DALLAS (ABP) — Warm welcomes for returning American troops have become familiar sights in some airports. But departing troops need more spiritual care, say some who are trying to meet that need.
“On the welcome side, the USO, the families and the general public are all there for the celebration,” said Bobby Martin, who serves on the board of directors for Dallas-Fort Worth Airport Interfaith Chaplaincy. “But on the departure side, it's a sad time. It's all business, and it's sometimes three, four or even five hours spent waiting.”
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is a major departure and arrival point for troops deployed overseas — one inbound flight and one outbound flight every day. Early on, airport chaplains decided to focus their energy and resources on the departing military personnel, but they still found the task overwhelming, said Martin, church program ministries director for the Dallas Baptist Association.
“They asked me to help with volunteers out there, and we've used the Victim Relief Ministries chaplains to augment the work of the chaplains at the airport,” he said.
The trained volunteers have found many of the troops receptive to their presence at the airport departure gate, said Gene Grounds, founding director of Victim Relief Ministries, an interdenominational program birthed by Texas Baptist Men.
“For the inbound troops, it's all joy and happiness. But for the outbound troops, there's a lot of apprehension,” said Grounds, a layman at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano.
The volunteer chaplains spend time among the departing troops, offering encouragement and assurance that people will pray for them. They particularly look for personnel who are sitting alone — either obviously showing emotion or visibly withdrawn, Grounds noted.
“Some just say ‘thanks,' and we move on. Others are eager to tell you their story,” he said. “Some will ask for prayer for a wife or mom.”
To a significant degree, the volunteer chaplains provide a “ministry of presence,” said V.A. Trussell, retired pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Weatherford and a Victim Relief Ministries volunteer. “We're there to represent the Lord.”
As the troops board their flight, they are given a packet containing a New Testament, a small wooden cross, several booklets with encouraging spiritual messages and a card on which they can write prayer requests.
“They're on a long flight with nothing but the airlines magazine in the seat in front of them and the packet we give them,” Grounds said. “We feel confident most of them at least open the packets to see what is in them, and many read what we give them.”
Once the military personnel are seated on the airplane, a volunteer chaplain walks the aisles collecting the completed prayer cards and offering last-minute words of comfort.
Finally, Martin noted, a chaplain is given a microphone. Heads are bowed as the chaplain prays for God's blessing and protection for the troops.
“Then they close the doors, and 19 hours later, they are in Iraq,” Martin said. “But the last words they hear in America before they leave are a prayer of blessing and words of assurance: ‘We'll be praying for you. Godspeed.'”