Alive by 'the
grace of God' Meet Master Sgt. William
Calvin Markham, a combat controller from Waukesha, Wis., whom history
will record as the first member of the Air Force to set foot on Afghan
soil in the war on terror. Just one month after the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks, Markham, 37, part of a 12-member military team, was among the
first U.S. special operations forces to enter Afghanistan.
"The Taliban would unleash
everything at us," Markham recalls. "We took enormous amounts of fire:
small arms fire, tank rounds, you name it. They also had ZSU 23s, an
anti-aircraft weapon, and turned them on us, sending what looked like
large, flaming footballs at our position."
When the smoke cleared, Markham's
Silver Star citation credited him with directing 175 sorties that
resulted in the elimination of 450 enemy vehicles and the killing of
more than 3,500 Taliban fighters in a little more than a month.
Today, however, his greatest source
of pride is the golf tournament he hosts each year, the Whomper Stomper
Open, to raise funds for the children of fallen U.S. special operations
forces.
A golf course and a war zone.
The two seem to have nothing in common.
And they wouldn't, but for the determination of Waukesha
County native William Markham who's vowed to remember his fallen
brothers with a day of golf. Markham and his family, friends
and strangers alike will gather for the "Whomper Stomper
Open" golf tournament at Olde Highlander Golf Course in Oconomowoc to
raise money for The Special Operations Warrior Foundation. The fund
helps pay college bills for children who lost a parent serving in
special operations.
It's
time to mark your calendars for the 2008 Whomper Stomper Open (WSO)!
The
Olde Highlander in Oconomowoc, WI. has been reserved for
Saturday, September 20, 2008. We will have an afternoon
gunshot start and dinner afterwards.
More
Information to come soon................