October 23, 2025 • 38 mins
All Americans have been affected by the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the Global War on Terrorism as a whole. The Global War on Terrorism Memorial is being designed to share the stories, voices and experiences of GWOTveterans, their military families and all Americans. Retired Army Col. Kirsten Brunson and Gen. Xavier Brunson are the special guests in this episode, hosted by Army veteran Jennifer Ballou. It is the fourth in the initial six-part special series produced by The American Legion. It focuses on the GWOT memorial in Washington, D.C., that will serve as a special place of honor and remembrance.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:19):
Hello and welcome to the Global War on Terrorism Memorial
Podcast hosted by the American Legion.
I'm your host, Jen Balu, and it's my honor to welcome you
home today. We are joined by General Xavier
Brunson and Colonel retired Kirsten Brunson.
General Brunson is the commanderof the United Nations Command,
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Combined Forces Command and United States Forces Korea at
Camp Humphrey's Republic of Korea.
General Brunson was commissionedas an infantry officer upon
graduation from Hampton University with a Bachelor of
Arts in political science. He also earned a Master of Arts
in human resource Development from Webster University and a
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Master of Science in National security Strategic Studies from
the United States Army War College.
He is AG Watt veteran and his operational assignments have
included service in Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom,
Freedoms Sentinel, and Inherent Resolve.
Colonel retired Kirsten Brunson is a retired Army officer who
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served over 23 years on active duty in the Judge Advocate
General Corps. In 2008, she became the first
African American woman to serve as a judge in the US Army.
Kirsten was inducted into the Army Women's Foundation Hall of
Fame in 2021. In 2022, the Secretary of
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Defense appointed her as a member of the Military Justice
Review Panel, A blue ribbon panel of military justice
experts who advised Congress on issues related to the UCMJ, our
Uniform Code of Military Justice.
An active volunteer, Kirsten serves on the design Advisory
Council for the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation.
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She's a faculty member of the National Judicial College and
does so much more. She's also the spouse of General
Xavier Brunson and they have three children.
Sir, ma'am, welcome home and thank you so much for being here
today. It's.
My pleasure. Thanks, Jen.
So in preparation for our time today, I was reflecting on the
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first time that I met both of you.
And if my memory serves me correctly, Sir, I think we met
in like the 2010, 2011 time frame.
You were the commander of the 525 BFSB at Fort Bragg and I was
working at the 18th Airborne Corps helping to stand up the
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resilience program there. And I remember that you were one
of few senior leaders at that time at Fort Bragg who was
really supportive of the resilience program.
And I'm curious as to why that was and if that openness to
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trying new things and not necessarily, you know, we've
always done it that way, so we're going to continue to do it
that way if that has something to do with where you are today.
That's exactly right. It was actually a little bit
before that when I was the, I was the G3 and I thought I was
going to get to deploy again. And that's when we met and then
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I left the headquarters as you were working on the resilience
work and I went over to the 525.And so I, I just remember you
being a Dynamo, getting a lot ofthings done because it was, it
was ill defined. We knew that there was a need
for something to keep folks in the fight, so to speak, and to
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keep them coming to work after all the things that have gone on
in terms of the court. Here goes the core again,
leaving out the door. And they just turned it over to
you and said, hey, set up this resilience directorate and all
they really gave you was office space in the little building
behind the headquarters. And they said figure it out.
But I, I think, you know, one ofthe things that had me really
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thinking about resilience is, isyou know, I served in a unit
within Yusasak where you would deploy for 90 days and you'd
come home for, you know, maybe six months, then you were going
right back again. And, and I saw that there was
particular attention paid to thephysical, mental, spiritual
well-being of folks in that unitthat they might be able to do
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the high level things they were doing.
And so I'd said, well, why doesn't everybody do that?
And sometimes it's easy to talk about a thing, but not to
actually do it. And so I would applaud you for
your efforts, which paid huge dividends for folks with an 18th
Airborne Corps who were on the heels, in the toes, I guess
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you'd call it, of of a back-to-back deployment.
And so I think seeing the art ofthe possible is what really
opened me up to that, to say that it doesn't have to be this
way always. We can change it by taking some
actions. Absolutely.
Thank you for that. And Kirsten, I knew of you all
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that time, but I never had the privilege to meet you until many
years later when you and I both were now out of uniform.
And it was in Dallas, TX for your engagement with our
President and CEO, Michael Rodriguez in support of the
design of our future memorial. Like what are some of the the
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things that you remember most about that time in Dallas?
Oh, wow. First of all, just the
incredible group of people that had been assembled and from so
many, I'll say genres, for lack of a better word, different
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experiences, different connections to the global war on
terrorism. Everybody wasn't necessarily an
active duty service member. You know, there were children of
service members, there were civilians.
And it seems kind of trite, but everybody has a story and
bringing those people together and listening to their stories
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and everybody felt strongly about this, this project.
It, it was just a really great place to be.
I can remember when Rod 1st called me, he just, he said,
hey, I want to talk to you aboutsomething and of course, sure.
And he's just telling me about this and I'm just listening and
wonder, right, this is great. And then the last thing I
expected, I want you to be a part of it.
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Wait, what? So, you know, as I am now, I'm,
I was just honored to be invited, just an incredible
group of people and I'm honored to be a part of that and to
create something or be a part ofcreating something like this
memorial that's that's going to be everlasting.
Rod has a knack for ambushing people.
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I think he learned those tacticsin the Army and he continues
them today. So I always laugh because
everyone tells a similar story about, you know, he wanted to
give you an update on, you know,his work.
And then he ends it with, I wantyou to be a part of it.
It's just it's, it's it's beautiful to hear.
