top of page
Writer's pictureButch Erskine

Patriot Express Newsletter Edition #111

Updated: May 28, 2021

Fellow Patriots,

Happy Memorial Day. Greetings and welcome to the PENL Edition #111. Thanks for stopping by to spend some of your time with us at HFS. May 2021 has come and gone and now we close out another month. Do you ever look back to the previous month and ask yourself, are you better prepared now than the previous month? Just a thought.


We had a busy week starting with Heritage Life Skills last weekend. Exciting times as HFS continues to grow with like minded preparers. Thanks for being a part of it. I can do the networking and work behind the scenes but I need each of you in your communities to plant the seeds to help others get prepared. Together we can do great things.


Heritage Life Skills 2021 - I don't know about you but I can't believe it is in the past now. After so much anticipation to get here, it arrived and is now history. I can't thank Ms. Jan, Mr. Bill, and CRS enough for another outstanding event. Many fail to consider the amount of work that must happen to make these events work. I also want to thank all the HFS families who traveled from many different states to attend. I believe the most western state was Oklahoma and the most northern state was Massachusetts. I got to spend time talking with the family from Oklahoma who brought their entire family to attend, and my firefighter brother from Cape Cod. Great to see you all. In ways, HLS is like a preparedness family reunion.


The nice thing about HLS is how the preparedness family adds new members. Several past attendees who attended 2021 stopped by to attend a class or just to say hello. I shared a unique story on the most recent HFS YouTube video regarding a past attendee who is now a full blown preparer. Great stories taking place that never gets told. Keep it up.


My count is probably off a couple but my best count was about 50 to 55 HFS Zoomers attending the three day event. It was so good to see everyone again. I hope we can work out a way to maybe get together quarterly to break bread and include some of you to do training for the group. Thank your for supporting this great event. I don't have to ask if you departed on Sunday with your brain filled and overflowing with new information. Hopefully everyone arrived home timely and safe. We missed our Patriot sister and Patriot brother from Atlanta who had to depart early due to the loss of a family member. We are very sorry for your loss and we missed you throughout the weekend. Our thoughts and prayers remain with you.


For HFS specifically it was great. Exhausting but exciting. After teaching nine classes and about 300 preparers passing through the classes, I was whooped and my voice was failing me. Did I hear a hand clap? LOL Kidding ya. We picked up about 150 or so new HFS members and sold about 250 or more, books.


I can't give my wife enough thanks for helping me before and after classes to handle book sales and answer questions while I tried to drink water and collect my marbles for the next class topic. Oh, and chat with folks as well. Thank you, Ms. Lucy. I also thank my Patriot sister from Hickory who stepped in to help me when Ms. Lucy was tied up or in another class. Thank you. You should sign up and go on the HFS traveling road circus with us.


HLS is a great time to network and meet new like minded people in your community. The desire to get prepared seems to be growing as apparent by the number of new faces at HLS 2021. The numbers I mentioned above are not for me or HFS. I'm pointing this out because all these new people are in communities around us. Some close and some not so close. Over the coming months HFS will continue attempting to build teams in multiple communities to support individuals and families wanting to prepare. I will help start new teams and go on the road to do training and risk assessments as requested but I can only do so much in the time available. So I will be reaching out to many of you to support these individuals who are near you. Nothing new, just more preparers available.


The HFS family at the Pre-HLS HFS rally.
Teaching one of five topics and nine classes. Always a great time.
A final farewell to the remaining HFS family before going separate ways.

Book 1 in the HFS series is focused on building preparedness plans to survive, Book II focuses on preparing yourself. Preparing your mental toolbox to stay outside the box and left of bang. Check it out. Book II is $10 plus shipping. You can purchase a signed copy at this link: Survival, Preparedness, Disaster Management for individuals or family (hopeforsurvival.com) Make sure to click on the link to the right if you desire a copy of The Mindset.

















Thursday Zoom Rallies – There was no zoom meeting this week and it will resume next Thursday evening with a special guest speaker. I'm sorry to cancel this week's rally but I was out of town. Join us next week and check out our special guest. Hope you can attend.


New members to HFS - Several of you emailed wanting to do the zoom rallies. Awesome. I will be reaching out to all of you in the next couple weeks with information on a new zoom group starting around July time frame. Instead of trying to manage a larger zoom group which takes away a lot of the personal touch, I want to do a second zoom and run the group through the same series of training as the first group. The zoom platform is a great method to learn but even better event to grow together with the other preparers. This is important. More to follow.


