Arlington - Overwhelming and impacting..

[KIC]

I have been TDY to Washington DC for approximately 5 weeks. I chose to stay in a hotel in Arlington Virginia and just travel back-and-forth into the city. For the last 5 weeks as I have driven back to Arlington I have continually felt the pull to stop by and visit a friend.

 

So yesterday as I was driving back from DC I decided to make a U-turn off the freeway and head back for a visit.

 

Let me explain for a moment a little background. In 2008 my Princess daughter enlisted in the U.S. Army. In February 2009, after boot camp and completing Military Police Training she was assigned to a Military Police Unit, Airborne, Fort Bragg North Carolina. I drove my daughter and her belongings from Arizona to Fort Bragg arriving on an early Thursday morning the day of her required check-in. One of her friends from boot camp and MP school who was also assigned to Fort Bragg upon completion was a young lady from Kingman in our home state of Arizona. I met Ashley that morning and was glad that my daughter had a good friend to start off her life at Fort Bragg.

 

In early March 2009, 6 years ago, my daughter was transferred to a Military Police Unit that was being deployed to Afghanistan. This immediate deployment was sudden and unexpected.

 

My wife and I flew back to Fort Bragg in order to attend Green Ramp and see my daughter off to war. As we spent time with her and her friends we got to know them. Besides taking them out to dinners ( Smokey Bones) and even helping some of them purchase items they needed for deployment, we treated a group of them to a local Fair that was going on. One of the group was a strong cocky young man named Brian and his sister Candy. As my wife played mother hen to the kids (that’s what they all were, just kids) she realized that Ashley seem to have an eye on Brian. That night a friendship began that would eventually turn into a loving relationship and marriage.

 

Brian deployed with my daughter, Ashley still assigned to the other unit did not deploy. But during that tour in Afghanistan Brian and Ashley wrote letters, emails and phone calls. Even when Ashley was deployed to Haiti after the big earthquake, Brian and Ashley stayed in touch however they could.

 

 

During the Afghanistan tour Brian continued to be a big brother to my daughter and was someone who stayed close by her side and helped her while she recovered from her injuries after her MRAP hit an IED.

 

Upon returning from the tour in Afghanistan Brian secretly drove from Texas to Kingman Arizona to ask Ashley’s father for her hand in marriage. They were married and were able to be assigned to the same Military Police unit in Alaska. During this time Ashley’s sister also became an Airborne Military Police Officer and transferred to Alaska.

 

 

In late 2011 Brian, Ashley, her sister Amber and a cousin were all deployed back to Afghanistan.

 

 

 

In early May 2012 Ashley and Brian were able to come home together on a mid-tour leave. During this time, May 6^th, 2012, they found a 1957 (?) Chevy pickup truck that Brian fell in love with and purchased it with the intentions of restoring it together once they got back from Afghanistan. They then returned to Afghanistan.

 

 

On May 13, 2012 Sgt Brian Walker was leading his patrol team on a foot mission and as a true leader does, he led from the front. Brian stepped on an EID giving the ultimate sacrifice for his country.

 

His loving widow was his escort back to the country he loved.

 

 

Yesterday I had the honor to visit Brian at Arlington National Cemetery.

 

I was totally overwhelmed. Not just by Brian’s final resting place but by the overall enormous size of Arlington. From the moment I arrived I could tell that this would have an enormous effect on me. As I walked down the streets inside the cemetery I could not believe the number of white headstones that surrounded me. It seemed like I was having the beginning of an allergy attack since my eyes are watering and my sight was blurry.

 

 

Walking alongside the thousands of headstones I came upon a section of freshly turned dirt. This area did not have the white headstones they were way too new all they had was a little black temporary marker. I stopped and thought about the many families whose lives were now recently changed and would be here visiting sometime soon.

 

 

As I got close to Brian’s location I started cutting across the grass. We had just received snow and rain the last couple of days in I started sloshing through the mud in the water. At 1^st I was concerned about my dress shoes getting dirty but as I heard the sloshing and looked down at my shoes I immediately thought about the tens of thousands of soldiers who heroically trudged through mud and water while fighting for our country. All of a sudden the condition of my dress shoes didn’t matter. The squishing I heard was from them, not me.

