Kosovo

Kosovars forced to flee their homes may not be on the minds of most children, but Salem Avenue Elementary School students raised money for the refugees. "It just sort of came to us," said Kim Gray, a fourth-grader whose Project Challenge group put together a plan to collect change. The class set a fund-raising goal of $240 but amassed more than $460 in two weeks. "A lot of our families don't have a lot of money themselves," said Alan Zube, the group's teacher. "It's a testament to them that even though they don't have a lot, they were willing to give what they have.

The White House may be celebrating a victory in Kosovo, but two Republican members of Congress from the Tri-State area are worried how the United States will now deal with the fallout of the conflict. U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., said he does not believe U.S. troops should be a part of the peacekeeping effort in Kosovo because "we are hated by the Serbians. " "We should not be a part of that," Bartlett said Friday. Bartlett also said he is worried about U.S. troops being in Kosovo for extended periods of time.

By RICHARD F. BELISLE / Staff Writer, WAYNESBORO photo: RICHARD T. MEAGHER / staff photographer MONT ALTO, Pa. - John Stewart, a political science expert who lectures at Penn State's Mont Alto campus, on Wednesday likened the situation in Kosovo to Pennsylvania trying to take over Franklin County. The state, with a force of arms, would move into Franklin County, force its residents to flee across the state line into Maryland then move other Pennsylvanians in to replace them, he said.

When refugees from Kosovo receive buckets of soap, detergent and other supplies in a few weeks, they can thank strangers from a faraway place they may never have heard of - Hagerstown. About 25 members of Hebron Mennonite Church north of town joined the international relief effort on Friday. Volunteers packed white buckets with supplies bound for refugee camps in Albania. "When you see all of the publicity on the TV about what's going on over there, I feel overwhelmed," said Jean Peifer, one of the volunteers.

When Warren Eichelberger sees images of Kosovar refugees forced out of their homes, it reminds him of being in Korea's Pusan perimeter in 1950. [cont. from front page ] As a 19-year-old U.S. Army soldier, Eichelberger watched a procession of North Koreans trudge through snow to flee south, away from Communism. "It upsets me. I hoped I would never see it again in my lifetime," said the Antrim Township, Pa., resident, now 67. Tri-State area veterans, some of whom have seen combat, bring a unique perspective to the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, an Eastern European country slightly larger than Maine.

A car wash Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Montgomery Ward Auto Center at Valley Mall will raise funds for Kosovo refugees. Youth groups from the Martinsburg Adventist Church and the Hagerstown Adventist congregation will provide the labor. Proceeds will go to Adventist Development and Relief Agency, which sends supplies to people in need around the world.

WARFORDSBURG, PA. A 20-year-old U.S. Marine from Warfordsburg was killed along with two other members of his battalion Thursday by an improvised explosive device while conducting combat operations near Nasser Wa Salaam, Iraq, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Saturday. Lance Cpl. Steven W. Szwydek was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. He was dispatched to Iraq about two months ago, 2nd Battalion spokesman Lt. Barry Edwards said.

charlestown@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Gov. Bob Wise drummed up support in Martinsburg Tuesday for a proposed constitutional amendment that would pay for bonuses to veterans who have been involved in conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. If passed by voters next Tuesday, the constitutional amendment would award $400 to any veteran who has been in active service outside the combat area, $600 to any veteran who has served or who is serving in a combat zone and $2,000 to families of veterans who have been killed in service.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Both literally and figuratively, Sgt. William R. Williams III has a family at Chambersburg Hospital and, though he is in training for his third overseas deployment to the Middle East, they have not forgotten him. A nursing assistant, Williams' father, William, and his wife, Jennifer, also work at the hospital. He is one of 16 relatives of Summit Health employees who are serving in, or on their way to, Iraq, Kosovo or Afghanistan. Also on their way overseas are care packages to those 15 men and one woman, courtesy of Chambersburg Hospital Operation Care, said Earlyne McCleary, the director of Volunteer Services.

By BRYN MICKLE / Staff Writer, Martinsburg photo: RIC DUGAN / staff photographer MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Flying into the rain-soaked Albanian airport near the camps for Kosovo refugees, Lt. Col. Charles J. Enders said his biggest concern was keeping his C-130 on the pavement. [cont. from news page ] "If we got a wheel stuck in that mud, we would still be there," said Enders. However, Enders and his fellow crew members from the Air National Guard's 167th Airlift Wing said their recent participation in Operation Shining Hope was no laughing matter.