Finding Room for 30 More Coffins

Although I'm not in Santa Monica this morning, I know the Veterans for Peace have the most difficult task they've had since the War on Global Terrorism began.

They must find a place on the beach, within their Arlington West Project, to place 30 coffins representing our 30 troops killed Saturday in Afghanistan.  This loss far out numbers that of  June 28, 2005 in which 16 where killed when a Chinook Helicopter went down in Kunar Province in Afghanistan.

Since 2002 the Veterans for Peace have installed this memorial which looks much like Arlington National Cemetery.  Their mission in doing so is to honor the wounded and fallen, to provide a place to grieve, to call attention to the human cost of war, to educate about the needs of those returning, and to promote a dialogue of differing opinions.

Earlier this year I received an email with a picture of Arlington West and as I read about this memorial I had the gut-wrenching reaction that I must go there!  And, this will be a shock to most of my family and friends, I eventually made the two day trip to the memorial. 

I was in and out of Santa Monica before I knew there was a time change.  I had contacted the VFP and offered my assistance in setting up the memorial and was given instructions to meet there (if I was up for it) at 4:30 a.m. on that Sunday.  Well, that wasn't a deterrent for me, so I arrived at the Santa Monica Pier at 4:30 a.m. and found Michael who greeted me with warmth and enthusiasm.

There were only four of us there at that early hour and it was a quiet task as we rolled out big carts, filled with crosses, from their storage place under the Pier.  I received instructions on how to "drop" them into the sand.  Trudging through the sand in the early morning hours, hearing only the ocean gently roll in and the quiet, dull "thump" as each cross was dropped into its place, it was hard to fathom that all of these men and women had died. 

On that Sunday the total count for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom was 5,932 lives, and over 67,793 wounded Americans!  I couldn't fathom the destruction of that many families whose lives have been forever changed by these tragedies.

As the morning progressed, more volunteers filtered in to continue the set-up.  Toward mid-morning the final portion of the memorial was to construct a coffin replica for each service man or woman killed during the last seven days.  The cleverly designed, flattened, caskets were brought out and erected.  Then, each was meticulously covered with an American flag to prepare them for their final resting place in the memorial.

As we began our silent march away from the construction area, dozens of people lined the pier above to watch the solemn procession.  The minute I picked up my end of one of the coffins my eyes started filling with tears. I don't think there was a dry eye amongst us as our funeral cortege filed onto the beach in reverence.  There was no chatter from those at the railings on the pier above us - just a curious and noticeable silence.  

I can only imagine what the scene will be like this week as coffin after coffin is laid upon the sand.  Over sixty volunteers will be needed to carry them all out.  I wish I could be there to at least honor these fallen heroes by standing shoulder-to-shoulder with those Veterans who understand the real price of war. 

Afterwards, as we were all assembled, Michael thanked us for being a part of honoring these fallen heroes.  He spoke about people like us who made it possible for the memorial to be erected each week.  It was an incredibly moving experience and definitely the most patriotic thing I've ever had the privilege of doing.  It takes many hands to build this massive place of honor each week.

Most of the veterans in that group have come here EVERY Sunday since 2002 - rain or shine, to build this weekly, ever growing, memorial.  How, as the number of deaths have grown, have they kept going week after week?  There are now too few hands and too many crosses, so as a way to cut down on the amount of crosses, they have made red ones to designate ten fatalities.  Mixed in with the white crosses they create a crimson swath down the center of the memorial.

These men and women have been unwavering in their dedication; at times fighting high winds, torrential rains, and high tides that have sent the crosses floating on the beach!  But, they come back again and again to honor and remember our heroes.  What a selfless demonstration of love and gratitude.  How many of us would donate 494 Sundays totaling over 5,928 hours of service?  That's tantamount to a full-time job for two and one half years.  Amazing and utterly inspiring, huh!?

Every night since that visit, just before I turn out my light, I look at the souvenir I've taped to the back of my bedroom door - a black duct-tape armband with silver lettering that reads 5,932.  That's the armband I wore on my sleeve that day - the number of troops who had fallen by that date.  Today, if I were there, my armband would display the number 6,166 (which includes the 30 from this week).  It's a vivid reminder of the sacrifices of all of those people and their families.

I'm honored and grateful for these heroes and the sacrifice their families have made.  I look forward to the day when there'll be no new crosses on the beach.  I pray for the time when our young men and women don't have to go to foreign lands to fight.  The enormity of these losses demand of me an acknowledgement of what it costs to live in a democracy.  Freedom isn't free. I know that sounds trite, but it can't be any clearer than that.   

As 9/11 approaches, it's hard to correlate the fact that the events of that day began our war in Afghanistan.  Twenty-six days after America was attacked, we dropped the first bombs on Afghanistan.  Here we are 10 years, and 6,166 deaths later.  How many of us have shown our gratitude to the families of the 9/11 victims or to the heroes families who have lost loved ones in Iraq and Afghanistan?

If you would like to sign a guestbook for a fallen hero you can log onto:  www.legacy.com and enter the name of the most recent casualties and usually it will bring up their guestbook to sign.  Or, you can also log onto: www.militarytimes.com and click on "honor the fallen" to look for all of the names of those who have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and now Operation New Dawn.  (Operation New Dawn is the transition from Operation Iraqi Freedom and begins to focus on stability operations shifting from predominantly military U.S. presence to predominately civilian).   

The names are in chronological order with the most recent deaths first. I logged on this morning and the 30 lost this week are not listed yet, although I've added them into my totals. 

You'll see pictures of the most recent fatalities (young men and women - sons, daughters, husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters....someone's loved one!) Look at those young faces, some serious beyond their years, some carefree and smiling.  It's heartbreaking to know they are gone forever.

Please......leave a message for their families.  Let them know you care.  Tell them you are grateful for the supreme sacrifice that has been made.  Don't let them grieve alone.  America, we owe them that and so much more.  This is the very least we can do.  

As always, have an inspired and patriotic week and God Bless America!