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a doctor that believed new Moms should diet. and ‘keep their weight down’!—as a result Kimberly was also a little underweight but still a healthy six and a half pounds . In the room next door Sheldon Best and his wife were enjoying their new arrival too—also a beautiful little baby girl! Several other Marine Lt.s’ and their wives welcomed new babies to the world that Spring. It was a bitter sweet time because we knew that we were preparing to go to war and would be leaving our new families way too soon. Preparations began —on the home front for a deployment that we knew was coming—we had just learned that our deployment would be on May 24. Kay and I had six weeks to pull together our plans and put them in motion. Kay and I wanted her to go to her parent’s home in Bramwell, W.Va, after I left—her support system would be there in the hometown she grew up in. Bramwell was close to Bluefield, W.Va. where my parents lived—they would be part of that support system. So arrangements were made for the movers to move all of our stuff to storage with exception of a few things that Kay wanted in W.Va. Next was getting our car back to W.Va. because Kay was going to fly, along with her Mother , who was coming to Carlsbad to help with the move. Another Lt. from Basic School was heading back to the East Coast to Join Force Recon—Joe Laterra agreed to drive our Nash Rambler across Country and leave the car at the Charleston, W.Va. Airport where he would embark on the rest of his journey. Even though I paid Joe a pitiful amount to cover his expenses he accomplished the mission without a hitch—and I am forever grateful for his generous gesture to help us out. The Marine Officers’ Brotherhood was alive and well! The night I left Kay and our new baby Kimberly is one I’ll never forget—the
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