http://www.washtimes.com/functions/print.php?StoryID=20050630-124908-7
077r
Or
http://tinyurl.com/cbed2
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At Fort Campbell, Ky., in 2004, he met with 133 relatives of 46
fallen service members. While at Fort Hood, Texas, in April, he met
with 90 family members of 33 slain soldiers.
The president wept during a meeting one year ago at MacDill Air
Force Base in Florida. In December, he posthumously awarded a Bronze
Star during a meeting with 50 family members at Camp Pendleton, Calif.
Although not all family members agree with the president's
policies in Iraq and Afghanistan, many reported being deeply moved by
their sessions with him. These include Dave Bader, whose brother,
Staff Sgt. Daniel Bader, was killed in Iraq.
"He was just a regular American who came to talk to us," he told
the Denver Post after meeting with Mr. Bush at Fort Carson, Colo., in
November, 2003. "I was touched by that."
Others used their meetings with the president to counsel
perseverance in the face of withering domestic criticism.
"Mike believed in him," Mrs. Owen said. "He was his commander in
chief and would have done anything he was ordered to do.
"I was proud to be a military wife," she added. "And I was very
honored that the president would take time out to meet with me
personally."
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My wife's first impression when he gave his speech at Ft. Bragg was
how much he'd aged even since the election.
- Bob
©2005 Bob Calco |
