NEW YORK, Friday—Yesterday evening we had a strictly family party, just my husband, our son, Jimmy, his wife and me. This afternoon, these two young people are leaving for San Diego, Cal., and all too soon Jimmy will be off on his active work again in his own branch of the service.

We made it a Christmas and birthday party combined, for this boy of ours was born two days before Christmas. He has always complained, because the two dates come so close together that no one ever gave him all to which he was entitled.

I am really sorry for my daughter-in-law Rommie, because she had barely settled her house here and now has had to tear it all apart again. But this is war, and men must do the things which are "musts" to them.

In the paper, a few days ago, I read that our second son, Elliott, was assigned to an aviation unit and will be off on active duty again. This time it will not be, I am sure, over the wilds of Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland that he will fly, as he did all last summer. I thought he was still taking a training course and secretly rejoiced with his wife in the comparative security of routine flying. Shortly, apparently, there will be three boys whose whereabouts for us are wrapped in mystery.

I left Washington last night on the night train and found my cousin, Mrs. Kermit Roosevelt, waiting for me at a very late hour to talk over certain changes in the organization for which she has done so much work. "Young America Wants To Help" has been a part of the British War Relief. Now, I imagine, they will redouble their efforts to help not only young people in England, but young people anywhere in our country who need it.

I love the photograph which was in some of yesterday's papers of young Colin Kelly and his mother. I think many people will be touched as I was, by the letter addressed to the "President of the United States in 1956" by my husband. He asked that this little boy be given an appointment to West Point because of the services which his father had rendered to his country.

Colin Kelly has a proud heritage and though pride can never remove the sense of loss which Mrs. Kelly and this little boy have suffered, still, in the future, it will mean much to both of them. Perhaps a child brought up in the shadow of heroism may find it always a motivating force in his young life.