Letters For Logan Honors Fallen Air Force Officer, Benefits Special Operations Warrior Foundation

Online, June 17, 2012 (Newswire.com) - "Letters for Logan" is a collection of heart-felt letters written to a young boy after the tragic death of his father. Through the letters you learn about Logan's father, Air Force Capt. Derek Argel who lost his life at age 28 on Memorial Day in 2005 while deployed to Iraq as an Air Force Combat Controller.

Within days of his death, the first letter to Logan arrived. Then the next one followed. The letters told of the sorrow of losing a friend and colleague, but also related stories of his time with fellow combat controllers, or of his time at the Air Force Academy. Each letter weaves an enduring portrait for a little boy, now 7, of a father who was taken too soon.

Compiled and written by Deb Argel-Bastian, the mother of Capt. Derek Argel, and grandmother to Logan, this heart-wrenching book, takes you through an extraordinary journey of her son's life.

"So many people have lost loved ones and the ripple extends so far beyond family," she said. "All these people we've lost, they're remembered as casualties. They all had a life. They all deserve to have their stories be told."

Brandon Lingle, who counted Capt. Argel among his best friends while growing up in Lompoc, Calif. was compelled to write a letter for Logan.

"Just like the book's other contributors, I wanted to do what I could to help ensure Derek's life beyond his military service wouldn't fade away," explained Maj. Brandon Lingle, a public affairs officer for Air Combat Command who is deployed in Afghanistan. "He was an extraordinary man with an amazing story. I hope my words help Logan gain a sense of who his father was outside of the Air Force and war."

Proceeds from this book will go to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, a top-rated nonprofit organization that supports the families of fallen and wounded special operations personnel. The foundation provides full scholarship grants, educational and family counseling to the surviving children of special operations personnel who die in operational or training missions, and immediate financial assistance to severely wounded special operations personnel and their families.

"Letters for Logan is an amazing way to make sure everyone knows who Logan's father was and that he will never be forgotten," said John T. Carney, Jr., SOWF President.

The Special Operations Warrior Foundation has more than 900 surviving children of fallen special operators in its program, including some 140 students who are enrolled in colleges and universities across the country.

"I think about all the kids who will say 'I don't know my dad," explained Deb Argel-Bastian. "Logan, thanks to these people, will know his dad. Through them, Logan will know his dad."

"Letters for Logan" can be purchased online at Amazon.com