DaytonDailyNews.com

I had not planned to go to Washington, D.C., for the peace march Jan. 27. I have multiple sclerosis — marching would be out of the question — and it seemed pointless to make the long, expensive trip.

But I learned of a mother whose son recently returned from Iraq (and is due to return next summer) who was pleading for more families to go.

As a military mom and as a member of Military Families Speak Out, I needed to know where those who represent me stand on the war, and to ask them to really support our troops by taking the courageous step of voting to stop funding the war.

It was a last-minute decision to go. I took the bold and slightly embarrassing step of sending out an e-mail asking 10 of my friends who wouldn't be going themselves to send me $10 so I could get an airline ticket. I was moved by the response.

Our message is simple. The way to really support the troops is to remove them from a situation where they are not wanted. It is time to make the decision to bring them home, and begin the planning for their safe redeployment.

Ohio MFSO members met with Republican Sen. George Voinovich's aide for military and foreign affairs. We were pleased to hear that the senator is opposed to the "surge," is urging a regional solution, recognizes the Iraqis' obligation to solve their own problems, and opposes a precipitous withdrawal.

We met with U.S. Rep. Zack Space, D-Dover, and Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown, both of whom have opposed the war, but need encouragement to consider opposing more funding for it.

To each lawmaker we visited, we brought letters, pictures, lists of the names, ages and cities of the 148 Ohioans killed in Iraq, a separate list of just their ages (ranging from 18 to 51), and a list of the Ohio cities where MFSO families reside.

The least satisfying visit we made was to Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville. Three times I asked for his position on Iraq, and three times he refused to answer, saying he was there to listen to me, not the other way around.

I have no sense of where he stands on the war, other than he said he supports the troops — but we all do.

While at the airport for the return flight to Dayton, a young man walked by. I noticed that his desert camouflage uniform said he was in the Air Force. I asked if he was leaving or returning, and he said he was on his way to Baghdad. I told him my Air Force daughter-in-law is in Afghanistan and was due home in a few weeks.

Tears came to my eyes as I told the other MFSO moms seated there that he was on his way to Iraq. Having had sons in Iraq, they flashed back to when their own children left for war.

Jane Bright, an MFSO mother who lost her son in Iraq, has written: "I wonder sometimes what galvanizing event will bring Americans out of the malls. I wonder when the killing off of our next generation of leaders will be the topic around the water cooler."

Join with MFSO families now in supporting the troops by educating yourself about the war. Leave the mall and tell Congress, "Bring them home now!"

Beth Lerman, of Dayton, is a member of Military Families Speak Out-Ohio (www.mfsoohio.org). She has a son serving in the Coast Guard, a daughter-in-law in the Air Force in Afghanistan, and a son who is a veteran of the first Gulf War.