Ribbons and Hope Go Out for 3 Soldiers

Barry Pascal, owner of Northridge Pharmacy, said his heart dropped when he heard American soldiers had been captured near the Macedonian border this week.

“I figured there was something we could do to show the community we haven’t forgotten those poor boys,” Pascal said. “I want them to know we care.”

So he tied large yellow ribbons, symbols of support for the safe return of the hostages, around the 21 pillars outside his pharmacy and posted large signs with lyrics to “Bring Him Home” from “Les Miserables,” and Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind.”

At Millsta, a manufacturer of leather products in North Hollywood, managers decorated an iron gate with about 20 yellow ribbons and a large American flag.

They also distributed about 60 small yellow ribbons in honor of the captured soldiers. Millsta vice president KathyJo McCloskey, whose father was a Marine, and her three children stayed up the night before tying the ribbons.

“We’re hoping people will think about what those people are going through as they head up for Easter weekend,” said Heather Small, the company’s director of sales who handed out ribbons Friday morning. “This is not only to support our hostages, but those refugees too.”