A Gold Star Mom says thank you
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September 8, 2013 |
On August 26, I had the privilege of attending
the Medal of Honor ceremony of Sergeant Ty
Carter in Washington, D.C.
Sgt. Carter was serving with my son, Sergeant
Joshua Kirk, at Command Outpost Keating in
Kamdesh District, Nuristan Province,
Afghanistan, when, on the morning of October 3,
2009, they awakened to an attack of an estimated
300 enemy fighters occupying the high ground on
all four sides of COP Keating.
During the eleven hour battle that ensued, eight
men, including my son, lost their lives; nearly
all of the remaining 44 were wounded. However,
they were not the only casualties that day.
Eight mothers and fathers became Gold Star
families, four women became widows, five
children became fatherless.
Attending this ceremony was made possible for me
by the generous donations of the many in this
wonderful community, who have not only embraced
me and my family in our time of grief, but
continue to remember Joshua's life and legacy.
There are no words adequate to express how your
loving support of my family continues daily to
impact our lives.
Since my return I have been asked, "what was the
highlight of my trip?"
Was it meeting the President, dining in the
White House, attending the induction ceremony at
the Pentagon?
While these were certainly memorable experiences
and not soon to be forgotten, I will forever
cherish the memory of looking into the eyes of
my granddaughter for the first time and seeing
my son looking back at me.
My heart is also filled with gratitude at being
able to spend time with the Keating mothers.
While the soldiers that day may have been a band
of brothers, we are truly a band of mothers, and
being able to spend time together does help ease
the deep burden of loss we all carry each and
every day.
These are the gifts your generous support gave
to me; these are the gifts I will treasure.
Once again, from the bottom of my heart, thank
you. |
Bernadette Kirk-Bonner
Proud Gold Star Mother of Sergeant Joshua John
Kirk |
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