 

 

 

I had seen many pictures of Brian’s headstone but seeing it in person had a total impact. On top of the headstone was a small pile of rocks which looked very much like Arizona rocks which tells me another friend must have recently visited.

 

 

I sat there for a while thinking about all the memories, the stuff that I’ve written here and think about what it might have been like had he not stepped on that IED.

 

About the time that my allergy attack was in full bloom, 2 ladies approached me. The older lady just walked up and said to me “ can we give you a hug, well actually we need the hugs” .

 

Hugs were freely given. She then pointed to 2 headstones in the next row and stated that the headstone on the left with the red flowers was her son who was killed on his 7^th tour and the headstone to the right with the yellow flowers was his 2 young daughters who died in a house fire while deployed. They then turned and walked away standing in front of their headstones.

 

I then started the long walk back to my vehicle.

Edited March 23, 2015 by KIC

[Jrichard]

Thank you for posting that piece----ANC,always has that effect ----A very somber, peaceful and THANKFUL -----------------------carry-on

[MasterGuns]

Kic, May God bless Sgt. Walker, your daughter and all of those that were part of his life.

 

Respectfully

 

Masterguns

USMC Retired

Semper Fi

[ragtop69gs]

Sorry for your loss Kic.

 

RIP Sgt. Walker. Thank You for your service and ultimate sacrifice in service to our country.

 

A visit to ANC is a truly inspiring and humbling experience . God Bless the souls who rest eternal there.

[cowpuc]

Kic:

I am so sorry to hear of the loss of such a great American as your precious Son-In-Law, Sargent Brian Lloyd Walker. You sharing this horrible news is heart breaking to the very depth of my soul. Much like yourself, Tip and I have visited Arlington and many other National Cemeterys on our excursions and are always deeply moved and touched by the endless rows of Monuments, each one a testament to the high cost of the freedoms we all enjoy in the free world. I want you to know that as we visit those places of highest honor from this day forward, we will think of Brian with deep thankfulness for his ultimate sacrifice. Please accept our deepest sympothy and condolences and PLEASE pass them on to your precious daughter for us!!

 

Sincerely yours,

Scott and Cheryl Barnhard

 

RIP Sargent Brian Lloyd Walker

[Freebird]

I will just admit that reading our story...his story...brought tears to my eyes. I so with that a day would come when we can all live in peace and the senseless killing will stop but the reality is that it probably never will. We owe so much to our brave soldiers like Brian and your daughters. God bless them all and our prayers will be with you and the families affected.

[KIC]

Scott,

Thanks for your kind words. Sorry if I wasn't clear, but Sgt Walker was not my son-in-law, just a good friend of the family that married a close friend of my daughter's. My son-on-law, who married my Hero daughter, is still in the Army at Ft Bragg. Brian was just a great young man who always had this big smile on his face.

 

We were one of the lucky families that after receiving the phone call about our daughter, that we still have her with us. We came close to becoming a Gold Star family, but luckily missed that.

 

Thanks to all for the kind words. I think every American should visit Arlington. I really wasn't prepared for the feelings and impact.

 

I say drag every VA Administrator and Congressman/Senator down there and make them walk through it before they are allowed the privileged of treating our HEROES.

 

Also, anybody considering the PGR, look into joining and DO IT !!

It is a small act, that gives BIG rewards to the grieving family members.

 

Here is the link to Sgt. Walkers PGR Mission:

http://www.venturerider.org/forum/watering-hole/70190-loaded-hard-pgr-mission.html

 

 

 

 

Kic:

I am so sorry to hear of the loss of such a great American as your precious Son-In-Law, Sargent Brian Lloyd Walker. You sharing this horrible news is heart breaking to the very depth of my soul. Much like yourself, Tip and I have visited Arlington and many other National Cemeterys on our excursions and are always deeply moved and touched by the endless rows of Monuments, each one a testament to the high cost of the freedoms we all enjoy in the free world. I want you to know that as we visit those places of highest honor from this day forward, we will think of Brian with deep thankfulness for his ultimate sacrifice. Please accept our deepest sympothy and condolences and PLEASE pass them on to your precious daughter for us!!

 

Sincerely yours,

Scott and Cheryl Barnhard

 

RIP Sargent Brian Lloyd Walker

Edited March 23, 2015 by KIC