Freedom

Robert Morrison. I’m assuming that you are an American who is proud to express his feelings toward a subject (“Prostitutes could be profitable for city,” Nov. 30). As I can see, you are excising your freedom of speech with disclosing your displeasure. It amazes me that such a person who uses his freedom of speech neglects the fact that his right to express opinion is a direct result of a revolution by the use of firearms; yes Morrison, guns, not prostitutes, gave you the freedom to criticize your country.

Tribute a testimony to our freedom I want to express my thanks to the pilots who take the time to fly classic fighters over Glendale on Memorial Day. For many years my children and I have run outside, hearing their approach, to watch their formation. I’ve felt pride explaining to my kids how it was a tribute to those brave men and women who had sacrificed their lives defending our freedom. The vision of our founding fathers, this great republic, lives on to a large measure because of the sacrifice made by these men and women.

SOUTH GLENDALE — Wheelchair-bound and still recovering from injuries suffered three years ago when she went through a windshield and fell 50 feet into the Los Angeles River, Narine Bagdasaryan on Monday was finally able to leave her house by herself. For the last two years, she has relied entirely on help from her mother and sister. “This is the first time I have ever left the house by myself,” she said. “Now I can do anything on my own.” Bagdasaryan received a brand-new aluminum wheelchair ramp Monday as a donation from TMP Services, a Colton-based company that installs Americans With Disabilities Act-compliant ramps, after her ramps were stolen from outside her home Thursday.

Spring break for some Rosemont Middle School students meant a trip to St. Louis. The Seventh Annual American Freedom Tour spent spring break week traveling the Midwest and getting an up close and personal look at history. They began their trip in Chicago where they climbed the Sears Tower and had dinner at Tommy Guns Garage, where they also enjoyed a play based on the prohibition era. Then they moved on to Springfield, Mo. and laid a wreath at Lincoln?s Tomb and visited the Lincoln Presidential Library.

Glendale resident Charley Egan kicked, squatted and ran in the name of freedom Monday during the Freedom on the Center Court boot camp at the Staples Center. Egan was one of 70 athletes who ran up and down the Staples Center bleachers as part of the Glendale-based All About You Wellness boot camp in commemoration of Martin Luther King day. “It’s kind of a new beginning with the inauguration coming up,” the 54-year-old said. The idea was for participants to celebrate the freedom to express themselves, boot camp co-founder Elaine Miller said.

A Glendale man serving in Iraq is featured in a documentary film and book project that producers hope will give the public a better understanding of those who serve in the military. For Col. James D. McGinley of the U.S. Marine Corps, the film, “Warriors . . . In Their Own Words,” gave him the chance to talk about the challenges the troops faced in 2006 in Ramadi, which is in the Al Anbar Province in Iraq. “It was extremely dangerous,” he said, adding that it’s completely the opposite today, as shops are open and people are walking or driving freely.

As his plane went down over the Pacific Ocean on April 24, 1942, George Haney was praying he would live past his first assignment. The 93-year-old Glendale resident and World War II veteran was the copilot on a B-17 Flying Fortress en route to Hawaii when the first of four engines failed and started the aircraft’s fall from 10,000 feet. “We knew that we were losing engines,” said Haney, a retired Army major. “We knew we’d have to make an emergency landing.

It’s easy to forget amid all the partisan bickering, but election years in the United States are a time to count our blessings. Unlike some countries around the world that are barely holding democracy together, we have a system that works like a well-oiled machine — every voter gets to visit the polls and vote exactly how he or she wants, with no fear of retribution if the other side wins. And regardless of whether a Democrat or Republican is in office, we always welcome voices on both sides of any political issue.

Siran Kazanchyan and her two granddaughters laid out a plaid blanket Sunday on the lawn of Verdugo Park to celebrate a historical cultural milestone —the 17th anniversary of Armenian independence. “The event is a great way to teach my granddaughters about Armenian culture,” Kazanchyan said. “Even though they were born here, I always try to help them learn about our history. Every time they come over to my house, we only speak Armenian.” Kazanchyan was one of an expected 5,000 people who filled Verdugo Park to take part in the 10th Annual Armenian Independence Day Festival.

For 48 Rosemont Middle School eighth-graders, history came to life as they strolled through Trinity Church, stood on the decks of “Old Ironsides” and discovered how rumors and irrational fear can destroy lives in the Salem Witch Trial museum. The students were part of the American Freedom Tour sponsored by the school’s history classes. “This was a really good tour,” said history teacher and tour coordinator Lynn McGinnis. Every year during spring break McGinnis plans a historical trip that highlights specific times in American history from the birth of the nation to the Civil War. Golf tournaments, rummage sales and pancake breakfasts are just some of the fundraising ways that help students pay for their trip.