'me' but you get
my drift. It didn't take long before reality reared it's ugly head
and I realized that the idea of meeting this TV star was a pipe
dream. I lived in Fort Wayne, IN after all. So I set about trying to
forget about him and the whole treadmill thing but it wasn't easy
because that night on the treadmill he had truly entered my heart and
took up residence with a lifetime lease.
A few weeks later I did venture on the
net again just to see if there was anything news worthy – there
was! David was going to star in a movie titled Dodson's Journey. It
was based on a book titled Faithful Travelers by James Dodson. I
read the book and it's prequel, Final Rounds. They affected me
deeply. Mr. Dodson was telling the story of his father as he battled
cancer in the first book and how he dealt with his death in the
second. I couldn't have read them at a better time because my dad
had just been diagnosed with bladder cancer. I wrote Mr Dodson, and
he answered. That had never happened before! We even spoke on the
phone a few times. What a great and intuitive man! And I am so
blessed to have had contact with him for the short time that I did.
And all because of one David James Elliott.
In May of 2001, my husband came home
from work to say he is going to LA for two weeks for work, did I want
to go? I home schooled my kids at that time so we had no
responsibilities to keep us in Fort Wayne so, yes! of course I want
to go!
I had made contact with a lovely lady
at JAG productions named Harriet so I told her of my upcoming trip
and she facilitated getting me on the set of JAG to meet David James
Elliott. I was walking on air!! And when we met... he was so
gracious and so sweet. I am not sure what I expected – arrogance
I suppose, he was after all a TV star. I was so taken with him, that
my burning question left me and I just enjoyed talking with him and
when I left that night I knew I had to see him again. And that I
did. This is going to sound nuts too you I am sure – it sounds
nuts to me as I write this but 6 months later I flew out to Palm
Desert to watch him play in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. At this
point I had it bad, and although it wasn't the first time meeting
him, I was practically tongue tied. I chastised myself for months
after that. But never fear – he played the BHCC again the next
year and yes I went and this time I did speak with him. I told him
what happened (condensed) and about my father and he was patient with
me and then he was tongue tied. Was it possible to adore this man
any more than I did??
One very special aspect of this journey
are the fellow JAG fans I have connected with. I wasn't so unique after
all! Whether it was because of the military connection or the 'hero'
aspect of Harmon Rabb, David James Elliott had affected many lives.
The stories I heard, from elderly women who saw their young military
husbands of earlier years, to Moms that saw their sons that due to
9/11 entered the military, to those that just needed something
positive in their life while dealing with a tragedy; Harmon Rabb Jr
and David James Elliott filled those hearts. But it didn't stop
there... turns out that Dodson's Journey had touched many a heart
like mine, and after JAG … there was The Man Who Lost Himself; a
movie based on the true story of Terry Evanshen who survived a
horrendous car accident but was left with complete memory loss from
brain injury. The journey back from an accident like that was
portrayed so beautifully by Mr. Elliott. The care and tenderness he
put into the character is just another testament to his talent but to
the families dealing with that very scary and tremendously difficult
situation he was once again a beacon of strength.
I have continued to follow Mr.
Elliott's career, JAG and after. I have also continued to follow him
around the country whenever he has appeared at a public event that I
could get to. Life has changed much in these 12 years and now I am
the webmaster of his Official Website. I am thrilled and honored
that this man trusts me in that capacity but I am more thrilled that
the man I have come to know since that night on the treadmill is
worthy of my adoration.
You see, along this journey, I have
found a way to give back to those in need. It has been an evolution
from attending JAG fanfests to collecting & creating memorabilia
that are raffled/auctioned/sold from the website. Over the years I
have had so much help from so many different partners that it warms
my heart beyond description. Some of the organizations we have given
to are The NMCRS, The Red Cross, The Elizabeth Glazier Foundation,
and The Wounded Warrior Foundation. Additionally, we created a
bursary at The Stratford Festival Shakespeare School (where David's
career began) which has been in place for 7 years! In total we have
donated over $60,000. I am very proud of that – not only because
it is a large sum of money but because it represents dollar by dollar
the respect and admiration that a group of women have for a talented
actor and a desire to honor him by giving back to others. I am so
grateful and blessed from this journey and the people I have met
along the way, the friendships that have been created and the lessons
that have been learned. I also love the more “whole me”
that has emerged. God has such a wonder filled way of giving us what
we need when we need it whether we see it or not.
So... all of this leads me back to
today. Yes, I am going because of Mr. Elliott... yes, to get photos
for the website for his fans to enjoy but once again there is so much
more to the 'why'. Somehow this journey is always bigger than he or
I.
The group of men pictured above call
themselves The Stray Dogs. The event is The Tough Mudder. You have
heard of it I am sure. The competitions take place all over the
country and the proceeds from the events benefit The Wounded Warrior
Foundation. A wonderful organization that does so much for our
wounded young men & women fighting for our freedoms. More than
that … this year The Stray Dogs have a wounded warrior running the
trail with them. His name is Dorian Gardner a Marine Sgt. and he is
legally blind. Legally Blind!! Dorian fills me with an inspiration
that can't be measured and I can't wait to meet him! Read his story
here:
and if you are so moved … support The
Stray Dogs by donating to …
Stay tuned … and wish me luck!
