Brawley, CA 1420

Veterans Corner

Sometimes there are no need for words





IF YOU DON'T WANT TO STAND BEHIND OUR TROOPS, PLEASE, FEEL FREE TO STAND IN FRONT OF ONE.


VERY INTERESTING

Starting in 1941, an increasing number of British airmen found themselves as involuntary guests of the Third Reich, and the Crown was casting about for ways and means to facilitate their escape. Now obviously, one showing not only where stuff was, but also showing the locations of "safe houses" where a POW on-the-lam could go for food and shelter. Paper maps had some real drawbacks-they make a lot of noise when you open and fold them, they wear out rapidly, and if they get wet, they turn to mush.
Someone in Mi-5(similar to America's OSS) got the idea of printing escape maps on silk. It's durable, can be scrunched-up into tiny wads, unfolded as many times as needed, and makes no noise whatsoever. At that time there was only one manufacturer in Great Britain that had perfected the technology of printing on silk, and that was John Waddington Ltd. When approached by the government, the firm was only too happy to do it's bit for the war effort. By pure coincidence, Waddington was also the U.K. Licensee for the popular American board game, Monopoly. Ass it happened, "games and pastimes" was a category of item qualified for insertion into 'Care packages', dispatched by the International Red Cross, to prisoners of war. Under the strictest secrecy, in a securely guarded and inaccessible old workshop on the grounds of Waddington's, a group of sworn-to-secrecy employees began mass producing escape maps, keyed to each region of Germany or Italy where Allied POW camps were located (Red Cross pkgs. Where delivered in accordance with that same regional system). When processed, these maps could be folded into such tiny dots that they would actually fit inside a Monopoly playing piece. As long as they were at it, the clever workmen also managed to add: a playing token, containing a small magnetic compass, a two part metal file that could easily be screwed together, useful amounts of genuine high-denomination German, Italian and French currency, hidden within piles of Monopoly money!
British and American air crews were advised before taking off on their first mission, how to identify a 'rigged' Monopoly set, by means of a tiny red dot, one cleverly rigged to look like an ordinary printing glitch, located in the corner of the Free Parking square. Of the estimated 35,000 Allied POWs who successfully escaped, an estimated one third were aided in their flight by the rigged Monopoly sets. Everyone who did so was sworn to secrecy indefinitely, since the British Government might want to use this highly successful ruse in still another future war. The story wasn't de-classified until 2007.





YOUR HELP IS NEEDED


It is time to start sending packages to our adopted troops. They need powered drink mixes to give them a change from plain water. Gator aid and Kool-Aid are two of the most popular. They also would like cookies...the ones in plastic containers from Costco or Vons are good. Any kind of snack in containers, hard candy, jerky (beef) are good items. Trail mix or nuts are welcome treats.


The box at the Lodge is empty and your help is needed to fill it. So please bring in a donation.


Everyday you wake up, take time to remember the 58,479 Members

of the armed services that never came home from Vietnam War

KIA/POW/MIA...ALL WAYS IN OUR HEARTS AND
MINDS.





Please do not forget to send a picture or yourself, in uniform if possible. But any picture will do I am trying to get this special part of the Wall going, I need your help.

New to the Wall is a flag and a plaque given to us for our service to both Veterans and Active Duty Troops. Come in and see it. You will burst your buttons with pride!!
Please become a part of this and send in your pictures

Share your stories with us. E-mail them to dragoncolectr@sbcglobal.net or mail them to Veterans P.O. Box 1299 Brawley, Ca. 92227


" TO BE A VETERAN, ONE MUST KNOW AND DETERMINE ONE'S PRICE FOR FREEDOM"