Hope for Survival YouTube - I posted a new video to the page titled The Coming Summer where I discuss some thoughts on Heritage Life Skills briefly and thoughts on what could be ahead during the summer months. If you haven't already subscribed to the page, please consider doing so. This informs you when HFS post a new video. Thanks for your consideration.



Communications: You can now follow HFS social media on the following outlets:


Facebook – Hope for Survival

YouTube Channel – Hope for Survival

MeWe: - //mewe.com/p/hopeforsurvival2


Connect and give me a shout. Share with family and friends.


Moving along …

If you are a guest or newcomer to the HFS journey, please check out this link for additional information offered through HFS. https://www.hopeforsurvival.com/post/guest-and-newcomers-information-page


We must make this brief public announcement to protect the innocent.


Ding, Ding, Ding....Attention HFS readers..... Opinions shared in this newsletter are just that, opinions, and nothing more. Read at your own risk. The owner and author of this site is not responsible for hurt feelings or thin-skinned readers. I do my best to show restraint and respect to the best extent possible. I take as many precautions as possible and try to remain as nonpolitical as possible, however, there are times when I just can't help but point certain things out. Occasionally I use words only Patriots recognize and understand. It's not personal against any non-Patriot. It's just the truth. Sometimes we must pull up our spenders and suck it up. Just saying. Stay the course, read what you want, and avoid the rest. Avoid fear porn as much as possible and the day will be okay. When all else fails… Keep the faith and always have Hope.

Let’s move along and get to some thoughts...


Thoughts for the week


Memorial Day - I don't know about you but Memorial Day as celebrated in America, is the day we stop and give respect and memory to our fallen heroes. Many celebrate in different ways and many fail to remember or even share the meaning with their children. Our public school systems also fail to teach our children the meaning of the holiday. Many citizens are antiwar and use the holiday to protest our nations wars, past and present. I would say to them, don't blame the fallen. They responded to orders and the call to duty and followed orders given by our great nation. Do you realize America has roughly 1.3 million heroes who died in battle? I have many friends who lost loved ones during one conflict or another. Think about that. These are all individuals with a history, a family, a community, and a name, not a number.


So when and why did Memorial Day begin. On May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan issued a proclamation calling for "Decoration Day" to be observed annually and nationwide; he was commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), an organization of and for Union Civil War veterans founded in Decatur, Illinois.


Our nation has a very long history of wars around the globe. We always hear the battlefield stories from the top down and rarely does the battle get personalized unless the media is using it as a political move to sway public opinion.


As I served over 20 years I was blessed with several great leaders and a few survived combat. One thing they had in common was their faith. They stood confident and as men amongst those around them. They never showed weakness yet in their hearts they worried and never asked the warriors to do something they would not do.


One particular leader I served under was Major General Eldon Bargewell who served our great nation for 40 years. Starting as a private and retiring as a two star general. It is unheard of to achieve this high rank after starting as enlisted. Major General Bargewell was shot several times during his career and survived. He rose to the position as Delta Force Commander and served in Vietnam pulling multiple tours of duty, then on to Iraq and Afghanistan. In between these known wars he deployed and served in numerous conflicts around the world.


My first encounter with Major General Bargewell was while serving in support of Kosovo. He was serving as Special Operations Command Europe, Commander. He would walk in to the room for our daily briefing and it was immediately apparent the respect held for him. When he spoke the room was silent. His firm words displayed confidence and certainty. All ears tuned in to his orders. Green Berets, Navy SEALs, and special forces from other allied nations, marched to the beat of this mans orders. The honor of serving under this leader was fully on display.


A few months later, I was in Virginia going through a professional driving school which allowed me to drive for VIPs in high threat locations and I was recalled to Europe to deploy in support of a high ranking officer who would be on travel. I was requested to serve as the lead security advisor on a trip escorting Major General Bargewell to a location off the coast of Africa to meet up with another high ranking SOCOM individual. It was an honor but also humbling to be chosen for this duty. We would fly 14 hours each direction on a private Special Operations aircraft with the crew, a security escort team I led, myself, and Major General Bargewell. He spent several hours talking to us about our careers and progression going forward. He actually smiled and even laughed a few times. This warrior, former Delta Force operator and eventual commander, was so soft spoken and down to earth. He was human, just like the others on the aircraft.


