Remembering 9/11: 'Old Soldier' Enlists
Operation Yellow Ribbon chairman Michael Frangadakis joins the state reserves in his late 50s.
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Just after 9/11, Los Gatos Realtor Michael Frangadakis, 64, went to the U.S. Army recruiting office in San Jose and asked if there was anything an "old soldier from the '60s" could do to help the military as a civilian.
A young buck sergeant gave the Vietnam War veteran a puzzled look and asked him his age. When he told him he was 54 years old, the sergeant and others in the room chuckled upon hearing that someone over the 42-age-limit wanted to join the reserves. "Needless to say, I walked out very embarrassed," remembers Frangadakis.
But as the country went to war following the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil, Frangadakis wanted to do something to help the young men and women being deployed to the Middle East.
In 2003, he started the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno organization Operation Yellow Ribbon to support local troops and their families. There are more than 60 soldiers from both communities serving in either Iraq or Afghanistan, according to Frangadakis.
In 2004, at a meeting with fellow Realtor Don Newhall, he learned that his friend was sad to retire from the California State Military Reserve, a component of the U.S. National Guard trained in Homeland Security.
To his surprise, the organization accepted "older" soldiers and average civilians who want to serve their country and still lead normal lives.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would be back in uniform helping train soldiers being deployed on how to save themselves and their buddies," says Frangadakis.
The father of three is now a senior combat life-saving instructor who has taught at every major military base in Northern California. He's also trained in homeland security and is a certified military emergency management specialist, having worked two state emergencies that involved wildfires.
"I wanted our citizens to appreciate what our military was doing for us and the sacrifice involved. I want our troops to feel the gratitude they deserve from all of us, unlike the opposite feelings of the war in the '60s," Frangadakis says about his reasons for starting Operation Yellow Ribbon and joining the state reserves.
This Sunday, as the nation commemorates the 10th anniversary of 9/11, Frangadakis plans to visit the Veterans Administration Hospital in Palo Alto to offer emotional support to soldiers dealing with all kinds of post-war issues and needs, including mental health rehabilitation and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Check out ActionAmerica.com if you'd like to tell the country how you're turning the events of 9/11 into positive action.
Amie Sue
9:09 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
What great men! Hats off to you Mike and Don!
Vikki Foley-Boyd
9:13 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
This is a fascinating story that tells one small story of the dedication of Mr. Frangadakis who despite being turned down due to age, found another way to fight for our freedom right here from Los Gatos.
PS: If Hollywood comes knocking I think Alan Arkin should play Mike. I think Arkin even has a son that could play young Mike. :)
AR
9:14 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
oh god make it stop. have you not noticed the lack of comments on this endless parade of 9/11 drivel? for ten years we have been battered, saturated and drowned with 9/11 babble on a near-hourly basis. this media saturation has not given us "somber moments to reflect", but has transformed this nation into an angry, paranoid bully obsessed with self-pity and misguided concepts of revenge. and whats more loathsome is that this topic has become "owned" by war hawks who are spending this nation into oblivion.
nekobaka
9:48 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
At least you invoke God's name. I wish it had never started because of the murders of 3000+ innocent people. I guess we should forget it and move on. Right? Wrong. We were attacked and the attacks continue. I wonder if you were around on 7 Dec. '41.
I lost friends at the Pentagon and neighbors lost relatives at both the towers and the Pentagon. Does that make each of us a "paranoid bully obsessed with self-pity and misguided concepts of revenge"? Or does it make us mourners asking for justice?
Vikki Foley-Boyd
4:13 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
AR, You may want to stay home on the 11th if the flags flying from vehicles is to much to bear.
AR
10:29 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
well nekobaka, tell me how many iraqis or afghans were among the 9/11 attackers. zero. tell me how many saudis were among the attackers. now tell me how much trade we do with saudi arabia, with whom the united states has never questioned as an "ally". ask yourself what hostilities or provocations came from iraq prior to the invasion or 9/11. none. indeed iraq had been subjected to constant flyovers from nato since the first gulf war. ask yourself how many suicide bombers were in iraq prior to the invasion: none. we brought terrorism to iraq. ask yourself if the murders of three thousand americans justifies the deaths of over a hundred thousand innocent iraqis (including children), who have died due to the unwarranted invasion, who never provoked the united states or endangered its citizens. even former president bush accepts that the iraq war was founded on lies. oh, saddam was a dictator you say? look at some of our "allies".
as for afghanistan, an initial justification for rooting out a terrorist safe haven died shortly after the invasion: all of the concerned parties left the area to go to pakistan. the people we are fighting now are the same people we funded against the soviets (read "ghost wars", its at the lg library), and of course we are fighting the children of men we have killed over the course of eleven years, in which time we would have fought ww2 twice from beginning to end of the US commitment.
AR
10:51 am on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
but just to show you that i'm not totally soft on terrorism, here is a bad guy the US could "take out"....Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi. he fought and likely killed US soldiers in afghanistan. his soldiers have been recruited from the front lines of iraq, where they like also killed americans. oh whoops, they're now getting NATO support as part of the libyan rebellion. the libyan rebels are openly discussing the formation of an islamic state, but the US doesn't mind because unlike qaddafi, the rebels promised open season on drilling rights for the west, and libya has a lot of high quality oil. lest you think i am getting my info from some commie-pinko rag, here is fox news reporting this:
http://nation.foxnews.com/libya/2011/03/25/libyan-rebel-commander-admits-his-fighters-have-al-qaeda-links
nekobaka
1:24 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
You have such a tired, stale argument. The stats you have offered have been dis-proven many times. Not by the "dreaded" Fox News, but by your media. The talking points you use are just that. Talking points. They started during the '04 election after the "loyal opposition" had been for the war for a few years. BTW: The G.I.'s are all volunteers. Not all from minority and poor families, but from all walks of life and they believe in what they do.
Now over the years I have learned that it is best to ignore a whining kid. So I bid you adieu. Write away to you heart's content.
AR
2:05 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
i made no statements about the race or socio-economic status of US soldiers. indeed if you review my comments you will note i am not critical at all of those who volunteer. its their elected officials and we the voters who are at fault, these failed policies absolutely came out of a democracy, albeit one obsessed with geopolitics as a profit mechanism.
everything else i said is indeed "stale" - its been accurate for ten long years, and will still be accurate in 2020 when we are trying to extricate ourselves from iraq and afghanistan
Rev Dr christopher Flesoras
5:44 pm on Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Mike,
A great story and a blessed service that you provide our State. The soldiers, their families as well as our veterans are grateful for your service in the CSMR. Hopefully, more will be inspired to offer their time and talent through your example! God bless you as well as those that you serve.