thedrifter
11-10-07, 06:29 AM
Dedicated to 'an American hero'
By TONY MARRERO Hernando Today
Published: Nov 9, 2007
It seemed fitting that, in a ceremony held Friday morning to dedicate a post office in honor of Marine Sgt. Lea Mills, letters from fellow Marines painted a picture of Mills for those who didn’t know him.
Under a brilliant blue, cloudless sky in front of the post office on Aviation Loop Drive, Marine Sgt. Josh Perdue — a longtime friend of Mills — read letters from two other Marines who served with him. They were addressed to Lea’s parents, Robert and Dee, after the 21-year-old Hernando High graduate was killed in Iraq last year.
In one letter, Lance Cpl. Patton Butler described how Mills, a mechanic known for his skills, took an hour to patiently explain a repair for Butler.
“It seemed like the most mature and honorable thing a person has done,” Butler wrote, adding that he was “shocked” to find out that Lea, pronounced “Lee,” was two years younger than he.
“He was a true joy to be around, always smiling,” Butler wrote. “I loved working with him and would have followed him anywhere.”
In another letter, Sgt. Juan Montoya described Mills as “a great guy, smart and a Marine by heart.”
Montoya added, “He didn’t die in vain.”
Some 200 people showed up to for the ceremony to rename the branch the “Sgt. Robert Lea Mills branch.” Many sat among a stand of oak trees, wearing red and waving American flags.
A Blackhawk helicopter, rolled in from the nearby National Guard armory, sat in the middle of Aviation Loop Drive, serving as a looming reminder of the kind of equipment U.S. service personnel use in Iraq and Afghanistan each day.
The crowd created a sea of color and texture: The light green fatigues of the Guardsmen; the dark green uniforms of several Hernando Sheriff’s deputies; the black leather of the Rolling Thunder motorcycle group.
The post office employees sported red T-shirts proclaiming Mills as “an American hero.” Perdue, who left active duty last month, wore his dark blue uniform and peered out at the crowd from under the low brim of his cap as he recalled how Mills almost joined the Coast Guard upon graduating high school.
“He realized his lifestyle and personality fit into the Marines better than anywhere else,” Perdue told the crowd.
Lea was always a jokester, but also competitive, Perdue said, and that drove him to earn the rank of honor graduate in his platoon after boot camp in Parris Island, S.C.
Mills was assigned to the 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion and shipped off to Iraq in March 2006. He was killed just six weeks later, on April 28, by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Al Anbar province.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please understand we are here because of men and women like Lea who have made or are willing to make these sacrifices,” Perdue said. “Just a hug or a handshake or a simple thank-you means more than you will ever know.”
U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, the Brooksville Republican who filed the legislation to have the post office dedicated to Mills, was working on a host of issues in Washington D.C. Friday and was unable to attend.
“I hope that when young children from Hernando County come to use the Brooksville Post Office they will see the name of Lea Mills over the entrance, and stop to ask why that man had his name engraved for all time on the plaque,” Brown-Waite said in statement read during the ceremony. “Having spoken to the post office employees assembled here today, I know that they will answer with pride that Lea Mills was one of Hernando County’s finest citizens.”
Also in a statement, USPS Suncoast District manager Timothy Healy extended “heartfelt thanks … for the selfless dedication to nation and community demonstrated by Sgt. Mills.”
Robert and Dee Mills attended the ceremony along with Dee’s mother, Peggy Parker Blanchard.
“It is God’s grace that has gotten us through, and I see a wave of love here before me, and I’m touched,” Dee Mills said.
Something else “carried me through this whole thing,” she said: Brad Paisley and Dolly Parton’s duet called “When I Get Where I’m Going.”
Many in the crowd dabbed tissues to eyes as the lyrics unfolded:
Dee said her son would be honored by the dedication but would have a couple of requests.
“Lea would ask you to honor his brothers and sisters in arms, and you can do that by with a simple letter of gratitude,” she said. “And he would ask you to pray for them every day.”
Reporter Tony Marrero can be reached at 352-544-5286 or lmarrero@ hernandotoday.com.
