The son of Sammy; the fight for respect

"Sammy is one of my best friends. He served with me in Iraq and in this difficult environment, we shared laughs, close calls and toilet paper. Sammy has this infectious laugh that always brightened the dullest moments. In many ways, he was my refuge.

In Iraq, he turned 40, missed his children’s birthdays and injured his ankle on a PT run. Before we left, his son joined the Wisconsin Guard. And now his son is deployed to the Middle East. Sammy Jr. will provide security for convoys, one of the more dangerous missions. Sammy is no longer on the battlefield, but he will now watch the news more closely and cringe at every “U.S. soldier killed” headline."
In Iraq for 365