Karla's Story (Marine Trubute)
06-09-2006, 07:35 PM
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Karla's Story (Marine Trubute)
I was sent this in an email and thought it worthy of posting.
Subject: CAMP PENDLETON, Calif
CAMP PENDLETON , Calif.
( March 2, 2006 )
Karla Comfort received a lot of looks and even some salutes from people when she drove from Benton, Ark., to Camp Pendleton, Calif., in her newly-painted, custom Hummer H3 March 2. The vehicle is adorned with the likeness of her son, 20-year-old Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason, and nine other Marines with F Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division who where all killed by the same improvised explosive device blast in Fallujah, Iraq, in December. For Karla Comfort, having the vehicle air brushed with the image of the 10 Marines was a way to pay homage to her hero and his fellow comrades who fell on Iraq's urban battlefield.
"I wanted to let people know (Marines) are doing their jobs honorably, and some of them die," said the 39-year-old from Portland, OR "I don't want people to forget the sacrifices that my son and the other Marines made."
Leading up to her son's death, Karla Comfort had received several letters from him prior to his return. He had been deployed for five months, and Comfort "worried everyday he was gone until she got the letters and found out the date he was coming home," she said. Marines knocked on the front door of her home in Farmington , Mich., at 3 am with the dreadful news.
"I let my guard down when I found out he was coming home," she said. "There are times that I still cannot believe it happened.
It's very hard to deal with."
CUSTOM PAINTED HUMMER
Karla Comfort came up with the idea for the rolling memorial when she and her two other sons attended John's funeral in Portland, Ore. I saw a Vietnam (War) memorial on a car, and I said to my son Josh, 'we should do something like that for John,' she recalled.
"He loved Hummers." She purchased the vehicle in January and immediately took it to AirbrushGuy & Co. in Benton, Ark. , where artist Robert Powell went to work on changing the plain, black vehicle into a decorative, mobile, art piece.
"I only had the vehicle for two days before we took it in," she joked.
Two hundred and fifty man-hours later, Powell had completed the vehicle. The custom job would have cost $25,000. Out of respect for Karla Comfort's loss and the sacrifices the Marines made, AirbrushGuy & Co. did it for free. Comfort only had to purchase the paint, which cost $3,000.
"I love it," she said. "I'm really impressed with it, and I think John would be happy with the vehicle. He would have a big smile on his face because he loved Hummers."
Karla Comfort gave Powell basic instructions on what to include in the paint job. But in addition to the image of her son in Dress Blues and the faces of the nine other Marines, there were several surprises. "He put a lot more on than I expected," she said. "I think my favorite part is the heaven scene."
On the left side of the vehicle, a detail of Marines are depicted carrying their fallen comrades through the clouds to their final resting place. The American flag drapes across the hood, the words, "Semper Fi" crown the front windshield and the spare tire cover carries the same Eagle Globe and Anchor design that her son had tattooed on his back.
"All the support I have been getting is wonderful," she said. Karla Comfort decided to move back to her hometown of Portland, and making the cross-country trip from Arkansas was a way for her to share her son's story. It's also her way of coping with the loss.
Along the way I got nothing but positive feedback from people," she said. "What got to me was when people would salute the guys (Marines). It's hard to look at his picture. I still cry and try to get used to the idea, but it's hard to grasp the idea that he's really gone."
Subject: CAMP PENDLETON, Calif
CAMP PENDLETON , Calif.
( March 2, 2006 )
Karla Comfort received a lot of looks and even some salutes from people when she drove from Benton, Ark., to Camp Pendleton, Calif., in her newly-painted, custom Hummer H3 March 2. The vehicle is adorned with the likeness of her son, 20-year-old Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason, and nine other Marines with F Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division who where all killed by the same improvised explosive device blast in Fallujah, Iraq, in December. For Karla Comfort, having the vehicle air brushed with the image of the 10 Marines was a way to pay homage to her hero and his fellow comrades who fell on Iraq's urban battlefield.
