Author:  Steven J Newton

Books: "The Old Sergeant"

"The Old Sergeant and Friends"

"The Old Sergeant Rides Again"

Interviewer: W. H. McDonald – President of the MWSA

W. H. "Bill" McDonald offers some background on the author: Steven J. Newton, founder and president of The Silver Star Families of America; author of “The Old Sergeant” book series; former Marine/Navy veteran; former law enforcement officer and Vice President of the National Association of Chiefs of Police.

He has been honored with several awards from the American Police Hall of Fame, including the Legion of the Purple Heart and has been nominated as Police Officer of the Year by the National American Legion. He has also been awarded the Department of Defense Exceptional Public Service Award by the Secretary of Defense and the Gold Presidential Volunteer Service Award.

He is always working hard as an advocate for military and police causes and issues. He is now retired and is dealing with Parkinson’s disease, which may slow him down but doesn’t stop him in his pursuit of his many varied interests. He is also a long standing member of the MWSA and is working on another book in the Old Sergeant book series.

Q: First off Steve, I have to ask you were in the world do you find all this energy to do all the things that you do for other people all the time like the The Silver Star Families of America and your police organizations?

Bill I have good people around me. People that encourage and support all the different endeavors we are involved in. Without them and the members of the Silver Stars there would be no organization. I draw energy from them.

Q: Let us address something that I think is not well known and yet is really an innovative and compassionate organization – your “Silver Star Families” organization. What is its mission and what inspired you to develop this and turn it into what it is today?

The mission of the SSFOA is really very simple. We want to give a Silver Star Banner or Flag to all our honored wounded from ALL wars. It is our fondest wish that every time someone sees that Silver Star Banner in a window or that Flag flying, that they remember the blood sacrificed for this nation by so many. We call it “The Silver Star Shining for Sacrifice."

The organization began, at least in my mind, when I was in a V.A. hospital. I was talking with the family of a severely injured soldier and they were telling me that when he was first wounded, everyone came together to honor him. But that as time past, the medals went into a drawer and people forgot the sacrifice he had made. All this poor family wanted was for the country to REMEMBER. They wanted a symbol that people could look at and say, “That means someone has paid a blood price for my freedom."

I researched through the history of Service Flags and found that many years ago silver represented a wounded soldier returning home. Thus the Silver Star Flag was born.

Q: What has your reception been like with those who learn about Silver Star? From the families and people you help to people from other organizations? Why hasn’t there been more media coverage of what you are doing?

People’s reaction to the Silver Star has been almost 100% positive. We have sent out hundreds of Banners and Certificates and the general reaction is, “Someone remembers!” Sometimes we get pictures of the wounded with their Banners. Sometimes we get heart wrenching letters, especially from our Vietnam Brothers and Sisters that say, “You know for the first time in my life I am proud of what I did.” And then they thank US. I can never understand that. It is the American people who should be thanking and remembering them.

The reaction from other organizations has been mostly good. Many have joined or linked with us as “sister” organizations and we are proud to have them. It has always been my opinion, that there is strength in numbers and as we join together it helps us all to complete the missions of our organizations. We were particularly proud to have joined with the Navajo Nation, Gold Star Mothers, Operation Shoebox and the Prayer Blanket Ministry.

We still have some work to do with a couple of organizations that are not yet ready to accept us but we hope to eventually bring them on board.

As to media coverage, I don’t quite understand why we have been unable to break upon the national scene. We get lots of local coverage, especially at Banner presentation ceremonies. We have been written about in the Armed Forces News and America Supports You but getting national coverage has been problematic for us.

Q: Your organization recognizes all “wounds” like PTSD – can you explain a little more about the thinking that went into this and why you felt it was important?

Very good question Bill and we have taken some criticism for our definition of wounded. I tell this story: A mechanic was very badly wounded when a truck tire he was working on exploded. He was in a war zone doing his duty. But his injuries were not combat related. No medals, no recognition. This just did not seem right to me.

And what about the kids that contract a life changing illness in a war zone? Or the “walking wounded” as we call Soldiers afflicted with PTSD? Don’t they deserve credit for the sacrifice they have made?

We have sent many Banners to veterans who suffer from Agent Orange related illnesses, many who ultimately pass because of them. Have they not given their all for their country?

When a Congressional Committee, who was studying the Silver Star Flag for possible recognition as an official “Service” Flag ask us to narrow our definition of wounded, it was put before a vote of our whole membership. They rejected the committee’s request because they felt OUR definition was more fair and inclusive. This sent Washington a powerful message that the SSFOA would not change just for political purposes. Our thinking is that we want to include people who other organizations do not. That is what makes us unique and in my opinion special.

