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Day 4: Omaha, Nebraska

The crowd began to gather in front of the War Memorial in Omaha.

Day 4 of the “We Support the Troops and Their Mission” Bus Tour resumed with a stop in Omaha, Nebraska at Memorial Park.  The beautiful scene provided an inspiring backdrop for the rally and press conference.  Deborah Johns and Joseph Williams spoke to the crowd, and military families continued to turn out.

Brad Socha, of Omaha, wanted to come out to support the troops because he has two cousins in Iraq.  One is scheduled to return in four weeks, while the other’s has not yet been determined.

Also coming out was Lorraine Denherder, and Gloria and Ryan Dahlquist.  The trio came out to support the troops and the President.  Denherder has a nephew in the Marines, who will be deployed to Iraq in January.  “Nebraska is very behind the troops and President Bush,” they said.  “If we want to keep our freedom, we better take care of business.  We can fight terrorists over there or over here.”

Jim Breeling listens to Deborah Johns speak.

Jim Breeling, also of Omaha, was quite outspoken.  Sporting a Michael Savage T-shirt which read, “Liberalism is a mental disease,” he took time off from work to turn out and add some reason.  “We [the supporters attending the rally] weren’t bused in here.  We’re not paid to be here.  We have jobs; we have lives.  We’re not part of some group with an agenda.  We’re Americans.”

Showing to represent his fellow members of the military was SA Jered Kotschwar, of Omaha.  He is currently on leave from the United States Navy and is stationed at Great Lakes, Illinois.  SA Kotschwar is a hospital corpsman, a job which works very closely with the Marines.  This makes it highly likely that he will be deployed to Iraq in the very near future.

Day 4 will continue with a rally and press conference in Des Moines, Iowa in front of the State Capital.  From there, it heads to Rockford, Illinois before stopping for the night in Chicago.  At each stop banners will be available to be signed with messages of support for the troops, and tour t-shirts will be for sale.  The banners will be sent to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.