"I wanted to let people know (Marines) are doing their jobs honorably, and some of them die," said the 39-year-old from Portland, OR "I don't want people to forget the sacrifices that my son and the other Marines made."
Leading up to her son's death, Karla Comfort had received several letters from him prior to his return. He had been deployed for five months, and Comfort "worried everyday he was gone until she got the letters and found out the date he was coming home," she said. Marines knocked on the front door of her home in Farmington , Mich., at 3 am with the dreadful news.
"I let my guard down when I found out he was coming home," she said. "There are times that I still cannot believe it happened.
It's very hard to deal with."
CUSTOM PAINTED HUMMER
Karla Comfort came up with the idea for the rolling memorial when she and her two other sons attended John's funeral in Portland, Ore. I saw a Vietnam (War) memorial on a car, and I said to my son Josh, 'we should do something like that for John,' she recalled.
"He loved Hummers." She purchased the vehicle in January and immediately took it to AirbrushGuy & Co. in Benton, Ark. , where artist Robert Powell went to work on changing the plain, black vehicle into a decorative, mobile, art piece.
"I only had the vehicle for two days before we took it in," she joked.
Two hundred and fifty man-hours later, Powell had completed the vehicle. The custom job would have cost $25,000. Out of respect for Karla Comfort's loss and the sacrifices the Marines made, AirbrushGuy & Co. did it for free. Comfort only had to purchase the paint, which cost $3,000.
"I love it," she said. "I'm really impressed with it, and I think John would be happy with the vehicle. He would have a big smile on his face because he loved Hummers."
Karla Comfort gave Powell basic instructions on what to include in the paint job. But in addition to the image of her son in Dress Blues and the faces of the nine other Marines, there were several surprises. "He put a lot more on than I expected," she said. "I think my favorite part is the heaven scene."
On the left side of the vehicle, a detail of Marines are depicted carrying their fallen comrades through the clouds to their final resting place. The American flag drapes across the hood, the words, "Semper Fi" crown the front windshield and the spare tire cover carries the same Eagle Globe and Anchor design that her son had tattooed on his back.
"All the support I have been getting is wonderful," she said. Karla Comfort decided to move back to her hometown of Portland, and making the cross-country trip from Arkansas was a way for her to share her son's story. It's also her way of coping with the loss.
Along the way I got nothing but positive feedback from people," she said. "What got to me was when people would salute the guys (Marines). It's hard to look at his picture. I still cry and try to get used to the idea, but it's hard to grasp the idea that he's really gone."
That is not a tear, I had something in my eye. Very chilling story, thank you for sharing Sindy. SEMPER FI
06-09-2006, 10:24 PM
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Military Tributes
I have a soft spot for this stuff as my son is a Marine!
Get your tissues ready.
Last week, while traveling to Chicago on business, I noticed a Marine sergeant traveling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we'd boarded our flight, I turned to the sergeant, who'd been invited to sit in First Class (and was seated across from me), and inquired if he was heading home.
"No," he responded .
"Heading out?" I asked.
"No. I'm escorting a soldier home."
"Going to pick him up?"
"No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Iraq . I'm taking him home to his family."
The realization of what he had been asked to do hit me like a punch to the gut. It was an honor for him. He told me that, although he didn't know the soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the soldier's family and felt as if he did know them after so many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said, "Thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family and I can do what we do."
Upon landing in Chicago the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honor of having Sergeant Steeley of the United States Marine Corps join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the forward door [so as to] allow Sergeant Steeley to deplane and receive his fellow soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign."
Without a sound, all went as requested. I noticed the sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realize that I am proud to be an American. So here's a public thank-you to our military for doing what you do so we can live the way we do.
Stuart Margel, Washington, D.C.
These are separate, but related pictures.......................................... .........
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
When 2nd Lt. James Cathey's body arrived at the Reno Airport, Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac. During the arrival of another Marine's casket last year at Denver International Airport, Major Steve Beck described the scene as one of the most powerful in the process: "See the people in the windows? They'll sit right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what's going through their minds, knowing that they're on the plane that brought him home," he said. "They're going to remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They're going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should."
