European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 21, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday March 21, 1990 the stars and stripes a a Page 9 Over her walk was a hardest things they a Ever done by Ron Jensen staff writer Darmstadt West Germany their feet Hurt. Their legs Hurt. Sometimes they were cold. Other times they were tired thirsty and hungry. A it was the hardest thing in be Ever done a said pfc. Daren Kroon of cod 547th engr in in Darmstadt. Kroon was referring to a 62-mile walk along the danish coast designed More As a test of willpower than foot Power. The two Day walk was organized by Helge Meyer a former Soldier in the danish army participants could not eat or smoke during the walk except during Short Breaks and had to carry a pack containing about 20 pounds of gear. Perhaps the toughest part of All however was Meyers Rule against talking. A you think about the pain a Meyer said. Those with a Strong will Are Able to overcome it. A the silence is incredible a said spec. Gordon Brown also assigned to cod 547th engr in. A fall you look at is the Beach the Ocean the sky. All you can think of is the pain. A i was saying some stupid cadence in my head Over and  Kroon said he a thought about everything. I thought about the special forces. I used the pain to motivate  two other members of the same company spec. Gary West and pvt. 2 Ron Sable dropped out Halfway through the March. Of the 11 people who started Only Kroon Brown Meyer and a German Man finished. But the German was disqualified for rules violations. He carried a pack that was too Light and brought too Many cigarettes and too much chocolate. A i went up there with the thought of finishing so i never thought of giving up a Kroon said. Those who gave up not Only had to a amps Jim Derheim spec. Gordon Brown admit defeat. Meyer also gave them a note written in danish that identified them As a psychologically  it instructed any Driver they might meet to give them a ride to a preplanned meeting Point. That note helped motivate Kroon and Brown. A i done to want anybody saying in my psychologically weak a a Kroon said. The soldiers who want to join the special forces later this year gained a lot of respect for Meyer who finished the walk despite Large painful blisters caused by new boots. The Silver Dollar sized blisters were red and sore after just 15 Miles yet Meyer simply bandaged them smiled and kept walking. A the told us hell walk All Day and hell walk All night a Kroon said. Meyer who says he is a around 50,�?� helped design an anti terrorist training regime while in the danish army. He designed this walk and even tougher ones a amps Susan Harris As part of the psychological toughening process needed for special military duty. He is now designing a lightweight bulletproof shield and helmet for Security police. Meyer told the walkers to Trust what he did but not what he said. If they remembered that he told them they would finish. They Learned what he meant later. Along the route some people offered them Coffee. Meyer told them to go ahead and the two from Darmstadt readily accepted some. But the Brown liquid tasted awful. A they filled up cups with Ocean water and put just enough colouring in it to make it look like Coffee a Brown said. The people had been planted there by Meyer to add another dimension of difficulty to the walk. To a laughing Meyers amazement however the men drank the a amps Jim Derheim pfc. Daren Kroon liquid just to push the joke Back onto him. The 11 walkers started the March at 5 30 . On Friday feb. 23. They walked until 6 . Saturday sleeping for five hours in an abandoned world War ii Concrete Bunker on the Beach. Meyer Kroon and Brown completed the trek about 10 . Saturday. A every time somebody fell out we just thrived on it a said Kroon. A the last 10 Kilometres i walked with my right calf totally  Meyer has scheduled one of his other walks for this fall. If Kroon and Brown Are not in the special forces they plan to participate in a 124-mile walk that will cover the same route plus some difficult Sand dunes farther up the Beach. That Kroon and Brown will take part does no to Surprise their buddies they said. A if there a anything stupid to do a Brown said a they Tell us about it and we re the first to go do  americans a pull together to clothe feed romanians by Peggy Davidson Kaiserslautern Bureau Kaiserslautern West Germany a the to gel Vieh elementary schools stage was crowded last week. The Back half was a Snowbank of plastic bags filled with clothing for Romania. The clothing was joined by a growing Mountain of boxes crammed with cans boxes and bags of food. Onat on were the result of a drive launched March 5, when students took Home letters soliciting contributions for romanians who Are suffering from hunger and cold following their country a revolution. It s amazing How caring americans Are a said Sarah i1c.un�?T a teacher at Vogel Weh who helped bundle up clothes while her students took standardized tests. A when something bad happens they All pull together. I done to Mink americans realize just How much they be  Barb Lawther a speech therapist at Vogel Weh is the Force behind the food and clothing drive. Lawther went to work after she read recent newspaper articles about the plight of the romanian people. A the article that got me was one that said the kids had frostbite a Lawther said. After calling Legal offices and customs officials Lawther found that americans could donate and a a Vul. Any clothing they wanted rationed m commissaries As Long As it was not wdwcwj0cute<? a West German Helmut Blauth of Romania u ? s  running Relief convoys into us mart/k6 v9, to Send a 7-ton truck to pick thenot Niles of clothes and boxes of food. Sorted i tout  of March 14, volunteers girls Man ind8 bagged Small wardrobes for boys 6 put roe1 and women. 00 pcs tried to make sure each Box had a a amps Peggy Davidson a pile of bagged clothing grows at Vogel Weh elementary in Kaiserslautern while volunteers pack boxes of food. Lawther variety. Flour and canned vegetables were packed with such Small luxuries As Candy bars and cake mixes. Shortages occasionally occurred. A we need More Oil a lamented one Volunteer looking around for bottles of cooking Oil. Half an hour later someone handed him a grocery bag with six bottles of Oil. The hard working volunteers included Florin Nic olae who defected from Romania in 1988. A when i heard about what you were doing i came to help Load the truck a said Nicolae who lives in the Kaiserslautern area. He helped senior airman William Oiler of Ramstein a with the heavy work of taping up the packed food boxes and stacking them. With her army of volunteers Lawther had the huge shipment ready when the truck backed up to the school auditorium door at 11 . After making its first Stop at Lan Stuhl elementary school. A fire brigade of Louise Smiths sixth graders formed a line across the stage Down the stairs to the Back of the truck. Bags and boxes were tightly packed in. The precious cargo then departed for Romania