The Soldiers who died in Niger had names - they were more than "Four Soldiers" | Eastern North Carolina Now

    I am somewhat sensitive to the "a soldier" reference in most of the news articles. The result is now that we are embroiled in a donnybrook over the death of someone who is now being referred to in almost every account as "a soldier."

    The recent flap about President Trump's call to the widow of a soldier killed in Niger has caused many to question the method and wording of the Presidents phone call. It was best explained by General Kelly in a press conference on October 19, 2017.


    As General Kelly has said, no words will be sufficient for the grieving family members. Though, I have never lost a family member in war, I have some idea of the emotion surrounding the events that follow death of a soldier in combat.

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    As one who has some peripheral experience with dealing with recently notified family members of a KIA, I think it is never advisable for a politician to insert themselves into the immediate grief of a family. This advice is applicable to both sides of the isle. General Kelly was correct, in my opinion, when he advised the President not to make the call, but I also understand the Presidents wish to call the grieving relatives of all those who die under his command.

    One of my saddest duties was to write draft letters for Unit KIA to families. As the NCOIC during the latter part of my tour, I would prepare the draft letter home. There was a template that used that had been preapproved by Military protocol but there was also room for a short paragraph that was individualized for the soldier killed.

    This was not the first notice to the family as you may have seen in movies where the telegram arrives or the visit from the graves registration officer with Chaplain. This was a personal note from the unit commander to the family, but it also had a protocol that it be non-specific or not too detailed without appearing to be a form letter.

    My job was to write the personal paragraph that would be used in the letter to provide a context for the soldier's involvement. The Captain would review and edit. It required interviewing buddies if I did not know the guy. The hardest to do was a newbie who no one knew well yet. The purpose was to make some personal reference something the soldier had told others about home or family. I had several Rules that I followed. In most cases the less said the better.

    Rules:

• never embellish their character or actions
• never describe the incident in detail
• my personal rule: Assume the letter was to my mother about me".

    Generally, the soldiers buddies may write a letter to the family or in some cases they would try to visit the family after their return home. Often times this would be months or in some cases years after the event. I wrote an article last memorial day about the need for closure for many ex grunts. ( Eddy Schultz )

    I also occasionally had a duty while stationed at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Alabama after my return from Vietnam. When a KIA was returned home for the funeral. The Army would assign an individual to be present at the funeral home for the viewing of the dead soldier. Often they would look for a person who served in the same unit or division as the dead soldier. On several occasions, I was selected to be present for a former member of the 25th Infantry Division, which was my unit in Vietnam. I never knew the soldier but was there merely as a representative of the Army.

    Often a relative or attendee would ask me if I knew the dead soldier or had any information about his death. That was always a difficult conversation since I did not know him but I tried to convey the condolences of our mutual unit. Generally I could tell them about the general location of the unit and its history in the Army.

    The process of grieving often goes through anger and I saw a few instances of that from family members on why their son, dad, brother or husband was killed. It never deteriorated into an incident, but I could only guess at the degree of pain that they must have felt.

    The funeral would have an honor guard which was a designated and trained group of soldiers for that purpose of folding the flag and presenting it to the family.

    Sometimes this anger is often unleashed on anyone with a tangential connection to the dead. There is a time for ceremony and official offering of condolences but generally, a politician's presence only serves to exacerbate an already emotional filled situation.

    All I know about the fallen solider is that he had a name: It was Sgt. La David T. Johnson and his comrades' had names. They were, Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson and Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright. They were more than just "soldiers"


    I will give the President the benefit of the doubt that he felt his phone call may, to use Lincoln's words, assuage the anguish of the wife and family, but it is often interpreted as an interruption of the grieving process. There is always a time for personal contact after the emotion has died down. I am also willing to give the widow and family the benefit of the doubt regarding their feelings on the call.

   I do however believe that any politician should stay clear of this while the pain is so recent. Simply, to politicize the death of one of the four fallen Green Berets recently in Niger by this outrageous Representative commenting for political gain on a call from President Trump to the wife of the fallen special forces soldier, (Sgt. La David T. Johnson) is a measure of disrespect to his sacrifice.

   General Kelly was correct, We should keep the memory these men sacred and away from the political bickering we now see in the media.