Remembering Fallen Soldiers

CTNGA Sgt. Felix Del Greco and the author taken by mother, Claire Del Greco

Today, April 9th, is the fifth anniversary that Connecticut National Guard Army Sgt. Felix Del Greco was killed in action in Baghdad, Iraq. This photo was taken on New Year's Day 2004 before he shipped out for that tour of duty which he volunteered for, to serve his country and to help people live freely. This week, the 20 year ban on photographing the returning coffins of war dead was lifted by the current administration. When the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq began, the demand that this ban be lifted fell on deaf ears in the Pentagon and White House. From Democracy Now,

The media was permitted on Sunday to cover the arrival of a US soldier’s coffin at the Pentagon’s main mortuary in Delaware for the first time in eighteen years. President Barack Obama has relaxed a Pentagon ban on media coverage of returning US war dead, giving grieving families the choice of whether to allow cameras at the solemn arrival ceremony.

This has always been a clearly divisive debate, and Felix and I would probably be arguing about the pros and cons about this issue. I recall Sgt. Del Greco's family wishing for no media during the funeral, and the feelings of outrage I had when I saw the media vultures outside St. Joseph's Cathedral. However one feels about war and the military industry, citizens however need to remember the human cost and sacrifice of those that are involved.
There's so much that can and should be said about the situation. He and I argued the merits of going, but I always understood that he was volunteering to do what was right. I know this because we discussed it. But more than that, because I watched him grow up and knew the kind of person he was. More than that, the kind of leader he was. He was an amazing person and will forever be an inspiration to all he touched. And to me, all the more reason why WAR is wrong.