Willamette National Cemetery

Today we went to visit Tim’s brothers gravesite at Willamette National Cemetery in Portland.  The cemetery was beautiful and very busy.

 

It took 1,000 Boy Scouts a full week to place over 140,000 flags on the graves for this day.

The traffic into the cemetery was routed one way and we got a bit disoriented at first.

We had to take the long way around, but it was worth it.

There were people and cars everywhere.  Family gatherings around a gravesite were common.

Veterans were in abundance. God Bless them all.

140,000 is a big, big number.

This is Brads headstone. I blocked out the name and location out of respect for his widow and daughter.  Brad was Tim’s oldest brother.  He served in the Air Force from the day he graduated High School until he retired in 1994, with his whole life still ahead of him.  He served four Presidents and when Clinton was elected to his 2nd term, Brad said enough is enough.  He told us Hillary Clinton was a terrible bitch (his words) and treated the enlisted people like trash.  He couldn’t take another four years of her on Air Force One.  (His favorite First Lady was Barbara Bush. He said she had a genuine heart.)

Brad was killed in a small airplane crash in 1998.  A day we will never forget.  His wife and 2 year old daughter were in the plane with him.  He was the pilot.  He stayed alive long enough for the other two to be rescued. Although he was unconscious the whole time, when the paramedic told him his wife and child were safe, he squeezed the paramedics hand and then left for Heaven. 

We’ll see him there.

 

Blessings,

Red