I want to rewind a little bit and ask you both, you know, you
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both wore the uniform post 911 and Sir, you obviously continue
to wear the uniform. During that time though, when
you both wore the uniform and you were raising children and
obviously had have stellar careers, what were some of your
biggest personal and professional challenges and
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successes? And whoever wants to go first
can go first. The single biggest challenge
was, you know, having young kidswhen their father was deployed
in a war. There's no way you can hide
that. And I'm not sure you should.
I mean, the first time he deployed in 2003, you know, our
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kids were two and four years old.
And so, you know, you're never really quite sure how much they
understand or what they understand.
And you want to shield them fromsome of it.
But, but just from, you know, for the next 20 years, going
through that and, and him not being there, so having to fill
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in, having to explain, you know,why he isn't here, you know,
the, the kids not having their father for a good chunk of their
lives, you know, missing important milestones and
obviously being on active duty, I was exhausted.
You know, I did not ever deploy.I'd say my husband deployed
enough for everybody. And that's not just me for
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everybody, But, but having to hold down the Fort and, and
still, you know, be in the Army and serve during that period of
time with all the things that were going on.
And yet also trying to give my children a normal life and a
normal upbringing where they canstill do sports and theater and
all the things that they want todo and try to keep some sense of
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normalcy. And oh, by the way, your
father's gone again. So that was my biggest
challenge, just trying to createa state home life for them.
And how about successes or a success of like when you look
back on that time, what was one of the biggest successes?
I mean, I guess for a parent, the biggest success is that they
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grew up well, you know, they didit.
They, they got to do so many different things.
Again, I'm tired. But you know, they did all the
activities and they found the things that they loved and they
were able to go out in the worldand do things.
And it's funny now when because our daughters are adults, but
listening to them talk and hearing them kind of parrot some
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of the things that we used to say or seeing how they engage
with other people, it's really neat to watch because you you
know where they learned it. You know, you, you know that we
talk about military kids having resilience.
And they absolutely do. They absolutely do.
You might not see it as they're growing up, but but once they're
out of your house and you can see what they can accomplish on
their own, it's an amazing thing.
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So yeah, that that's my biggest success right there.
Thank you for sharing. How about you, Sir?
The the biggest challenge and the biggest success for me, it
all has to do with my faith. I never really worried about
things there and and couldn't understand sometimes how folks
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would be concerned. Like my mom.
My mom is, is like she can worryand pray at the same time.
That's the how she does stuff. I never had any concerns about
things at home, but I would attribute my greatest successes
and some of my greatest challenges to operating in those
environments with faith. To recognize that despite some
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some things that I've seen that it's not really the way things
are supposed to be. You know, young people should
not be maimed and marred and, and, and dead.
They they shouldn't be. That's not the way things were
supposed to be. But to have this faith, this
burgeoning faith that's continuing to grow every time
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you go out the door allows you to do those things.
And then to the admiration that I have for my wife by virtue of
the things that she did every time I was out, whether it's
cool guy stuff or regular guy stuff, my wife is at home taking
care of my family. And I never, because I knew guys
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who were deployed that had concerns about that, you know,
whether the sanctity of the relationship was going to be
there for more, whether their kids were out running the
streets or being cared for. I never had those concerns.
All my concerns were always in front of me.
And, and generally what was in front of me was not a good
thing. But I also had people behind me
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that were pushing me along. Everybody comes back from that
change. You just do.
And I will tell you that the Grounding of Faith was developed
from 2003 to 2018, which was thelast time I deployed and it was
it was renewed every time because my faith had to be in my
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wife and my faith had to be in the unit I was a member of.
My faith had to be in my God to protect me.
And and it seemed to somehow geteasier over time, but that's
because that March to getting tothe point where you could claim
a success. What might have been a challenge
before you know, I can I can remember I had a Bible in 2003
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during OIF one right. It was like in the in the, in
my, my rucksack along with my little bandana with Psalm 91 on
it, you know, and I treat it like a Talisman and I put it in
my pocket and you get in a vehicle and you just pull it
out. You read Psalm 91.
But I hadn't touched the Bible all week.
But I would do that to sort of shore myself up.
But I never had any concerns about anything in my home.
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So. What a blessing.
Thank you both for sharing. And Kirsten, you mentioned, you
know, Rod calling you and inviting you to be a part of the
Design Advisory Council. But I'm wondering if you can
speak a little bit more to just what it means to you that your
voice, that your stories are shaping a national War Memorial,
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a part of American history. Like what does that mean to you?
See, when you say it like that, it blows my mind.
I mean, I'm, I'm grateful obviously, to be a part of that
and, and to be able to add my stories and my perspective.
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My overwhelming thought and hopefor this memorial has always
been that it be a place for everybody, for every American,
because every American was touched by the global war on
terrorism. Every American was touched by
911 in some kind of way. And and you didn't have to serve
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in the military to be affected by it.
And so I think including all of those stories and all of those
perspectives is what's going to make this an incredible
memorial. And so if my voice and my
stories add any new perspective,any twist, any part that's not
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included somewhere else, then I think that's very important.
You know, I know we have family members that are part of the
design Advisory Council. And I think that's so important.
I always try to bring in my children's perspectives to the
extent that I know them, you know, what they were going
through and things that they've shared with me during that
period of the war. Because I do think that's
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important that that that it represent all Americans.
Yes, our service members, especially the ones that
deployed, gave so much more. But that war affected all of us.
And I think this memorial is going to exist for all of us.
It can be a place of learning, you know, a place of education,
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a place of healing, and just a place of remembrance.
And that's for everybody. It is.
It is. And it's interesting because
that was where I was going to gonext.
But before I do, Sir, I'm curious when Kirsten shared this
opportunity with you that she was going to be a part of the
Design Advisory Council, like what were your thoughts?
