European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 19, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday March 19, 1986 the stars and stripes Page 11 Arm Landers dear Ann Landers print this if you think it will help someone. I be entitled it a Mother s Nightmare mom i m preg  you re what i m  this can t be True. Are you sure yes i be seen a  what Are you going to do about it i m going to have the baby and put it up for  you have no obligation to go through with this. We could arrange an  i Don t want an abortion. I m going to have the  we were sitting in a restaurant having dinner when this conversation took place. If anyone Tolj me that our daughter would get into this kind of mess i would have questioned his sanity. She was a College student intelligent a Loving All around wonderful person. In my wildest dreams i never thought this would happen to her. I told my husband. He had a difficult time accepting it. Her sibling knew and was supportive. The next Call was to her doctor. He confirmed everything said she was in perfect health and should have a Normal delivery. I telephoned an adoption Agency. That was the most difficult part. An appointment was set up for our daughter and her father and me. I was afraid he would fold at the last moment but he did t. We talked to a gentle and compassionate woman for Over an hour. She assured us the baby would be placed in a Loving Home with parents who had been waiting for a child for Many years. She made our daughter feel Good about her decision and praised her mature judgment. The ensuing months were a Challenge. We gave our daughter a great Deal of love and emotional support. The adoption Agency provided excellent counselling to prepare her for the trauma ahead. We All went through the process of dealing with grief. The Deni Al was this really happening to us the guilt what did we do wrong the anger Why us so Many Young women do the same thing and get away with it. Then came the acceptance of what we could not change. The birth was a difficult one but the baby was healthy Alert and Beautiful. I wept As i held my first grandchild in my arms. I knew she would not be mine for Long and i dare not become too attached to her. The new parents were ecstatic when they came to the Hospital to claim their baby. There were Many tears hugs and kisses As they left with their daughter in their arms. They promised to give her the Best Home Ever and i m sure they be kept their word. Our daughter is Back in College making excellent grades and is Happy and Well adjusted. I now understand Why she could never consider abortion. Why did t i think of it before it should have been obvious. She herself is an adopted child. Any Mother Usa dear Mother thank you for a Beautiful letter. It will surely touch the hearts of Many mothers and daughters in my Reading audience today. Readers wishing to write to news America Syndi Cate columnist Landers May address their letters in care of the stars and stripes Apo 09211, . Wetzel explains v corps7 civilian Extension policy i am writing to question v corps present policy of basically refusing to extend civil ians beyond the five year tour. I know of several outstanding civilian workers who have been told that they very Likely will not be extended even though their supervisors wrote letters on their be half and the Community also wants to retain them. I can understand turning Down a Margi Nal worker s request maybe even an aver age worker but not a Good or outstanding one. I see several things that will occur lower reminder ing of morale in the workforce extra Cost to the military due to increased plane fares and shipment of household goods and a Bonanza for other corps As they pick up work ers who wish to remain in Europe. Craig e. Curtiss Hanau Germany editor s note it. Gen. Sam Wetzel v corps commander replies let me personally address your concerns and Clear up any misunderstanding 1. It is not v corps policy to basically refuse extending civilians beyond five  2. No civilian requesting Extension beyond five years and having the support of the Chain of command has been refused Extension by the corps commander. 3. Department of the army regulations require approval by the corps commander for All extensions beyond five years. I fully support delegating this approval authority to Community commanders and have submitted such a request in writing to the commander in chief Usa eur. 4. We have Superb civilian employees in v corps and we Are very proud of them. Keep up the Good work. Customer surprised by surcharge she 9ets eciucl1 time recently i stopped by the commissary to pick up a few items. According to the prices marked on the merchandise my Bill should have been $4.91. To my Surprise and embarrassment i was charged $5.16. I say embarrassment be cause i had Only a five Dollar Bill with me. I then found out that there is a 5 percent surcharge sales tax on All purchases made at the commissary. The Coic of the commissary explained that the surcharge is to cover expenses such As bags carts rent Etc. I can Well understand an operating expense of 5 percent. What i cannot understand is Cov ering that expense in a hidden  the commissary needs 5 percent of every Sale for operating expenses Why does t it just