When I rotated out of my assignment and position serving the Special Ops mission covering Europe, 2/3 of Africa and part of Russia, I was offered another special duty assignment at Fort Bragg North Carolina serving in the same capacity as lead security advisor to JSOC or Joint Special Operations Command. I declined the assignment because of consecutive years deployed over 300 days per year and the impact it had had on my health would last forever. It would mean at least two more years of 300 days per year being deployed.


About six months later I was awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal and it was signed by Major General Eldon Bargewell. This made it even more special because of my respect for this great leader and warrior. Shortly after receiving the medal I was promoted to my last grade before retirement. I was promoted based on the points received from the medal for supporting the mission in Kosovo. Thank you, Major General Bargewell, sir.


One can research his name and find countless stories of heroic and selfless actions on his part. A warrior and hero indeed. Here is one story that pretty much sums up the man I remember;


"The NVA sent wave after wave of men toward the Army Special Forces’ perimeter, and each was gunned down in turn by Bargewell and his 7.62 RPD. With the dead and wounded piling up, including Bargewell himself, the Americans needed to get out of the area in a hurry. They anxiously awaited the helicopters that would lift them to safety. When they finally arrived, Bargewell refused to be evacuated. He wouldn’t go up,” said Billy Waugh, Bargewell’s then-Sergeant Major. “He had the weapons that was saving the day… he was the last out and that’s what saved that team.” And it really was. Bargewell went through half of his 1000 rounds protecting the perimeter and defending his fellow soldiers as they boarded the helicopter. That’s when 60 more NVA bum-rushed him" Another general officer from Vietnam who served with Bargewell said "“His selfless sacrifice touched so many,” said Lt. Gen. Lawson MacGruder III, one of the Army Rangers’ first commanders and a Ranger Hall of Famer. “In just about every conflict since Vietnam.”


After retirement I eventually ended up in Huntsville, AL. I tracked Major General Bargewell after my retirement to see where his assignments would take him. In 2006, he retired as the most decorated soldier in history, at that time. He eventually located to Alabama not far from where I lived. I wanted to travel to his hometown and shake his hand and thank him for his service to our great nation and the impact he had on the last years of my military career. I never got that opportunity. He was killed in a tragic accident when his mower rolled over and trapped him beneath killing him. This warrior who survived multiple gun shot wounds, wars and gun fights, died quietly off the battle field with no fanfare, parades, or standing amongst the men and women he led. If you asked him, he would probably tell you he desired it this way.


So, while many celebrate and grill burgers and hot dogs, keep in mind the true meaning of the day. Our great nation has many like Major General Bargewell who stood for the call of duty.


This is about Memorial Day and I mean no disrespect to the fallen, but I believe this is a good point to expand on other heroes. They served on a different type of battlefield and died in the line of service. First responders, fire, police, and medical. Warriors come in different types of uniforms. It may be in your home, community, or across our great nation. When the need arises we all must be ready to stand for what we believe in and serve the cause. Our faith and great nation needs us. We are past standing on the fence and watching others. Are you ready?


I do believe our great nation is calling upon heroes now, at home. I shared this video link with the HFS Zoom group earlier and I now share it with you. Take some time and listen to the words spoken by two other Patriots and their testimonies of faith and ongoing mission post-military to continue serving their faith and our great nation. Think about their words and ask yourself, are you ready to stand up?



Next.....


Liberty's Whisper

It started as a whisper, like a soft and subtle breeze, A rustling of some branches, the fluttering of leaves. Many barely noticed, swiftly went on about their day: Tending to their business, hustling on their way. And when the Remnant heard the distant words they felt the warm wind blow; They paused and stopped and looked around, for far too few would know. The message piercing and bittersweet, lingered heavy in the air. But the Whisper only calls on those who really care to hear. The whisper was a warning, pleading with all of man; Liberty is your gift from God and tyranny's at hand! Then the whisper traveled like a rushing wind, growing stronger every day until many had heard the whisper, and what it had to say. It called on Man to take a stand, whatever be their fate. Thy Kingdom come, they will be done, we will not live as slaves! The subtle breeze, the warm wind blow, the rushing new day wind it is a force that stays the course, if we but trust in HIM! Liberty can't end here, it can't end now, thought the final hour is near. We have the chance the circumstance to make our voices clear. We reject a Revolution, we don't want violent change. We only want our Constitution thought we will not bow in chains.

