A quiet thank you from the heart for American troops

This sequence of screen captures demonstrates the salute people can use when they want to thank uniformed military personnel they encounter in public places. Scott Truitt, a Seattle businessman who devised the salute, said he came up with the idea after noticing that sometimes he wanted to thank military personnel for their service but didn't feel comfortable doing it. (Courtesy of Gratitude Campaign)

Place your right hand on your heart, as though you were listening to the National Anthem. Then lower your hand, turning your palm up, stopping just above your waist, with your hand flat, palm up.

This, says one Boston non-profit group that serves military families, is the salute Americans should use whenever they want to show gratitude to uniformed military personnel for their service, but feel too shy to say "thank you."

"It's just a simple heartfelt way to acknowledge a service member," said Mike Bucell, marketing manager of US Family Health Plan, a Brighton-based managed healthcare plan for military retirees and families of military personnel on active duty. The organization has handed out thousands of wallet-sized cards explaining the salute among area veterans groups in an effort to spread the practice.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have become increasingly unpopular as both conflicts have dragged on and the toll of American deaths and casualties has risen. But most Americans draw a clear distinction between support for troops and support for the war. Many people want to express their appreciation to members of the armed services, but don't know how to approach them or whether they should, Bucell said.

The salute, which has already been widely publicized in the Pacific Northwest, is the way.

Scott Truitt, the Seattle businessman who devised the salute, said he came up with the idea after noticing several years ago that sometimes he wanted to approach military personnel to thank them for their service but didn't feel comfortable doing it.

"If it feels awkward for me to approach someone, it must be pretty awkward for everybody," said Truitt, who designs retail space for a living. "I started to think that it would be nice if civilians had a gesture or sign that they could use to say thank you quickly and easily without even having to approach."

The sign, said Truitt, whose father served in the Air Force, is not political.

"If you don't like the war, complain to the politicians," he said.

Truitt took his inspiration from a gesture devised in the 1700s by the head of a school for the deaf in France to mean, "Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Truitt, who calls his effort to publicize the salute "The Gratitude Campaign," contacted several major sports teams on the West Coast, some of which - including the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball, the Portland Trailblazers of the National Basketball Association, and the San Diego Chargers and Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League - have broadcast the campaign's instructional video in their stadiums or arenas.

The video shows a woman watching two soldiers approach in an airport. She appears to want to say something, but does not. As they pass, a look of regret clouds her face. "Have you ever wanted to say 'thank you,' but didn't . . . then wished you had?," reads a text on the screen.

In a later scene, the same woman uses the salute to greet a lone soldier, who is holding a pewter bracelet in memory of a fallen comrade. He nods at her in appreciation.

Truitt said he often gets e-mails from active military personnel and veterans telling how they have been given the salute in airports across the country.

The campaign came to Boston this fall, when Calvin G. Perry, a retired Air Force colonel who lives in Andover, saw the video on www.gratitudecampaign.org, the Gratitude Campaign website. He forwarded it to Kent Mathews, a retired Coast Guard officer and president and chief operating officer of Brighton Marine Health Center Inc., a nonprofit organization through which the US Family Health Plan operates in Massachusetts. Mathews suggested that the health plan help make the salute popular here.

A former Air Force intelligence officer who served in Vietnam, Mathews said he remembers what it was like when opposition to that unpopular war led to open public resentment of service members.

"We're hoping veterans help spread the word" about the salute, he said.

Sergeant Jeff Keiper of Vancouver, Wash., a helicopter crew chief with the Fourth Infantry Division who is serving his third tour in Iraq, said he and his comrades have been greeted by dozens of people when they arrive in US airports for leave. But he has also noticed that sometimes people have stared, as though they didn't know what to say.

The salute sounded like a great idea, Keiper said in an interview from Taji, Iraq. But he said someone should explain its meaning to the troops.

"The only caution I have is not everyone will know what it means starting out," Keiper said, "so don't be offended if nothing is returned."

David Filipov can be reached at dfilipov@globe.com