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What are your thoughts? Well, I will tell you that in
the work that she's been doing along with this, I find out
certain things and we had a conversation about another
interview that she had done and I found out there's a lot of
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things I haven't revisited aboutthat experience.
Some good things, some bad things that I just, I just keep
moving forward on. And, and so when I thought about
that, the first thing I thought of was it didn't matter what
year I was in Iraq or Afghanistan.
It did not matter the, the heat.When you come off of a, of a
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plane of AC17 that greets you and it could be midnight or it
could be early in the morning. That heat, it, it, it, it, it
doesn't matter what you all make.
The, the, the monument can look like a waterfall.
Kirsten could say, hey, it's going to be a waterfall.
And in the waterfall, you're going to see people holding
hands and, and you know, and you'll see the towers brought
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back. It could be whatever.
But when I look at that, when I think about that experience,
it's the heat on my face that I,I feel even now as I talk about
it, I think about that the, the acrid smells in the air, the
just the feeling your nose like it's drying out immediately as
soon as you get on the ground. And, and, and it's that feeling
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alone that, that I could be napping somewhere and I could
wake up and be like, boom, thereit is again.
You know, my throat's dry, my nose is dry.
But the know that my wife is a part of that telling a story
that's always going to be and telling from a different
perspective. More than often than not, when
we talk about something that memorializes a conflict, it's
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about the more martial aspects of that conflict.
It's never about those who remain, those who are left
behind. And and that can be left behind
literally or even figuratively. But there's there's something
that's important about the families.
You know, I wasn't in Korea, I wasn't in Vietnam, it wasn't in
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Grenada. It wasn't even in Desert Storm.
OK. But I think that what's so
significant about the global waron terrorism is it fundamentally
changed the way that we lived. I can remember when you could
just drive through Fort Bragg ifyou wanted to.
Nobody was checking the ID card.Nobody cared.
You just drive straight on through that base.
But to see fences go up, my wifefighting to, you know, that that
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story's got to be in there. My wife fighting to get the PT
on time just because somebody took down towers and she's got
how to get to work still, nobodyknew what that was going to look
like. And being stuck in a line at a
gate for hours and hours. And then I think this monument
will also help people who didn'texperience it but are living
through it now. It'll help them to understand
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and appreciate that. You know what, I might, it might
take me a little bit longer to get my luggage, you know, off
the carousel or get into my flight.
But that's because of what happened to the world that
changed it so fundamentally. And I hope that it also helps
people not to forget that there could be Seminole changes to a
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nation and to her people by virtue of 1 heinous act.
And then the 20 years that we dealt with that deploying in the
loss, all those things. You know, I would, I, I, I would
almost have to say, like if there was a big ceremony, I
couldn't even go there with her because I, I don't know what my
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emotions would be like. Yeah, absolutely.
And I mean, you both have touched on it multiple times
that this memorial will honor all of those men and women who
served in sacrifice. So of course the uniformed
wearing men and women, but also we refer to them as non
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uniformed wearing men and women,people in the FBICIA, all of
those groups of people, those who didn't come home,
absolutely. But the families, the families
who supported us and those who came home but lost their lives
in other ways, perhaps to suicide or cancer.
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So it's really important to us that we tell the whole story.
And that's why, Kirsten, we haveso many different
representatives on the Design Advisory Council so that those
who are designing it can be inspired by real stories of
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those who have been impacted by this war.
We'll start with you, Kirsten. What would you say to either a
veteran or a family member who served and or sacrificed in the
Global war on terrorism who feelit was all for nothing?
What would you say to them? Wow, that's wow. 1st I see you.
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I, I won't pretend to fully be able to grasp what you have or
are going through, but just knowthat I see you and that many,
many others see you and that this memorial is for you.
It is, it is to recognize all ofthe sacrifices, all of the pain,
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all of the successes and, and that we recognized, you know,
just like Xavier was saying thatour world fundamentally changed
after 911. And so anything and everything
that you gave contributed to us coming out on the other side and
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coming out stronger. How about you, Sir?
It seems trite because you hear about thank you for your service
so much. But to identify with someone and
say, I know that place. I was there to, you know, to
share with somebody, man, you, you might not feel like it meant
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anything, but you did what so many won't do.
You did your duty on behalf of the nation.
Whether that's ACIA analyst, whether that's a family member,
whether that's somebody in the FBI, whether it's someone who
carried a rifle into battle, whether it's somebody who lost a
limb, that we might live the waythat we do, That we might be a
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nation that of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines who say
I'm going to support and defend the Constitution to tell them
that they've done what the Republic needed of them at that
time. They did their duty.
Duty doesn't care really how youfeel.
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What duty says is that you were willing to do something that no
one else would do or couldn't dofor themselves.
And so I think that a lot of times we forget how honorable
duty is and we listen to people that don't have the same
experiences. And I'm not denigrating not
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having those experiences. But what I'm saying is, is that
as people who've worn the cloth of the nation, there's a sense
of duty and selfless service that always be honored.
It's never about the result. It's not APT test yes, it's not
an APFT. This is service to the nation
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and and that ought be honored always, but it's about duty.
Thank you for doing your duty. Thank you for doing what was
asked of you at a time when you know as a nation we have been
harmed that you were willing to stand in the gap for those
families that waited for people to come home.
Thanks for sticking with your soldier, sailor, airman or
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Marine. And and that's what I, I hope
people should, should be able todraw from this thing almost the
sense, Jen, of I did that by virtue of my actions.
I did that. You know, I've seen all the
memorials. And I think about my dad, the
first time he saw both the Martin Luther King Memorial and
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the first time he saw the Vietnam memorial in the time he
spent walking down that line. Or we're on the Army 10 Miller,
but dad's famous for taking breaks on the 10 Miller.
OK. Or hey, I'm going to just wait
and catch up with Kirsten when she comes through.
