Thanks to DC Bryan 1 for the ping to this thread.
Note: The following post is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2267926/posts
Family praises slain GI, calling him soldier, hero (Pvt Willam Long, terrorist victim in AR)
ARDEMGAZ (requires subscription) ^ | 09 JUN 09 | BY SAMANTHA FRIEDMAN
Posted on June 9, 2009 6:12:43 AM PDT by DCBryan1
The day before he died, U.S. Army Pvt. William Andrew “Andy” Long floated the Buffalo River with his sister, Vanessa Rice. If he had his way, she said, the pair would have gone skydiving.
“I’m so blessed to have had that day with Andy,” Rice tearfully told guests at her brother’s funeral Monday at Harlan Park Baptist Church in Conway. “My brother meant the world to me. Andy loved to be outdoors, to travel, and he couldn’t wait to get to Korea to serve his country.”
The service was followed by a burial with full military honors Monday at the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery in North Little Rock.
Long, 23, of Conway, was shot and killed June 1 outside a west Little Rock recruiting office. Fellow Army Private Quinton Ezeagwula, 18, of Jacksonville, was wounded in the attack.
The church’s sanctuary was filled with Long’s family and friends, fellow armed service members, and government officials, including Gov. Mike Beebe and U.S. Rep. Vic Snyder.
Pastor Johnny Harrington of Long’s church, Sunny Gap Baptist Church in Conway, praised Long’s commitment to the Army and recent appointment to the Army’s Hometown Recruiter Assistance Program in Little Rock. He said Long is a fourth-generation armed services member. Long’s father, Daris Long, is retired from the U.S. Marine Corps.
“No one is more military, no one is more patriotic than this family right here,” Harrington said. “Military runs through their hearts and their blood. No one is more dedicated to it than they, and I know that they couldn’t be prouder of Andy and his desire to serve his country.
“I asked Daris what’s the one word he’d use to describe Andy, and he said two: soldier and hero.”
Wearing a red cap signifying that he is a retired U.S. Marine and an American flag tie, Long’s father shared a letter he had written his son in advance of his scheduled departure for his first duty post in South Korea, which had been set for Monday. He advised his son to always do the right thing, to put aside his personal feelings, to follow the orders of the president and his commanding officers.
“You and your brother ... are both heroes for having the moral courage to stand up when your country needs you most,” Daris Long read. “You are in my hopes and my thoughts and my prayers. You are my son, you are my hero. I love you. Semper fidelis.”
Long’s brother, Pfc. Triston Long of Fort Bliss, Texas, gave Long the cavalry branch insignia badge on behalf of his own unit and in honor of Long’s Army service.
“My brother taught me valuable lessons and made me the man I am today,” Triston Long said. “My commander said, ‘Make your brother one of us.’ I will miss my brother with all that I am, and I serve in honor of him.”
Long also was honored with the Army Commendation Medal and the Army Good Conduct Medal.
The Arkansas Blue Star Mothers presented Long’s mother, Janet Long, with the Gold Star Banner, given to mothers of service members killed in the line of duty.
The funeral service ended with a slideshow featuring childhood photos of William Long and his family.
Camp Robinson Chaplain Jeremy Miller led the burial service.
“We’re here to honor this man today for the sacrifice that he was,” he told Long’s family.
Arkansas Army National Guard Honor Guard members served as pallbearers. After the playing of taps, they presented American flags to Long’s mother, brother and sister, and the family placed red roses atop the casket.
Dozens of leather-vested veterans of the Patriot Guard Riders lined up with flags outside the church during the service, then surrounded the family with their motorcycles at the cemetery.
Beebe issued a proclamation Friday directing U.S. and Arkansas flags be flown at half-staff Monday.
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=54712
Wounded Recruiting Office Shooting Victim Praises Army for Support
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 9, 2009 – A soldier wounded last week during an attack at a recruiting office in Little Rock, Ark., that claimed a fellow soldier’s life expressed no bitterness today at his attacker, and said the incident has done nothing to dampen his desire to serve in the Army.
Army Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula, 18, spoke publicly about the incident for the first time since he was gunned down outside an Army recruiting office June 1. He is recovering from gunshot wounds to his neck, back and buttocks.
Army Pvt. William Long, 23, was killed in the attack. He was buried yesterday at Camp Robinson, Ark.
Abdulhakim Muhammad, the alleged shooter, was arrested shortly after the attack. He faces charges of capital murder and committing a terroristic act.
President Barack Obama released a statement shortly after the incident. “I am deeply saddened by this senseless act of violence against two brave young soldiers who were doing their part to strengthen our armed forces and keep our country safe,” he said. “I would like to wish Quinton Ezeagwula a speedy recovery, and to offer my condolences and prayers to William Long’s family as they mourn the loss of their son.”
Asked by a reporter today about his recovery, the understated Ezeagwula stated simply, “I’m doing fine, sir.”
Ezeaguwula said he joined the military because he “wanted to be able to help my family out,” and thought the Army sounded like a good way to do so.
“I actually learned to love the Army,” he told reporters today.
Ezeaguwula expressed thanks about the Army’s support since the incident. “I really appreciate what they have done for my family and for Private Long’s family,” he said.
His mother, who joined him at the news conference, echoed her son’s thanks and said the experience reaffirmed her confidence that the Army will look out for him.
“I really would like to commend the Army for everything they have done for us,” said his mother, who was not identified by name. She said the support Army caregivers have provided her son makes her feel “very secure about my son being in their care.”
“I couldn’t ask for a better person than God himself,” she said. The soldier’s mother added that she’s happy her son wants to continue his Army service.
“I feel very good about him staying in the Army and wanting to represent the United States,” she said. “I think that’s a wonderful thing.”
She said she hopes the incident sends a message that the United States “is going to step up to the plate and take whatever necessary steps need to be taken to protect Americans.”
“You just can’t [launch an attack] like that and think it’s OK,” she said.
Still, she said, she harbors “no ill feelings” toward her son’s attacker.
“I just pray that justice be served,” she said, adding that she hopes the outcome will “be fair.”
Ezeagwula and Long recently completed basic training and infantry training and were serving a temporary recruiting assignment before moving on to their first assignments. Once he recovers, Ezeagwula will continue to his assignment at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.