Ellie
By TONY MARRERO Hernando Today
Published: Nov 9, 2007
It seemed fitting that, in a ceremony held Friday morning to dedicate a post office in honor of Marine Sgt. Lea Mills, letters from fellow Marines painted a picture of Mills for those who didn’t know him.
Under a brilliant blue, cloudless sky in front of the post office on Aviation Loop Drive, Marine Sgt. Josh Perdue — a longtime friend of Mills — read letters from two other Marines who served with him. They were addressed to Lea’s parents, Robert and Dee, after the 21-year-old Hernando High graduate was killed in Iraq last year.
In one letter, Lance Cpl. Patton Butler described how Mills, a mechanic known for his skills, took an hour to patiently explain a repair for Butler.
“It seemed like the most mature and honorable thing a person has done,” Butler wrote, adding that he was “shocked” to find out that Lea, pronounced “Lee,” was two years younger than he.
“He was a true joy to be around, always smiling,” Butler wrote. “I loved working with him and would have followed him anywhere.”
In another letter, Sgt. Juan Montoya described Mills as “a great guy, smart and a Marine by heart.”
Montoya added, “He didn’t die in vain.”
Some 200 people showed up to for the ceremony to rename the branch the “Sgt. Robert Lea Mills branch.” Many sat among a stand of oak trees, wearing red and waving American flags.
A Blackhawk helicopter, rolled in from the nearby National Guard armory, sat in the middle of Aviation Loop Drive, serving as a looming reminder of the kind of equipment U.S. service personnel use in Iraq and Afghanistan each day.
The crowd created a sea of color and texture: The light green fatigues of the Guardsmen; the dark green uniforms of several Hernando Sheriff’s deputies; the black leather of the Rolling Thunder motorcycle group.
The post office employees sported red T-shirts proclaiming Mills as “an American hero.” Perdue, who left active duty last month, wore his dark blue uniform and peered out at the crowd from under the low brim of his cap as he recalled how Mills almost joined the Coast Guard upon graduating high school.
“He realized his lifestyle and personality fit into the Marines better than anywhere else,” Perdue told the crowd.
Lea was always a jokester, but also competitive, Perdue said, and that drove him to earn the rank of honor graduate in his platoon after boot camp in Parris Island, S.C.
Mills was assigned to the 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion and shipped off to Iraq in March 2006. He was killed just six weeks later, on April 28, by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Al Anbar province.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please understand we are here because of men and women like Lea who have made or are willing to make these sacrifices,” Perdue said. “Just a hug or a handshake or a simple thank-you means more than you will ever know.”
U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, the Brooksville Republican who filed the legislation to have the post office dedicated to Mills, was working on a host of issues in Washington D.C. Friday and was unable to attend.
“I hope that when young children from Hernando County come to use the Brooksville Post Office they will see the name of Lea Mills over the entrance, and stop to ask why that man had his name engraved for all time on the plaque,” Brown-Waite said in statement read during the ceremony. “Having spoken to the post office employees assembled here today, I know that they will answer with pride that Lea Mills was one of Hernando County’s finest citizens.”
Also in a statement, USPS Suncoast District manager Timothy Healy extended “heartfelt thanks … for the selfless dedication to nation and community demonstrated by Sgt. Mills.”
Robert and Dee Mills attended the ceremony along with Dee’s mother, Peggy Parker Blanchard.
“It is God’s grace that has gotten us through, and I see a wave of love here before me, and I’m touched,” Dee Mills said.
Something else “carried me through this whole thing,” she said: Brad Paisley and Dolly Parton’s duet called “When I Get Where I’m Going.”
Many in the crowd dabbed tissues to eyes as the lyrics unfolded:
Dee said her son would be honored by the dedication but would have a couple of requests.
“Lea would ask you to honor his brothers and sisters in arms, and you can do that by with a simple letter of gratitude,” she said. “And he would ask you to pray for them every day.”
Reporter Tony Marrero can be reached at 352-544-5286 or lmarrero@ hernandotoday.com.
Ellie