So you guys go ahead. Him getting into that Martin
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Luther King memorial and stopping and just stopping and
walking and reading every plaqueand, and I can remember thinking
with my brothers and myself, this isn't about him taking a
break. This is about him thinking about
something that he lived through.It was visceral.
It meant something to him. And so it's just duty.
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I think it's got to celebrate the duty that people did to get
our nation through a tough period of time.
Yeah, so well said. You know, we're also building
this memorial so the global war on terrorism is not over.
Like, sure, we're not in Afghanistan anymore, but we
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still have troops deployed in support of the global war on
terrorism, and many Americans don't realize that.
Furthermore, we're building a memorial for a war that
continues that is not over. And I'm wondering what your
thoughts are. This is for either of or both of
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you. What are your thoughts on why
now? Like why is it important to
build this now? A lot of things have become
normalized. All the changes, you know, that
were big, huge life changing events at the time have become
normalized. You know, school kids today, of
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course, you have to, you know, take off your shoes when you go
through security at the airport.They've always done that.
We haven't always done that. That was that was huge.
And so as things become normalized, you forget why we
did them. And if we don't recognize, we
don't stop and say this is what happened, This is why we do
those things. This is how the world changed.
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This is who got us through. Then we forget.
And, you know, 20 more years in the future, this will just be
everyday life. And it won't mean anything.
It won't matter because it won'thave a source.
So that's why I think the law isimportant.
Yeah, I think there's something when you go along the National
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Mall, I think there's something special about recognizing what
people have done for the nation.And I look now here at, I guess
was this year the 81st anniversary of D-Day, and
there's still some folk who are hanging on.
Imagine if that groundswell had happened 20 years post the first
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involvement, maybe in 42 or 43. You know, maybe by 1950 we had
these memorials up. And there's a saying about
giving people flowers while they're here.
This memorial will give the opportunity for folks to revisit
those times and things done thatwe as a nation wouldn't have to
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live in fear from an adversary striking us on our shores again.
Then I think telling that story now, every monument has a story
with it. It's got to be the first time
I've ever seen anything come to fruition this quickly.
And, and the rich stories that can be told that the living
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history that's still around, that can be shared by Americans
and, and people around the world, because as you mentioned,
the, the global war on terrorismstill goes on and, and people
around the globe have benefited from the actions taken by a
great many nations. But to be able to share those
stories, you know, temporally, like when it should be like
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now's the time. Because more often than not,
what happens is, is we're beyondthat.
And that normalization that Kirsten was talking about starts
to occur and it's it's not quiteas important anymore.
You don't recognize that there was a cost paid that you might
have safer air travel. There was a cost paid that
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buildings are set in a certain way and you can only get so
close to a building now that security that folks enjoy, they
ought to know why they have that.
And, and I think it's just important to tell this story
now. Yeah, absolutely, Sir.
We talk internally amongst the foundation leadership that we
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know that this memorial will save lives.
And you might have noticed at the beginning of the podcast, I
said welcome home because one ofthe things that we've started
doing is referring to the futuresite and ultimately the memorial
as our home. And we want it to be a home for
everyone, a place to gather, to share stories, all of the things
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that that you just mentioned. But back to that saving lives
piece. We feel really strongly that
it's going to save lives. And I'm wondering when you hear
that, what comes up for you? You know, as you were talking,
the image I get is my dad seeinga guy, seeing a name of a guy on
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the Vietnam War Memorial. And he pointed to the name and,
and another gentleman that was aVietnam veteran came through and
they talked about where they were and, and, and they, they,
they came together. And those that I don't know, but
you can extrapolate from that, that these two men from
different places of different races sat together and they
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talked to the point where I grabbed my son, who is much
younger, and I said, come on, man, we're going to go up here
to the bench and sit down. But they sat there and they
talked. And, and you don't know what
happened from that conversation,but it might have made somebody
feel like they were home. They were at that memorial and
they were home and he might haveput him at peace, but I just
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remember when my dad came away from.
There he goes. Yeah, that guy was in Vietnam
same time I was 6567. And yeah, we were talking about
these places, man. He said sorry about that.
But but I I remember how excitedhe was.
And it was shortly thereafter, Kirsten, that he started wearing
that Vietnam veteran hat. I.
Don't think he's taking him. But the, the potential to save
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lives by having conversations, it's it's like your story, Jen,
that you continue to thrive. Your story helps people.
And in there, there are those left behind that are in
situations that aren't like yours, that resilience that you
have, that drive that you have to continue to move forward for
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your family to see. Those are the kind of stories
that I would hope in the future are shared at that site.
Hey, you were in Ramadi. I was in Ramadi, you know.
When were you there? You know, I I was in Fallujah.
Were you up in Kurdistan? Yeah, I was up there, too.
Were you in in in the Corngal Valley?
Yeah, I was in the Corngal Valley the first time.
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And then I went back a year later.
But but those things that that sort of very similitude that we
have in our service. Yeah.
I wasn't in Iraq, but I was in Afghanistan, man, that same
year. Let me tell you what those
stories kind of keep you like, you know what?
I'm not alone. I'm not alone.
There are other people that feeljust like I do.
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And Kirsten, what do you think Imean about still on this saving
lives topic as a retired Army Colonel, but also as a family
member, knowing that this memorial will also honor the
families, how do you think that that will translate to them?
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As you were asking me that question, I started thinking of,
you know, the the perspective ofa family member who lost their
service member after the fight. And what could this memorial be
for them? I mean, everything, right?
(33:18):
It just, and again, it's just imagine like what are all the is
there anger is there is there, you know, anger, sadness,
whatever the emotions are behindthat.
So you came home from the war, but you never really came home.
And then we lost you. So for them to be able to to go
to a place which, which celebrates, which salutes the
(33:42):
service that their family membergave and helps them to better
understand what they were going through.