-by Judy Thacker

(Thanks Festus for this submission)


Next ....


The Black Robe Regiment - If you attend the HFS Thursday night zoom rallies you probably recall Festus and I talking about the Black Robe Regiment. We shared some history of the BRR, some of the BRR pastors we choose to spend time listening to their messages and so forth. I personally invest time in the BRR style messages because the messenger is non-party affiliated and preaches from a Biblical and Constitutional view point. If the shoe fits, so be it. That is how I feel each week when the message is over. Sometimes the truth hurts and we need to hear it, right? As I have said several times, many churches in America are like church buffet lines. The pastor picks and chooses the feel good stuff. In today's world, if those attending always felt attacked as if the pastor was singling them out, most would not go back. Right? They probably wouldn't drop a check in the bucket on the way out. How on earth would they pay for all the nice new buildings and expansions taking place? The BRR pastors are also not indebted to the federal government under the 501C3 program. I'm sure I will receive a few emails over my comments above but that is okay. If I don't print it out I won't get a paper cut.


For those who are not familiar with the Black Robe Regiment, here is a brief description: The Black Robed Regiment was a name given to the pastoral preachers in the 13 colonies before, during, and after the American Revolution. The British gave the name to the courageous and patriotic pastors during that time, referring to the black robes most of them wore. The British blamed the Black Robe Regiment for stirring up the teachings of civil governance from the Bible for American Independence. To support this claim, many historians agree all 27 grievances in the Declaration of Independence was first discussed and preached on by various pastors before 1763.


If you believe the Constitution was authored by our founding fathers using the Bible as their baseline, this would be prior to 1900 and the invasion of the C.I. Scofield. I digress. This is another topic for another time. Simply said, the Constitution is a document that embodies the fundamental laws and principles by which the United States is governed. It was drafted by the Constitutional Convention and later supplemented by the Bill of Rights and other amendments. When the time came, many of those same pastors took of their black robes, picked up their guns, and led the men of their congregations in battle.


One of our HFS Patriot sisters shared the below information with me that includes information on the Black Robe Regiment. Check it out.


Webinar on the Black Robe Regiment movement -Pastors Webinar: New State Regiments Forming (webinarjam.com)


About this Webinar

On Thursday's webinar, Pastors Baberadt and Hemmila will talk about the reasons they have decided to launch the Black Robe Regiment in their own states. Both have expressed alarm over the things they see happening in America:

  • Children being indoctrinated in "Critical Race Theory" (pure Marxism) in our public schools;

  • Children being taught that sodomy is intercourse;

  • Children being taught that two men or two women can get married and have children;

  • Children being taught that "climate change" is science, and that mankind is on the verge of extinction;

Both pastors have realized they must speak out and take a stand NOW, or freedom will not survive this generation.

If you would like to know how you can launch the Black Robe Regiment in your state, please contact us and let us know how we can help at rev@blackroberegiment.us, or (703) 986-8096.


If you want to know more about the BRR click on this link - Home | (blackroberegiment.us)


Okay, lets move along to the news…

Preparedness News


1. From Prep School Daily - Prep School Daily: Is It Infected? How Do I Treat It? - Infections can take you down quickly if not attended to quickly. Both in humans and animals. Especially during periods when the body is depleted of vitamins and nutrients. A simple scratch or minor cut can become infected and now the person is down and out of commission. This could pull additional manpower away from other daily chores and use a percentage of your stocked medicines. Then we have infections internally that we can't see the cause and this is another story. We must be cautious and take care of possible infections immediately.


2. From Toby Prep - The Preppers Guide - How to Make Activated Charcoal | The Prepping Guide - Activated charcoal has been known to treat kidney health, intestinal gas, water filtration, diarrhea, cholesterol levels, alcohol poisoning, mold cleansing and much more. Have you included activated charcoal in your preparedness resources?


3. From Steve Nubie - Homestead Survival Site - How To Make Maple Syrup Step by Step (With Pictures) (homesteadsurvivalsite.com) - Now we are talking about one of my favorite topics. Food and eating. Homemade biscuits and maple syrup. Pancakes and maple syrup. We can do lots of things with maple syrup. Just the smell of maple syrup gets me going. Enjoy.