Our definition of wounded is this: Military personnel either currently serving honorably or those who have honorably served in the past who receive medical treatment or are diagnosed with an impairment which has altered or will alter that person physically or mentally, to include but not limited to WIA, non-hostile injuries during deployment, or PTSD.

The individual eligible to receive the Silver Star Banner would not have to be eligible for the Purple Heart or any other military decoration in order to receive a Silver Star Banner.

Q: You were called back to duty for the Gulf War. What was that experience like for you?

Humm. I was a police officer at the time and had joined the Navy Reserve as a police officer. One day I was working the street and two days later I was guarding a military airport carrying a shotgun.

The good thing about the experience was that one kind of law enforcement is much the same as any other.

I was blessed to be able to combine my career choice into both civilian and military life.

Q: What inspired you to write your first book? Was this something that you always wanted to do or was this something that developed later in your life?

Bill I never dreamed of writing a book and I certainly never dreamed it would become a series of books. I had written many articles for police, veteran and military publications but the idea of a book never entered my mind. And I really do not consider myself a “writer.”  More of an old fashion story teller.

It all started with ONE short story I wrote for a soldier who was disgusted with the news media coverage of the war. (Newspaper I think it was called) That story was passed around and I started to receive requests for more stories about the “Old Sergeant.”

Well, one story became 10 then a hundred and now I think the count is somewhere around 250.

A good friend of mine who was a nurse at the time in Germany, distributed many copies of the “Old Sergeant.” One of my most treasured possessions is a copy of the book that the wounded soldiers returned to me with THEIR signatures and comments. They strongly “requested” more stories about the “Old Sarge” so how could I refuse a request like that?

The “Old Sergeant” became the symbol of all good NCO’s and I consider them the backbone of our Armed Forces.

Q: How do you go about writing your stories? What process do you use? Do you have a scheduled writing time or do you write when the mood hits you? I know I wrote my best work from 0300 to 0800 hours each morning—do you write best at any certain time of the day?

You know Bill, I could be sitting at my desk working on other things when an idea will strike and then I just write the story. No scheduled time, no particular process. As I stated I consider myself just a story teller and when an idea pops into my head I just write the story.

Although I have been known to get up in the middle of the night to write down an idea.

Q: How did you become a cop? What motivated that career choice?

Well, I hate to say that it is something I wanted to do from child hood because that sounds cliché. But in my case it is the truth. There was no other job that ever appealed to me besides the military.

I went from wearing an old army surplus combat helmet to playing cops and robbers as a child to doing the real thing.

In 1977 I joined the police department. I still carry a commission to this day.

Q: What kind of police work did you do and where?

That’s an easy question. I did it all. From street patrol, directing traffic, airport security, you name it. I started in 1977 in Springfield Missouri, the 3rd largest city in the State.

In 1995 I took the Chief of Police job in a town called Clever.

During my tenure in the Navy I was in law enforcement at Coronado California, Naples Italy, and wonderful places like Lowery Air Force Base in Colorado. I even did a stint as the Navy law enforcement liaison with Scotland Yard in England.

Q: Your health issues – when did they begin to become an issue for you? How much does it slow you down now? Has it changed your daily routine and what you would normally do or want to do?

Ah, a not so easy question. I had always been a pretty good shot with a handgun. (I was on the Navy pistol team for a while) But toward the end of my career I noticed I could not hold a weapon without it shaking. It took a long time to get the correct diagnosis and we went through some hard times because of that. Finally a V.A. doctor in Kansas City figured out the problem and things got a little better.

Parkinson’s is a very----different kind of disease. Some days are very good and some days are very bad. With the medications the change can even be as sudden as morning and evening.

I sometimes have trouble staying on my feet. This has never been much of an issue with me because I am still young enough to get up when I fall. However, since I no longer drive and I do not like falling in front of people, I do not leave my farm much.

In some ways this has slowed me down severely. Not being able to travel affects our fund raising abilities and our public exposure.

One of my biggest disappointments was being invited to travel to Iraq and see our kids and not being able to go. I would love to meet and greet our kids and shake their hands. And I would love to be able to present the wounded a Banner in person.

But my faith in God has driven me to do the best I can at whatever needs to be done at the time.

Q: You have met some really great folks through your Silver Star Families organization over the years. How has that enriched your life? Have any of these associations become personal friendships?

Being bound to the farm, one of my only outlets is the computer. Meeting people that have a love for their God and their Country has been a tremendously uplifting thing for me.