And, you know, like Xavier was saying, maybe talk to other
people who can help them understand what their service
member was going through. Maybe talk to other people who
are going through what they're going through because they're
visiting the memorial for the same reason.
(34:03):
This thing is so important to somany people.
And I hope people really do understand this is not a
memorial to celebrate a war. You know, this, this is so much
bigger and better than that. This is, this is to recognize
the sacrifices, this is to educate, this is to remember to
(34:25):
honor, but it's also to heal. And so I think it, I think it
can do that for especially for those families who are who are
struggling with even understanding, you know, like
you asked before, what did we accomplish?
Was it worth it? Did it even matter?
I think it can help with that. I hope it can.
(34:46):
I hope so too. So I have one final question for
each of you. I'm wondering if you can imagine
dedication day or your first time visiting this completed
Global War on Terrorism memorial.
What do you hope to feel in thatexperience?
(35:12):
Pride that I was a part of it. I imagine taking my kids there,
you know, and really just listening and seeing what they
take from it. But when this thing comes to
fruition, looking around at everybody who's there,
(35:35):
everybody, the service members, the non uniform civilians, the
family members and seeing probably something different on
all of their faces and being so thankful that we got it done and
then giving my husband a big hugfor what he's going.
(35:57):
For yes. The the real story of this for
me will be the names that we carry with us as we walk through
and everyone that served over there has a name.
Some have more names than other folk, but they'll be able to
leave them there. They won't have to carry that
anymore. So to your point earlier about
(36:18):
saving lives, lives may be savedbecause they'll be able to close
out that chapter. Like I said, I don't spend a lot
of time thinking on this. What this conversation has
brought up for me is just thinking about those people who
are, you know, you always say never forget, and it sometimes
(36:40):
takes people to remind you of those people that they not be
forgotten. So.
Yeah, on that note, I, I just feel compelled to share that
today, the day that we're pre recording this episode is the 15
year anniversary of the day thatmy husband's Staff Sergeant
(37:01):
Eduardo Laredo was killed in action.
And just as you were sharing that, I just want to say thank
you and couldn't agree more thathis and many other names will be
at the top of my mind that day and and moving forward.
(37:22):
Sir, ma'am, welcome home. Thank you so much for spending
this time with us today. It it really means a lot and I
hope to speak with you both soon.
Thank you so much. Love you, Kat.
Thanks, Jen. You're welcome, Sir.
(37:45):
Welcome Home is produced by Jennifer Blum, Holly Soria and
me. Jennifer Blue, our operations
manager, is Henry Howard. Art for Welcome Home is by
Minerva Consulting. Our theme, A Place like Home is
by Bergenson Lunberg via Epidemic.
Sound mixing and editing is by Jennifer Blum.
(38:05):
Thank you to Tal Podcast and TheAmerican Legion for their
collaboration on this inaugural series.
You can find their episodes, guests, and more at legion.org
slash Tal. You can find out more about the
Global War on Terrorism MemorialFoundation, get updates on the
(38:26):
National War Memorial, and learnhow you can get involved by
following us on your favorite social media platforms or by
visiting GWOT Memorial foundation.org.
Hello and welcome to the Global War on Terrorism Memorial
Podcast hosted by the American Legion.
I'm your host, Jen Balu, and it's my honor to welcome you
home today. We are joined by General Xavier
Brunson and Colonel retired Kirsten Brunson.
General Brunson is the commanderof the United Nations Command,
(00:43):
Combined Forces Command and United States Forces Korea at
Camp Humphrey's Republic of Korea.
General Brunson was commissionedas an infantry officer upon
graduation from Hampton University with a Bachelor of
Arts in political science. He also earned a Master of Arts
in human resource Development from Webster University and a
(01:06):
Master of Science in National security Strategic Studies from
the United States Army War College.
He is AG Watt veteran and his operational assignments have
included service in Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom,
Freedoms Sentinel, and Inherent Resolve.
Colonel retired Kirsten Brunson is a retired Army officer who
(01:30):
served over 23 years on active duty in the Judge Advocate
General Corps. In 2008, she became the first
African American woman to serve as a judge in the US Army.
Kirsten was inducted into the Army Women's Foundation Hall of
Fame in 2021. In 2022, the Secretary of
(01:54):
Defense appointed her as a member of the Military Justice
Review Panel, A blue ribbon panel of military justice
experts who advised Congress on issues related to the UCMJ, our
Uniform Code of Military Justice.
An active volunteer, Kirsten serves on the design Advisory
Council for the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation.
(02:18):
She's a faculty member of the National Judicial College and
does so much more. She's also the spouse of General
Xavier Brunson and they have three children.
Sir, ma'am, welcome home and thank you so much for being here
today. It's.
My pleasure. Thanks, Jen.
So in preparation for our time today, I was reflecting on the
(02:43):
first time that I met both of you.
And if my memory serves me correctly, Sir, I think we met
in like the 2010, 2011 time frame.
You were the commander of the 525 BFSB at Fort Bragg and I was
working at the 18th Airborne Corps helping to stand up the
(03:04):
resilience program there. And I remember that you were one
of few senior leaders at that time at Fort Bragg who was
really supportive of the resilience program.
And I'm curious as to why that was and if that openness to
(03:25):
trying new things and not necessarily, you know, we've
always done it that way, so we're going to continue to do it
that way if that has something to do with where you are today.
That's exactly right. It was actually a little bit
before that when I was the, I was the G3 and I thought I was
going to get to deploy again. And that's when we met and then
(03:48):
I left the headquarters as you were working on the resilience
work and I went over to the 525.And so I, I just remember you
being a Dynamo, getting a lot ofthings done because it was, it
was ill defined. We knew that there was a need
for something to keep folks in the fight, so to speak, and to
(04:09):
keep them coming to work after all the things that have gone on
in terms of the court. Here goes the core again,
leaving out the door. And they just turned it over to
you and said, hey, set up this resilience directorate and all
they really gave you was office space in the little building
behind the headquarters. And they said figure it out.
