Our son started as a Marine right out of high school. Then he went back to college and got his degree but he missed the military life. He got married and joined the Army reserves. He was deployed to Iraq and was killed by a mortar round in Kirkuk. His son, Dawson, was seven when Jim was killed. Jim was so patriotic. He believed in what he was doing in Iraq and was very proud to be serving.

He was a mechanic and so many of the soldiers who went on patrols told us he went way beyond the usual to try to keep them safe in their vehicles as they were on patrol. We are so proud of our son for what he did and how bravely he did it. He is our hero. If you look at this picture of him in Iraq, I think you can tell how proud he was of what he was doing for his country.