We never met, but I love Toby Keith. Not just his music, but the man. This is my short anecdote that explains why.
In 2004 my son was on his first of about a dozen combat deployments to the Mideast. He was then a 2nd Lieutenant with the 10th Mountain Division. It was the first of his many extended separations from his wonderful wife and, later, his precious son and daughter. My wife and I traveled to Ft. Drum to visit with him and his wife, and to be there when he boarded the plane, headed to war.
While there, I met a few members of his unit. One of my enduring recollections was of the support given to soldiers and their families by the Battalion Command Sergeant Major’s wife as they said their goodbyes, not knowing what the future held for any of them.
Not long after the battalion deployed, they were engaged in street fighting in Baghdad and suffered their first KIAs. Like all parents of deployed soldiers, I lived on pins and needles, reading and watching the news for any developments that could change our lives.
At the time, many people were repeating the mantra, “I support the troops,” but not everyone could or did act on that. I wanted to make some small gesture to show support for the families that the soldiers had left behind, to show that people they did not even know appreciated their sacrifice, too.
At the time I was