But I, I think, you know, one ofthe things that had me really
(04:31):
thinking about resilience is, isyou know, I served in a unit
within Yusasak where you would deploy for 90 days and you'd
come home for, you know, maybe six months, then you were going
right back again. And, and I saw that there was
particular attention paid to thephysical, mental, spiritual
well-being of folks in that unitthat they might be able to do
(04:53):
the high level things they were doing.
And so I'd said, well, why doesn't everybody do that?
And sometimes it's easy to talk about a thing, but not to
actually do it. And so I would applaud you for
your efforts, which paid huge dividends for folks with an 18th
Airborne Corps who were on the heels, in the toes, I guess
(05:14):
you'd call it, of of a back-to-back deployment.
And so I think seeing the art ofthe possible is what really
opened me up to that, to say that it doesn't have to be this
way always. We can change it by taking some
actions. Absolutely.
Thank you for that. And Kirsten, I knew of you all
(05:35):
that time, but I never had the privilege to meet you until many
years later when you and I both were now out of uniform.
And it was in Dallas, TX for your engagement with our
President and CEO, Michael Rodriguez in support of the
design of our future memorial. Like what are some of the the
(05:56):
things that you remember most about that time in Dallas?
Oh, wow. First of all, just the
incredible group of people that had been assembled and from so
many, I'll say genres, for lack of a better word, different
(06:17):
experiences, different connections to the global war on
terrorism. Everybody wasn't necessarily an
active duty service member. You know, there were children of
service members, there were civilians.
And it seems kind of trite, but everybody has a story and
bringing those people together and listening to their stories
(06:37):
and everybody felt strongly about this, this project.
It, it was just a really great place to be.
I can remember when Rod 1st called me, he just, he said,
hey, I want to talk to you aboutsomething and of course, sure.
And he's just telling me about this and I'm just listening and
wonder, right, this is great. And then the last thing I
expected, I want you to be a part of it.
(06:59):
Wait, what? So, you know, as I am now, I'm,
I was just honored to be invited, just an incredible
group of people and I'm honored to be a part of that and to
create something or be a part ofcreating something like this
memorial that's that's going to be everlasting.
Rod has a knack for ambushing people.
(07:21):
I think he learned those tacticsin the Army and he continues
them today. So I always laugh because
everyone tells a similar story about, you know, he wanted to
give you an update on, you know,his work.
And then he ends it with, I wantyou to be a part of it.
It's just it's, it's it's beautiful to hear.
I want to rewind a little bit and ask you both, you know, you
(07:46):
both wore the uniform post 911 and Sir, you obviously continue
to wear the uniform. During that time though, when
you both wore the uniform and you were raising children and
obviously had have stellar careers, what were some of your
biggest personal and professional challenges and
(08:11):
successes? And whoever wants to go first
can go first. The single biggest challenge
was, you know, having young kidswhen their father was deployed
in a war. There's no way you can hide
that. And I'm not sure you should.
I mean, the first time he deployed in 2003, you know, our
(08:37):
kids were two and four years old.
And so, you know, you're never really quite sure how much they
understand or what they understand.
And you want to shield them fromsome of it.
But, but just from, you know, for the next 20 years, going
through that and, and him not being there, so having to fill
(09:01):
in, having to explain, you know,why he isn't here, you know,
the, the kids not having their father for a good chunk of their
lives, you know, missing important milestones and
obviously being on active duty, I was exhausted.
You know, I did not ever deploy.I'd say my husband deployed
enough for everybody. And that's not just me for
(09:22):
everybody, But, but having to hold down the Fort and, and
still, you know, be in the Army and serve during that period of
time with all the things that were going on.
And yet also trying to give my children a normal life and a
normal upbringing where they canstill do sports and theater and
all the things that they want todo and try to keep some sense of
(09:42):
normalcy. And oh, by the way, your
father's gone again. So that was my biggest
challenge, just trying to createa state home life for them.
And how about successes or a success of like when you look
back on that time, what was one of the biggest successes?
I mean, I guess for a parent, the biggest success is that they
(10:03):
grew up well, you know, they didit.
They, they got to do so many different things.
Again, I'm tired. But you know, they did all the
activities and they found the things that they loved and they
were able to go out in the worldand do things.
And it's funny now when because our daughters are adults, but
listening to them talk and hearing them kind of parrot some
(10:23):
of the things that we used to say or seeing how they engage
with other people, it's really neat to watch because you you
know where they learned it. You know, you, you know that we
talk about military kids having resilience.
And they absolutely do. They absolutely do.
You might not see it as they're growing up, but but once they're
out of your house and you can see what they can accomplish on
their own, it's an amazing thing.
(10:45):
So yeah, that that's my biggest success right there.
Thank you for sharing. How about you, Sir?
The the biggest challenge and the biggest success for me, it
all has to do with my faith. I never really worried about
things there and and couldn't understand sometimes how folks
(11:07):
would be concerned. Like my mom.
My mom is, is like she can worryand pray at the same time.
That's the how she does stuff. I never had any concerns about
things at home, but I would attribute my greatest successes
and some of my greatest challenges to operating in those
environments with faith. To recognize that despite some
(11:30):
some things that I've seen that it's not really the way things
are supposed to be. You know, young people should
not be maimed and marred and, and, and dead.
They they shouldn't be. That's not the way things were
supposed to be. But to have this faith, this
burgeoning faith that's continuing to grow every time
(11:52):
you go out the door allows you to do those things.
