Dear Editor,

A simple thank you for providing the online access to your newspaper.

I am a graduate of Chilton County High School, 1988, and the University of Montevallo, 1994.

I was commissioned into the Army upon my graduation from Montevallo and have been in service to our country ever since.

I still have friends and family that live in Chilton County so I like to check in from time to time even from 6,000 miles away in Afghanistan.

My father and sister still live there, John Franks and Sherri Dawson, as well as my other family, Red and Linda Turnipseed.

I have some very good friends in Liz, Tony, Ada, and Sara Beth Huntley as well as Sibley and Rhonda Reynolds.

I also saw in a recent article a good friend of mine Greg DeJarnett who is now principal at our alma mater, CCHS — very glad to hear that.

I am currently in Afghanistan on my fourth deployment in support of the global war on terror in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

When I get a free moment, I get on the Internet to see how things are going back home.

It’s because of the good people of our home towns across America that most of us serve in the military.

Again, thank you.

– Maj. Barry Franks, 82nd Sustainment Brigade Bagram AFB, Afghanistan