increase the Price of All merchandise 5 percent i am sure that this in t the first time that someone has been embarrassed by the surcharge and until the policy is changed i am sure it will not be the last. Name withheld Munich editor s note col. Jarrett l. Kenyon commander . Army troop support Agency european Region replies your question regarding the surcharge of 5 percent added to the total Sale made in army commissaries worldwide is one that has been asked by Many patrons. It is indeed a pleasure to have the Opportunity to explain to our patrons what a surcharge is Why we Are required to add this to the total Sale and what benefits our patrons derive from it. Many of our customers Are under the false Assumption that this fee is a tax. Surcharge the 5 percent fee added to your total purchases after Coupon discounts have been deducted from your Bill is returned for use within the army commissary system to Benefit All shoppers. The defense appropriation act requires that commissaries make enough Money to reimburse the government for specific operating costs. Commissary merchandise is priced at Cost therefore a surcharge must be assessed on each individual Sale to meet the provision of the act. The 5 percent surcharge is Standard for All services. What does All this mean to our army european shopper it Means that we anticipate building 17 new stores and remodelling approximately 40 existing commissary facilities in the next few years. This will provide improved service to you and our Many other customers. Adding the 5 percent surcharge to the Cost of each individual item could exceed the 5 percent surcharge normally added to your total Bill due to the rounding off of fractions to the next higher cent. The . Army troop support Agency european commissary Region As Well As individual commissaries will make every Effort to inform patrons about the sur charge. I want to thank you for your interest and Hope this letter clarifies your question. With the Many improvements planned for european commissary Region commissary facilities you can look Forward to a better shopping atmosphere and see the surcharge dollars at work for you the customer. Reader appeals to free Bill the cat All letters to the editor must contain the full printed name and address of the writer and must be signed. We do not read unsigned letters but we will withhold your name on request and protect your privacy. All letters Are subject to editing. Free Bill the cat . European Maelu Rophilia Katzen society granted Bill the cat May need to ride the lightning but Only in the form of act electro convulsive Shock therapy for his severe depression that has resulted from the outrageous charges against his obvious brainwashing the clearly doctored photos offered As evidence and the abysmal mishandling of his defense by that Legal Low life. Of please inform Steve Dallas that unless he files an immediate Appeal a group of a vaccinated crazed Orange tabbies will expose themselves to rabies and set off on a suicidal search and destroy Mission. Their papers Are in order an air plane is standing by no place is Safe. Reg Ramstein a Germany editor s note Berke breathed creator of Bloom county replies dear ., i just received your free Bui the cat messages via the stars and stripes editorial department. I have a feeling they either did t know what you were talking about or were afraid to touch it. The threat of a vaccinated Orange tabbies is indeed a concern. Just dealing with one very Large and obnoxious competitor which shall go after Reading the responses to the letter titled that s not what 1 Call equal i feel compelled to respond on one Point. Equal does not mean the same. If this were the Case All soldiers regardless of height age or gender would have the same weight Stan Dard 147 pounds sounds appropriate 1 have managed to stay within that limit. After All what difference should physical makeup or sex have would this Standard be equal of course not soldiers would not have an equal Chance to obtain the Standard due to the differences in physical makeup. What the part annual physical readiness test is designed to do is to make each event equally challenging for All soldiers and this cannot be accomplished when physical differences Are not taken into consideration. Staff sgt. Cynthia l. Williams Worms Germany the St is  ii to unnamed is Tough enough. I assure you i will discuss this matter with or. Dallas. Hold the papers and the plane. If Bill can survive a relationship with Jeane Kirk Patrick he can survive most anything. European edition capt Dale k. Patterson us editor in chief cmdr Jeffrey s. Zakem us Deputy editor in chief . Blackwell m Proctor . Mcdermott production manager managing de. Circulation manager this newspaper is an authorized unofficial publication for members of the military services overseas. Contents of the stars and stripes Are not necessarily the official views of or endorsed by the . Government the department of defense or the . European command. The appearance of advertising in this publication including inserts or supplements does not constitute endorsement by the department of defense or the stars and stripes of the products or services advertised. 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