And then to the admiration that I have for my wife by virtue of
the things that she did every time I was out, whether it's
cool guy stuff or regular guy stuff, my wife is at home taking
care of my family. And I never, because I knew guys
(12:13):
who were deployed that had concerns about that, you know,
whether the sanctity of the relationship was going to be
there for more, whether their kids were out running the
streets or being cared for. I never had those concerns.
All my concerns were always in front of me.
And, and generally what was in front of me was not a good
thing. But I also had people behind me
(12:34):
that were pushing me along. Everybody comes back from that
change. You just do.
And I will tell you that the Grounding of Faith was developed
from 2003 to 2018, which was thelast time I deployed and it was
it was renewed every time because my faith had to be in my
(12:56):
wife and my faith had to be in the unit I was a member of.
My faith had to be in my God to protect me.
And and it seemed to somehow geteasier over time, but that's
because that March to getting tothe point where you could claim
a success. What might have been a challenge
before you know, I can I can remember I had a Bible in 2003
(13:18):
during OIF one right. It was like in the in the, in
my, my rucksack along with my little bandana with Psalm 91 on
it, you know, and I treat it like a Talisman and I put it in
my pocket and you get in a vehicle and you just pull it
out. You read Psalm 91.
But I hadn't touched the Bible all week.
But I would do that to sort of shore myself up.
But I never had any concerns about anything in my home.
(13:41):
So. What a blessing.
Thank you both for sharing. And Kirsten, you mentioned, you
know, Rod calling you and inviting you to be a part of the
Design Advisory Council. But I'm wondering if you can
speak a little bit more to just what it means to you that your
voice, that your stories are shaping a national War Memorial,
(14:09):
a part of American history. Like what does that mean to you?
See, when you say it like that, it blows my mind.
I mean, I'm, I'm grateful obviously, to be a part of that
and, and to be able to add my stories and my perspective.
(14:33):
My overwhelming thought and hopefor this memorial has always
been that it be a place for everybody, for every American,
because every American was touched by the global war on
terrorism. Every American was touched by
911 in some kind of way. And and you didn't have to serve
(14:54):
in the military to be affected by it.
And so I think including all of those stories and all of those
perspectives is what's going to make this an incredible
memorial. And so if my voice and my
stories add any new perspective,any twist, any part that's not
(15:15):
included somewhere else, then I think that's very important.
You know, I know we have family members that are part of the
design Advisory Council. And I think that's so important.
I always try to bring in my children's perspectives to the
extent that I know them, you know, what they were going
through and things that they've shared with me during that
period of the war. Because I do think that's
(15:36):
important that that that it represent all Americans.
Yes, our service members, especially the ones that
deployed, gave so much more. But that war affected all of us.
And I think this memorial is going to exist for all of us.
It can be a place of learning, you know, a place of education,
(15:57):
a place of healing, and just a place of remembrance.
And that's for everybody. It is.
It is. And it's interesting because
that was where I was going to gonext.
But before I do, Sir, I'm curious when Kirsten shared this
opportunity with you that she was going to be a part of the
Design Advisory Council, like what were your thoughts?
(16:19):
What are your thoughts? Well, I will tell you that in
the work that she's been doing along with this, I find out
certain things and we had a conversation about another
interview that she had done and I found out there's a lot of
(16:39):
things I haven't revisited aboutthat experience.
Some good things, some bad things that I just, I just keep
moving forward on. And, and so when I thought about
that, the first thing I thought of was it didn't matter what
year I was in Iraq or Afghanistan.
It did not matter the, the heat.When you come off of a, of a
(17:02):
plane of AC17 that greets you and it could be midnight or it
could be early in the morning. That heat, it, it, it, it, it
doesn't matter what you all make.
The, the, the monument can look like a waterfall.
Kirsten could say, hey, it's going to be a waterfall.
And in the waterfall, you're going to see people holding
hands and, and you know, and you'll see the towers brought
(17:22):
back. It could be whatever.
But when I look at that, when I think about that experience,
it's the heat on my face that I,I feel even now as I talk about
it, I think about that the, the acrid smells in the air, the
just the feeling your nose like it's drying out immediately as
soon as you get on the ground. And, and, and it's that feeling
(17:44):
alone that, that I could be napping somewhere and I could
wake up and be like, boom, thereit is again.
You know, my throat's dry, my nose is dry.
But the know that my wife is a part of that telling a story
that's always going to be and telling from a different
perspective. More than often than not, when
we talk about something that memorializes a conflict, it's
(18:07):
about the more martial aspects of that conflict.
It's never about those who remain, those who are left
behind. And and that can be left behind
literally or even figuratively. But there's there's something
that's important about the families.
You know, I wasn't in Korea, I wasn't in Vietnam, it wasn't in
(18:28):
Grenada. It wasn't even in Desert Storm.
OK. But I think that what's so
significant about the global waron terrorism is it fundamentally
changed the way that we lived. I can remember when you could
just drive through Fort Bragg ifyou wanted to.
Nobody was checking the ID card.Nobody cared.
You just drive straight on through that base.
But to see fences go up, my wifefighting to, you know, that that
(18:51):
story's got to be in there. My wife fighting to get the PT
on time just because somebody took down towers and she's got
how to get to work still, nobodyknew what that was going to look
like. And being stuck in a line at a
gate for hours and hours. And then I think this monument
will also help people who didn'texperience it but are living
through it now. It'll help them to understand
(19:14):
and appreciate that. You know what, I might, it might
take me a little bit longer to get my luggage, you know, off
the carousel or get into my flight.
But that's because of what happened to the world that
changed it so fundamentally. And I hope that it also helps
people not to forget that there could be Seminole changes to a
(19:36):
nation and to her people by virtue of 1 heinous act.
