The Scent of Color (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781519277343)

In 1983 Lana LaFortune and her Army husband, moved to Ft Riley, KS. At U of K she earned a Masters in Social Work. At the mental health clinic on post, she learned about the Family Advocacy Program (FAP) that identifies, treats, and prevents family abuse. In 1986 the family moved to Italy where she became the FAP therapist. Vicenza was the overseas home of the 101st Airborne. For 3 years when she wasn't devoting her time to her work with the soldiers, she was exploring Europe. In 1996 she began working at Aviano AFB, again as a FAP therapist. At that time Aviano was the forward operating base for the Bosnian War with bombers and fighter jets flying overhead day and night. On September 11, 2001 tragedy struck, and like every US military installations throughout the world, Aviano went into Threatcon Delta - lock down. The weeks and months that followed were surreal, as the military geared up again for war, this time in Iraq and Afghanistan. Because of her contribution to the air force community and her relationship with the Command she was privileged to hear actual audio transmissions from the front between Marines pinned down by enemy fire and the fighter pilots providing air support. It was an exciting time, but in 2004 she return to the US, though her heart remained in Europe. In 2006 she began traveling to military installations to provide mental health support to active duty military and their families. The work took her to bases in Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US including Alaska. She had a chance to help combat vets and their families deal with the consequences of war: the long and frequent and dangerous deployments, the grief and survivor guilt, and the strain on marriages. She visited the training center at Ft Dix, NJ to see a simulated "little Fallujah" and observed the troops learn to clear a building, and treat and evacuate wounded comrades. She tried on the heavy gear worn by combat soldiers, leaned basic hand signals, and ate in the chow hall as she listened to the veterans who were going back for a second or third or fourth deployment. They spoke quietly about their experiences. In 2013 she began working with Marine recruiters, most of whom had seen multiple deployments. They wore their ribbons and spoke of their lost comrades and, when asked, showed her their purple hearts. Daily, their pride and courage and sacrifice moved her to think about a way of giving back, a way of telling their story, and so a germ of a novel began...