'BLUE STAR' MOM EARNS HER STRIPES.

Byline: Carol Rock Staff Writer

VALENCIA - She has no blood relatives in uniform, but Sharon Ventrice proudly wears the red and white pin that bears a blue star in the center, earned for her dedication and countless hours supporting American troops.

As far as Ventrice is concerned, she has thousands of sons and daughters serving the country - they may not share her name, but they share her love for patriotism and freedom, which is enough reason for her to work packing boxes, delivering goodie bags and spreading the word of support.

Proving no good deed goes unrecognized, Ventrice was recently named an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Blue Star Mothers organization - only the second person in the history of the organization with this designation.

``I love to help out and do what I can,'' she said. ``My heart is over there with those kids. It's a case of wanting to do something to help the troops. One individual can do a lot, but it's more effective if you have a group.''

Tina Perez, whose son Jason is a Marine sergeant currently serving in Iraq, started a Santa Clarita chapter of the Blue Star Mothers in April. Now, 35 families meet on a regular basis to talk about their children and offer each other strength.

``Tina needed support when her son was called into service in Iraq,'' Ventrice said, noting that Jason already had seen service in Desert Storm. ``My friend Barbie Aston's son Matt is in the Army over in Iraq and Matt and Suzie, my daughter, have been friends for years. War has been hard on her.

``Barbie was one of the first wave of people who went to the Blue Star meetings and said I needed to come because I was Matt's 'other' mom,'' she explained. ``I hesitated because I don't really have a child in the service, but they said it was OK, so I got involved.''

When the group petitioned to be part of the National Blue Star Mothers, Ventrice didn't expect to be included or allowed to wear a Blue Star membership pin because of her volunteer-only status.

That's when Perez and the others stepped up to bat for her.

``I talked with Susan Naill, the president of national,'' said Perez. ``I told her I've never seen anybody do so much as Sharon; she puts all her heart and soul into it. She couldn't work harder if she actually did have kids over there.

``I have this joke with her. At each meeting we go around and talk about our kids. Sharon says she works so hard because she has 8,752 troops there.''

Not getting to wear the pin didn't deter the Valencia mom from her efforts on behalf of the troops. Her positive attitude and cheerful disposition was unflagging.

And when the group met for a potluck supper in November, Ventrice was in the kitchen preparing an appetizer, blissfully ignorant of the excitement building in the next room, where Perez was trying to set up her speakerphone.

``I wasn't paying attention to what they were doing and they called me over to the phone. On the other end was Susan, the president from national who said she was presenting me with an official pin and making me an Honorary Lifetime Blue Star Mother. I'm a sentimental slob; I have a hard time not crying when something bad or something good happens, so I'm blubbering my way through this when Tina tells me there's more.''

What Perez was trying to tell her was that there is only one other honorary lifetime member of the group and that was President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The president and Mrs. Roosevelt had four sons who served in the military during World War II, qualifying Eleanor as a Blue Star Mother, since the definition at the time stated ``she must have at least one son in the armed forces of the United States. As such, she is entitled to the respect and gratitude of every person interested in the fight for freedom and a United States' victory.''

Because of its wartime surge in popularity, the group included the chief executive in its ranks. A membership card dated Nov. 1, 1942, noting FDR's status as an Honorary Life Member of the Blue Star Mothers of America, is part of the collection at his presidential library in Hyde Park, N.Y.

``I was crying, my eyes were red and I'm hugging Tina and I realize everybody in the room was in on this, they all knew,'' Ventrice said. ``Even before I knew I was only the second person in history to receive this, I was so proud to be given the honor. I'm just doing what I can for the troops.''

``This honor is more than well deserved,'' Perez said. ``In our short time she was a tremendous asset in getting us off the ground.''

Ventrice said that the group isn't just there to hold a mother's hand when there might be bad news; member Phyllis Perlman's son came home after being wounded in a firefight and was the recipient of a lot of attention from the enthusiastic women.

``We're huggers at Blue Star Moms,'' she said. ``I think he was overwhelmed by all the physical contact. But these women, if they can hug anyone's son, it's like hugging their own.''

Although her daughter may not be military, she remembers her father's Army service in Okinawa during World War II and her husband spent time in Vietnam.

``I graduated in 1965, so a lot of my friends went to Nam,'' she said. ``That was pretty bad and the homecoming they got was pretty bad. It didn't matter who you were or what you did, you got blamed for the bad stuff. Little by little, people are starting to understand that bad things happen with every war.

``We're out there to publicize the fact that we support the troops,'' she explained. ``We have the stars hanging in the trees at City Hall, we're out there making sure that the guys and gals know we care. We send letters and packages and try to involve new people all the time. We want it to be positive when these kids some back. We let them know while they're over there that we are actively supporting them.''

The feedback has been positive as well. Ventrice said that hearing from one of the troops who received their package or letter lifts everyone's spirits.

``We've done as much as we could among all the groups, we've sent packages so that everyone in a particular unit will get something. We're not just doing things for our kids, but for all veterans.''

The women recently visited the Veterans Administration Hospital in Westwood to take veterans holiday presents, and were in turn serenaded by an appreciative vet.

Ventrice and Yvonne Traylor, whose son Jacob is with the 101st Airborne in Iraq, recently decorated a tree with a patriotic theme for the Festival of Trees fund-raiser. Along with teddy bears in camouflage and red, white and blue, the branches were adorned with pictures of the Santa Clarita service people represented by the group. The tree sold immediately on opening night, which thrilled Ventrice to no end.

Asked why she spends so much time and energy on those in the service, she hesitates slightly, as if to choke back emotion.

``I love these kids and I want to make just an ounce of difference in their lives,'' she said, the tears breaking through. ``It's just my little way of giving back to them. It doesn't matter that I don't know them.''

For information on the Blue Star Mothers of Santa Clarita, call [phone].

Carol Rock, [phone]

carol.rock(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo:

Sharon Ventrice has been named an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Blue Star Mothers organization.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer