USAREUR Chaplain addresses K-town's Thanksgiving event

By Christine June, U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern Public AffairsNovember 28, 2006

USAREUR Chaplain addresses K-town's Thanksgiving event
Chaplain (Col.) Donald Rutherford, USAREUR and 7th Army command chaplain, talks about how Thanksgiving is especially meaningful for military members and their families Nov. 21 at the U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern Community Thanksgiving Prayer Lun... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

KAISERSLAUTERN, GERMANY-Chaplain (Col.) Donald Rutherford, USAREUR and 7th Army command chaplain, shared personal experiences and related how Thanksgiving is especially meaningful for military members and their families Nov. 21 at the U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern Community Thanksgiving Prayer Luncheon at the Armstrong Community Club on Vogelweh Housing in Kaiserslautern.

"Last Thanksgiving was amazing for me," said Rutherford, who was speaking about when he was the command chaplain for the Multi-National Corps in Iraq. "I got to celebrate in five different areas with Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines, who were in some of the most dangerous areas in the world, but they were truly thankful."

Almost 70 people throughout the Kaiserslautern military community attended the event, which has been a garrison tradition for more than 10 years.

"I believe he touched a chord in the hearts of those who attended - as well as me - that God is presenting in our difficult times," said Chaplain (Capt.) Christopher Archer, the garrison's community chaplain, who organized this year's event. "His sharing tied in nicely with the spirit of thankfulness."

This was Rutherford's first visit to the KMC. Before the luncheon, he attended a briefing at the garrison's Chaplain's Office about how the Chaplain Corps is going to fit in the Army of the future. The briefing was given by Chaplain (Col.) John Read, USAREUR and 7th Army Chaplain's Office chief of operations.