thedrifter
06-29-07, 06:23 AM
Families appreciative of personal words from president
01:00 AM EDT on Friday, June 29, 2007
By Alex Kuffner
Journal Staff Writer
NEWPORT — After delivering a speech yesterday that focused on the progress of the Iraq war, President Bush met with the families of local soldiers who lost their lives fighting that war.
Families of all 11 Rhode Island soldiers killed in Iraq since 2003 were represented at the afternoon reception at the Naval War College in Newport. The president spent time with individual families, offering comfort and thanking them for the service of a son or daughter, sister or brother. It was his first presidential visit to Rhode Island.
“He told me that he was sorry for my loss,” said Richard Weidemann, whose 23-year-old brother Michael was killed by a roadside bomb in Anbar Province last October.
Richard Weidemann was at the War College with his grandmother, sister, two brothers and his brothers’ adoptive parents. The president’s visit was important to his family, he said, serving as recognition of the sacrifice his brother made.
“Just him visiting meant a lot to me and meant a lot to everyone in my family,” he said afterward.
Sharon Serio went to the War College with her husband Anthony. Their 21-year-old son Matthew, a lance corporal in the Marines, was killed by enemy fire near Fallujah in April 2004 during his second tour of duty in Iraq. The Serios’ two other sons are in the Navy.
She declined to talk in detail about the meeting with the president, afterward saying only, “It was very personal.”
During his speech to military officers at the War College’s Naval Command College, Mr. Bush preached patience in the war in Iraq and warned that the United States can expect more casualties.
He closed by describing a conversation with the father of Army Sgt. Cory Endlich, a soldier from Ohio who was killed by a sniper earlier this month in Iraq.
“I am proud of him and the job he is doing,” Mr. Bush recalled Endlich’s father telling him.
Then the president added, “And so am I.”
His words were greeted by a standing ovation from the 500 people in the audience.
“We resolve to honor their sacrifice by finishing the work they have begun,” Mr. Bush said of military personnel who have been killed in Iraq.
As the president spoke in an auditorium at the college, the families of Rhode Island’s casualties waited in a building next door. In the minutes before they met with the president, some of them talked about the deceased soldiers, said Master Sgt. Darleen Silva, the Rhode Island National Guard’s liaison to the Weidemann family.
“I thought it was good for the families to talk with each other,” she said.
The Weidemanns spent about 20 minutes with the president in a room with two other families. Mr. Bush spoke individually with each family member and allowed them to take pictures with him. He gave Jerred Michael Weidemann — Michael Weidemann’s two-month old nephew — a pin with the presidential insignia on it.
Richard Weidemann, 20, joined the National Guard in March. He wore his uniform yesterday, and the president asked him about his plans in the military.
The young Guardsman gave Mr. Bush a framed sketch by a friend of a rifle propped up on the ground with a helmet balanced on top and a pair of boots lying alongside. Underneath the drawing, it said, “All gave some. Some gave all.”
He said his family is still struggling with his brother’s death. He didn’t hesitate to answer, however, when asked if would be willing to serve in Iraq.
“If I get deployed, then I won’t have a problem with it,” he said.
akuffner@projo.com
Ellie
01:00 AM EDT on Friday, June 29, 2007
By Alex Kuffner
Journal Staff Writer
NEWPORT — After delivering a speech yesterday that focused on the progress of the Iraq war, President Bush met with the families of local soldiers who lost their lives fighting that war.
Families of all 11 Rhode Island soldiers killed in Iraq since 2003 were represented at the afternoon reception at the Naval War College in Newport. The president spent time with individual families, offering comfort and thanking them for the service of a son or daughter, sister or brother. It was his first presidential visit to Rhode Island.
“He told me that he was sorry for my loss,” said Richard Weidemann, whose 23-year-old brother Michael was killed by a roadside bomb in Anbar Province last October.
Richard Weidemann was at the War College with his grandmother, sister, two brothers and his brothers’ adoptive parents. The president’s visit was important to his family, he said, serving as recognition of the sacrifice his brother made.
“Just him visiting meant a lot to me and meant a lot to everyone in my family,” he said afterward.
Sharon Serio went to the War College with her husband Anthony. Their 21-year-old son Matthew, a lance corporal in the Marines, was killed by enemy fire near Fallujah in April 2004 during his second tour of duty in Iraq. The Serios’ two other sons are in the Navy.
She declined to talk in detail about the meeting with the president, afterward saying only, “It was very personal.”
During his speech to military officers at the War College’s Naval Command College, Mr. Bush preached patience in the war in Iraq and warned that the United States can expect more casualties.
He closed by describing a conversation with the father of Army Sgt. Cory Endlich, a soldier from Ohio who was killed by a sniper earlier this month in Iraq.
“I am proud of him and the job he is doing,” Mr. Bush recalled Endlich’s father telling him.
Then the president added, “And so am I.”
His words were greeted by a standing ovation from the 500 people in the audience.
“We resolve to honor their sacrifice by finishing the work they have begun,” Mr. Bush said of military personnel who have been killed in Iraq.
As the president spoke in an auditorium at the college, the families of Rhode Island’s casualties waited in a building next door. In the minutes before they met with the president, some of them talked about the deceased soldiers, said Master Sgt. Darleen Silva, the Rhode Island National Guard’s liaison to the Weidemann family.
“I thought it was good for the families to talk with each other,” she said.
The Weidemanns spent about 20 minutes with the president in a room with two other families. Mr. Bush spoke individually with each family member and allowed them to take pictures with him. He gave Jerred Michael Weidemann — Michael Weidemann’s two-month old nephew — a pin with the presidential insignia on it.
Richard Weidemann, 20, joined the National Guard in March. He wore his uniform yesterday, and the president asked him about his plans in the military.
The young Guardsman gave Mr. Bush a framed sketch by a friend of a rifle propped up on the ground with a helmet balanced on top and a pair of boots lying alongside. Underneath the drawing, it said, “All gave some. Some gave all.”
He said his family is still struggling with his brother’s death. He didn’t hesitate to answer, however, when asked if would be willing to serve in Iraq.
“If I get deployed, then I won’t have a problem with it,” he said.
akuffner@projo.com
Ellie