Reading or hearing what is in the news has little to do with the real world. Talking with people that have wounded children, people that have devoted their lives to helping others and people who have made a career of the military has given me, what I believe, is a real life view of what is happening on the ground.

Some of these people have become very close to me. People with a common interest and a devotion to their country that cannot be questioned.

And the Soldiers I have met are dear to my heart. I call them my kids. And nothing is too good for them.

Q: Obviously you have faced many dangers in your life from your police work to your military time so if you had to do it all over again would you? Do you feel like your career choices were right for you or would you have taken a different path if you were starting over today?

Yes I would have done the same thing. For me there was no choice as to a career path. It was military/law enforcement and for me they meshed. I would do the same thing all over again.

Q: Tell us something about your younger life. Where did you grow up and what kind of a kid were you? Did you have a close relationship with your parents or other adults growing up? Do you have any siblings and were any of them in the military or in police work?

Well I was a Marine at 17. Before that I played at being a Marine and a cop.

I am a born and raised Missourian.

Ha, and some things I keep private.  Anything about family is one of them.  Believe it or not Bill, there are actually some terrorists out there that were offended by the “Old Sergeant.”  Not that he cared.  In fact I believe it pleased him to no end.

Q: What did you want to be when you were a young man?

Again, a police officer and a military police officer.

Q: I think most people always want to ask an old marine why they went into that branch of service and not the Army or Air Force or something else? What was it that motivated that choice?

Being a Marine symbolized the Best of the Best. But now that I am older I know that all the Armed Forces are good. But to me, the Marines will always hold a special place in my heart.

Q: Who inspired you when you were younger? Did you have any heroes that you looked up to as a role model?

John Wayne. Ronald Reagan. Abraham Lincoln. Harry Truman. People that had the guts to stand up for God and Country.

And I always looked up to my mother and father.

Q: How about now at this stage of your life, is there anyone out there that motivates you or inspires you to still want to do things?

My family, my God and my friends motivate me. And our wonderful men and women in the military.

We let them down once and I promised myself we would never allow that to happen again.

Q: What have you learned in your life that you think has made you a better person?

Always remembering that God, family and country come first. And the Golden Rule.

Oh yes. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Q: If you could pass along some wisdom to younger writers out there, what would you tell them about the art of writing or being creative?

I would be the last person to offer advice to good young writers. But I can say this: Write about what you know and write from the heart.

Q: Now that you are faced with personal health issues are you finding yourself thinking about your life mission or purpose? I know that I almost died several times in 2005 with heart and brain problems and it certainly got my fullest attention?

Yes I know you suffered your own health problems Bill, God bless you.

I too had my brush with death and it taught me a very valuable lesson. There are no atheists in fox holes and I believe there are no atheists that know they are about to die. When you are lying there not knowing what is going to happen next you turn to the only person who can help. God was there for me and I think He is there for anyone who calls to Him.

As to purpose, being a simple man, I just try to do what I think He would want me to do. Sometimes I make it and sometimes I don’t.

Q: What plans do you have for Silver Stars or new books or other creative endeavors?

I want the Silver Star Flag flying over every V.A. and military hospital in the world. I would very much like to see people understand that once a war is over, the aftermath is still to come. The wounded, both physical and mental, are still here and always will be. We must never forget them.

Book three of the “Old Sergeant” will be going to the editors soon. “The Old Sergeant Rides Again.” Sounds like you and I Bill.

And from what the Old Sarge tells me, he might try to write a cookbook for Soldiers, in collaboration with a friend. That I will have to see.

Q: Is there anything about yourself that we do not know that you think would be of interest to us to know?

About myself? No.

But I would ask everyone to take the time to visit our wounded. Many V.A. Hospitals need volunteers and I can think of few other ways that would make such an impact on the lives of people who have given so much for us.

And one other thing. Good people need to stand up and respond when they read or here something that is biased against our Soldiers. Apathy is no longer an option.

Q: We know you write books but what kind of books do you read and what was the last book you read that you really enjoyed and would recommend to others?

Funny how tastes change when you get a little older. I used to love science fiction but now my tastes run more to the military genre. Both fiction and non fiction. I like your books Bill and Jeff Edwards’ Torpedo was a fine read.

Bill: Thank you for taking to the time to respond to our interview questions. I have known you for many years now through the internet and have never met you face to face I hope that you will be able to attend one of the MWSA events some day so that we can do that. God bless you and good luck on your life projects.

Steve: Thank you Bill. And God bless you too my friend.

*Learn more about The Silver Star Families of America by visiting their website.