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
The night before the burial of her husband's body, Katherine Cathey refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his body for the last time. The Marines made a bed for her, tucking in the sheets below the flag. Before she fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs that reminded her of 'Cat,' and one of the Marines asked if she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. "I think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it," she said. "I think that's what he would have wanted."
Get your tissues ready.
Last week, while traveling to Chicago on business, I noticed a Marine sergeant traveling with a folded flag, but did not put two and two together. After we'd boarded our flight, I turned to the sergeant, who'd been invited to sit in First Class (and was seated across from me), and inquired if he was heading home.
"No," he responded .
"Heading out?" I asked.
"No. I'm escorting a soldier home."
"Going to pick him up?"
"No. He is with me right now. He was killed in Iraq . I'm taking him home to his family."
The realization of what he had been asked to do hit me like a punch to the gut. It was an honor for him. He told me that, although he didn't know the soldier, he had delivered the news of his passing to the soldier's family and felt as if he did know them after so many conversations in so few days. I turned back to him, extended my hand, and said, "Thank you. Thank you for doing what you do so my family and I can do what we do."
Upon landing in Chicago the pilot stopped short of the gate and made the following announcement over the intercom.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to note that we have had the honor of having Sergeant Steeley of the United States Marine Corps join us on this flight. He is escorting a fallen comrade back home to his family. I ask that you please remain in your seats when we open the forward door [so as to] allow Sergeant Steeley to deplane and receive his fellow soldier. We will then turn off the seat belt sign."
Without a sound, all went as requested. I noticed the sergeant saluting the casket as it was brought off the plane, and his action made me realize that I am proud to be an American. So here's a public thank-you to our military for doing what you do so we can live the way we do.
Stuart Margel, Washington, D.C.
These are separate, but related pictures.......................................... .........
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
When 2nd Lt. James Cathey's body arrived at the Reno Airport, Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac. During the arrival of another Marine's casket last year at Denver International Airport, Major Steve Beck described the scene as one of the most powerful in the process: "See the people in the windows? They'll sit right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what's going through their minds, knowing that they're on the plane that brought him home," he said. "They're going to remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They're going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should."
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
The night before the burial of her husband's body, Katherine Cathey refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his body for the last time. The Marines made a bed for her, tucking in the sheets below the flag. Before she fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs that reminded her of 'Cat,' and one of the Marines asked if she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. "I think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it," she said. "I think that's what he would have wanted."
06-10-2006, 07:36 AM
#7
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Join Date: 04-03-2006
Location: Peoria. Illinois
Posts: 1,747
I have been the Detachment NCO for a number of military funerals, there is always so much grief, but we gave every effort to pay the utmost respect and tribute to our brothers and their families. Our unit would spend no less than eight hours a day for a week preparing to assume our duties of funeral detail and by the time we took over the commands were by sight and silent. Beautiful, harsh, moving and always with the ultimate in respect and honor. My only personal failure in my military career...I was too short to be considered for Tomb Guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns. "Keep Up the Fire"
06-10-2006, 10:56 AM
#8
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Join Date: 04-19-2006
Location: Arvada CO
Posts: 5,065
Thanks for the great stories Sindy. They were all very touching and the one that really got to me was the one about the lady laying next to the coffin of her husband playing music. Put tears in my eyes.
God bless our armed forces and what they are doing over there. While I realize some people don't believe in us being there, I guess they don't quite understand the real purpose of trying to keep as much world peace as possible. Those terrorists have to be stopped before we have any more mass tragedies such as 9/11.
I say a prayer every day for our troops and hope that someday they will all be home safely where they belong. God Bless America and all the other Allied Forces who are fighting for our freedom.
God bless our armed forces and what they are doing over there. While I realize some people don't believe in us being there, I guess they don't quite understand the real purpose of trying to keep as much world peace as possible. Those terrorists have to be stopped before we have any more mass tragedies such as 9/11.
I say a prayer every day for our troops and hope that someday they will all be home safely where they belong. God Bless America and all the other Allied Forces who are fighting for our freedom.
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