For the street in Detroit, Michigan, see M-97 (Michigan highway)

M-97 (Michigan highway)

M-97 is a state trunkline highway in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs from Detroit to north of Mt. Clemens following Groesbeck Highway. The highway starts south of 7 Mile Road and runs northeasterly through Macomb County suburbs to Hall Road, which takes the place of 20 Mile Road in the Mile...

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Gunston Street is a comic strip that deals with the many challenges of a married couple (Phil & Laura) and their 3 sons, (P.J., Basil, Walter), just to name a few of the wide variety of classic characters.

Gunston Street is created, written and drawn by Basil Zaviski, who served over 15 years in the Michigan Army National Guard as an Airborne Infantry Soldier

Airborne forces

Airborne forces are military units, usually light infantry, set up to be moved by aircraft and 'dropped' into battle. Thus they can be placed behind enemy lines, and have an ability to deploy almost anywhere with little warning...

 with Co.F 425 Airborne Infantry Long Range Surveillance Unit, serving 13 months in Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

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"Gunston Street" is based on his experiences during a deployment to Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

 with the Michigan National Guard

Michigan National Guard

The Michigan National Guard consists of the Michigan Army National Guard and the Michigan Air National Guard.-Units:Michigan Army National Guard units include:* Joint Forces Headquarters, Lansing, MI* 177th Military Police Brigade, Taylor, MI...

. The strip usually takes a humorous look at life in camp and on patrol, but has recently taken a more serious turn while recounting the events surrounding an ambush that hit Zaviski’s unit. The strip is named after a street in Detroit, Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

, which is the southern terminus for state highway M-97

M-97 (Michigan highway)

M-97 is a state trunkline highway in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs from Detroit to north of Mt. Clemens following Groesbeck Highway. The highway starts south of 7 Mile Road and runs northeasterly through Macomb County suburbs to Hall Road, which takes the place of 20 Mile Road in the Mile...

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Gunston Street is published weekly in the Stars & Stripes

Stars and Stripes (newspaper)

Stars and Stripes is a news source that operates from inside the United States Department of Defense but is editorially separate from it. The First Amendment protection which Stars and Stripes enjoys is safeguarded by Congress to whom an independent ombudsman, who serves the readers' interests,...

, and can also be seen on Gunstonstreet.com. The Selected strips were also featured in "Military Father" by Author Arman Brott, published by Abbeville Press.