4. From Michael Major - Ask a Prepper - DIY Gunshot Wound Kit For When SHTF - Ask a Prepper - I do believe this is an area often never considered or planned for. Makes sense, right? We don't want to think about it. We want to believe we have coated in armor. Nothing wrong with that. But we must be realistic. If it happens and we go down then what? Think of the impact this would cause to our family and team. Thinking worse, what if you are down for weeks and now out of action? What is your plan and who will treat you? Do you have the medicinal resources to take care of it? Do you have someone on your team who can care for you?


5. From Green Thumb Gardner - Growing Cucumbers in Containers | Green Thumb Gardener (gardenerthumb.com) - Here is another method to grow food. Are you in an apartment with a window? Do you have limited space to grow fresh vegetables? Here you go.


6. From Alliance for Natural Health - Vax Passports: Where Your State Stands (anh-usa.org) - Do you know where your state stand on state vaccine passports? Check this out. We all should be tracking our states. Thanks to our HFS Patriot sister in SC for this submission)



Other News


1. From Brandon Campbell - Prepper 1 Sense - 9 Scary FEMA Camp Facts You Must Know – The End 2020 (code.blog) - I am not in to fear porn and often tell folks to take the points in the article and do your own research. But, if nothing else the article provides a good listing of Executive Orders in place to support the words in the article. The locations exist and the coffins also exist. Myself and others witnessed them being hauled down the interstate systems in the southeastern US of A. We most likely will never know the intent of the EO's until put in to action. We can only try to figure out intent. Thanks Festus for this submission. Good information.


2. From Robert Gore - The Burning Platform - Saving Civilization – The Burning Platform - As always, the Burning Platform offers a good read this week on where we are today and the thought of reality. What is real and not real. Thanks to Festus for this submission. He wrote this description to support the article - "At this point, imagination is far more important than a deer-in-the-headlights’ fixation on present realities, because those realities are changing so quickly and chaotically. When the ground is continuously shifting under your feet, you can’t know where you are with any certainty. Your chance of saving yourself depends on knowing where you want to go and having an idea of how to get there. Skepticism about imminent revolutionary change is understandable, but often betrays a misunderstanding of how revolutions in politics, science, culture, art, philosophy, learning, and all other fields of productive human endeavor work. The explosion visible to all is almost always preceded by a long, burning fuse visible to few and understood by fewer, only generally apprehended after the explosion." Great summary of the article. Thanks again Festus.


3. From Wes Rhinier - NC Renegade - Nobel Prize winner: Mass COVID vaccination an ‘unacceptable mistake’ that is ‘creating the variants’ | NC Renegades - We must ask "how much more information must be presented before the masses figures this out?


4. From Martin Armstrong - Armstrong Economics - Market Talk – May 25, 2021 | Armstrong Economics - Part of our preparedness package must include understanding your own, the national, and global, economic health around us.


5. From Whitney - Peak Prosperity -Daily Digest 5/24 -- The World Economy Is Suddenly Running Low On Everything, Millions "Unwittingly Tracked" By Phone After Vaccination, Solar Storms Are Back... | Peak Prosperity - Formulated or not, those of us at the bottom of the "I'm important" pole will feel the impact of all that is going on. Have you asked, "what is going on?" Maybe we all should.


Drum roll...........

That's all my Patriot brothers and sisters.

Thanks for your emails and messages. Many of the emails I receive are uplifting. I enjoy hearing from you throughout the week and sharing your preparedness projects and accomplishments. I am still catching up on email so please forgive me if a response is a few days late. Thanks for your time to read the PENL and hanging out with us for a while.


Prayers - Please keep our great nation, our elected leaders, military and first responders in your thoughts and prayers. We pray for good health and wisdom. Please pray for our leadership to find answers and guidance to the problems facing our great nation. Please pray for the former President and his family. May your faith remain strong and answers to the unknown provided. God is good and may our prayers blanket and protect you and your circumstances. I pray for each, and every one of our Patriots.


May we pray for all the blessings and things in life to be thankful about and continued hope for revival around the world. We must continually pray for the unsaved, our family and friends who live each day without the protection for eternal life and salvation.


As Patriots we must stay strong and never give up. Our home, community and nation needs us now more than ever. Our nation suffers in many areas. The hole will only get deeper. The headwinds are strong against us but we must keep charging. Have a safe week. Don't allow the events around us to create fear in your life. Build your own self-reliance and focus on hope. Remember we are a blessed nation and we must continue to be great people today and make a better tomorrow. Keep charging."

Blessings,

Bravo Echo Out,








61 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page