Strangers come together to give homeless Army veteran a proud send-off
WFAA
by JIM DOUGLAS
Posted on November 7, 2013
DALLAS -- Don Hart was a homeless man who lost his way in the world, but was finally found.
He now rests among the neat rows of markers at the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery. He received a military funeral Thursday afternoon, with gratitude from soldiers and veterans who never knew him.
More than two dozen Patriot Guard Riders paid respects.
An honor guard folded the flag. A few words were needed said.
"Nobody knows this man here. Not one of us,” said Patriot Guard Ride Captain Rick Crabb. “But he's home with heroes now."
The honors were earned a lifetime ago in Vietnam -- that much we know.
"We know he's an Army vet. We know he served honorably from '71 to '73," Crabb told the mourners.
And they were mourners, though strangers.
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He was my patient at the VA. I will miss him.
ReplyDeleteI bet you cared a lot. It is always wonderful to know they were cared about.
ReplyDeleteA few years back I attended a funeral for a local homeless Vietnam veteran and this was different from all the others. An entire church took him in, loved him and cared for him and he did the same for them. "Vietnam Vet Andrew Elmer Wright found a home as a homeless vet" http://woundedtimes.blogspot.com/2010/03/vietnam-vet-andrew-elmer-wright-found.html
It turns out his son was serving in Iraq and had been looking for him. His wife back home saw the article and the son learned that his dad never gave up looking for him. The son was reunited with brothers and sisters he never knew he had. When love is shared, it is spread out and we never really know what kind of difference we make.