VIEWPOINT: Losing A Soldier
by ABC-7 Executive Producer Kristine Rivers
On Monday a memorial service was held for Corporal Gary Lee Moore. He was killed March 16 when the vehicle he was riding in was hit by a grenade in Baghdad. CPL Moore was just 25 years old. He was a member of the 978th Military Police Company, 93D Military Police Battalion, the same battalion as my husband.
This was the first military memorial service I’ve been to. It was emotional, moving and honest. I had never met CPL Moore and my husband rarely worked with him, but I think I have a pretty good idea of the type of man he was. At the service, his fellow soldiers talked about their comrade. One of the speakers was a young soldier who met CPL Moore soon after they both joined the Army. He said Gary Lee Moore was a good, Christian man who was always smiling. Other speakers said the same thing. The chaplain leading the service shared a quote from a soldier at a memorial service in Baghdad. “He’s the best of us,” the soldier said. Another said CPL Moore was his unit’s moral compass. Yet another soldier said CPL Moore never had fear nor regret in his heart, because he knew God had a plan for him. I hope that brings some comfort to his family and friends.
After the Department of Defense announced CPL Moore’s death, I asked a few people I knew from Ft. Bliss if they knew him. They told me he was very active in his church, the Hillcrest Baptist Church. I called over there, which is never an easy call to make, and they were happy to talk about their friend to an ABC-7 reporter so viewers would get a glimpse of Gary Lee Moore’s life. They said he was a true example to them all.
Even though I don’t know her, my heart goes out to his fiancée. I can’t imagine what she’s going through right now. I find myself thinking about her, wondering how she’s doing, wishing I could help, but I know there is nothing I can say to take the pain away. I imagine this is her worst nightmare come true…it’s certainly mine. I hope the faith she and her fiancé shared will ease her anguish.
As I looked across the auditorium this morning, I saw the wives of deployed soldiers. I knew, like myself, they were aching for CPL Moore’s fiancée, and aching because they wanted their husbands to be there, hugging them, telling them everything is going to be okay. We want to know that they will be safe and make it home alive. We believe they will, because we have to. We couldn’t make it through the day if we didn’t.
Today I saw grown men in uniform cry. It was difficult to see. It proves how much these men and women believe in their mission and care about their fellow soldiers. When a soldier dies, it is often called the Ultimate Sacrifice. To put all your wants and needs aside and to lay down your life for your country is truly the ultimate sacrifice. Thank you, CPL Gary Moore for your inspirational life and courageous death. You are a true hero.