And then the 20 years that we dealt with that deploying in the
loss, all those things. You know, I would, I, I, I would
almost have to say, like if there was a big ceremony, I
couldn't even go there with her because I, I don't know what my
(19:57):
emotions would be like. Yeah, absolutely.
And I mean, you both have touched on it multiple times
that this memorial will honor all of those men and women who
served in sacrifice. So of course the uniformed
wearing men and women, but also we refer to them as non
(20:19):
uniformed wearing men and women,people in the FBICIA, all of
those groups of people, those who didn't come home,
absolutely. But the families, the families
who supported us and those who came home but lost their lives
in other ways, perhaps to suicide or cancer.
(20:41):
So it's really important to us that we tell the whole story.
And that's why, Kirsten, we haveso many different
representatives on the Design Advisory Council so that those
who are designing it can be inspired by real stories of
(21:03):
those who have been impacted by this war.
We'll start with you, Kirsten. What would you say to either a
veteran or a family member who served and or sacrificed in the
Global war on terrorism who feelit was all for nothing?
What would you say to them? Wow, that's wow. 1st I see you.
(21:36):
I, I won't pretend to fully be able to grasp what you have or
are going through, but just knowthat I see you and that many,
many others see you and that this memorial is for you.
It is, it is to recognize all ofthe sacrifices, all of the pain,
(21:58):
all of the successes and, and that we recognized, you know,
just like Xavier was saying thatour world fundamentally changed
after 911. And so anything and everything
that you gave contributed to us coming out on the other side and
(22:18):
coming out stronger. How about you, Sir?
It seems trite because you hear about thank you for your service
so much. But to identify with someone and
say, I know that place. I was there to, you know, to
share with somebody, man, you, you might not feel like it meant
(22:41):
anything, but you did what so many won't do.
You did your duty on behalf of the nation.
Whether that's ACIA analyst, whether that's a family member,
whether that's somebody in the FBI, whether it's someone who
carried a rifle into battle, whether it's somebody who lost a
limb, that we might live the waythat we do, That we might be a
(23:05):
nation that of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines who say
I'm going to support and defend the Constitution to tell them
that they've done what the Republic needed of them at that
time. They did their duty.
Duty doesn't care really how youfeel.
(23:25):
What duty says is that you were willing to do something that no
one else would do or couldn't dofor themselves.
And so I think that a lot of times we forget how honorable
duty is and we listen to people that don't have the same
experiences. And I'm not denigrating not
(23:48):
having those experiences. But what I'm saying is, is that
as people who've worn the cloth of the nation, there's a sense
of duty and selfless service that always be honored.
It's never about the result. It's not APT test yes, it's not
an APFT. This is service to the nation
(24:08):
and and that ought be honored always, but it's about duty.
Thank you for doing your duty. Thank you for doing what was
asked of you at a time when you know as a nation we have been
harmed that you were willing to stand in the gap for those
families that waited for people to come home.
Thanks for sticking with your soldier, sailor, airman or
(24:29):
Marine. And and that's what I, I hope
people should, should be able todraw from this thing almost the
sense, Jen, of I did that by virtue of my actions.
I did that. You know, I've seen all the
memorials. And I think about my dad, the
first time he saw both the Martin Luther King Memorial and
(24:50):
the first time he saw the Vietnam memorial in the time he
spent walking down that line. Or we're on the Army 10 Miller,
but dad's famous for taking breaks on the 10 Miller.
OK. Or hey, I'm going to just wait
and catch up with Kirsten when she comes through.
So you guys go ahead. Him getting into that Martin
(25:11):
Luther King memorial and stopping and just stopping and
walking and reading every plaqueand, and I can remember thinking
with my brothers and myself, this isn't about him taking a
break. This is about him thinking about
something that he lived through.It was visceral.
It meant something to him. And so it's just duty.
(25:34):
I think it's got to celebrate the duty that people did to get
our nation through a tough period of time.
Yeah, so well said. You know, we're also building
this memorial so the global war on terrorism is not over.
Like, sure, we're not in Afghanistan anymore, but we
(25:56):
still have troops deployed in support of the global war on
terrorism, and many Americans don't realize that.
Furthermore, we're building a memorial for a war that
continues that is not over. And I'm wondering what your
thoughts are. This is for either of or both of
(26:19):
you. What are your thoughts on why
now? Like why is it important to
build this now? A lot of things have become
normalized. All the changes, you know, that
were big, huge life changing events at the time have become
normalized. You know, school kids today, of
(26:41):
course, you have to, you know, take off your shoes when you go
through security at the airport.They've always done that.
We haven't always done that. That was that was huge.
And so as things become normalized, you forget why we
did them. And if we don't recognize, we
don't stop and say this is what happened, This is why we do
those things. This is how the world changed.
(27:02):
This is who got us through. Then we forget.
And, you know, 20 more years in the future, this will just be
everyday life. And it won't mean anything.
It won't matter because it won'thave a source.
So that's why I think the law isimportant.
Yeah, I think there's something when you go along the National
(27:25):
Mall, I think there's something special about recognizing what
people have done for the nation.And I look now here at, I guess
was this year the 81st anniversary of D-Day, and
there's still some folk who are hanging on.
Imagine if that groundswell had happened 20 years post the first
(27:48):
involvement, maybe in 42 or 43. You know, maybe by 1950 we had
these memorials up. And there's a saying about
giving people flowers while they're here.
This memorial will give the opportunity for folks to revisit
those times and things done thatwe as a nation wouldn't have to
(28:10):
live in fear from an adversary striking us on our shores again.
Then I think telling that story now, every monument has a story
with it. It's got to be the first time
I've ever seen anything come to fruition this quickly.
And, and the rich stories that can be told that the living
(28:31):
history that's still around, that can be shared by Americans
and, and people around the world, because as you mentioned,
the, the global war on terrorismstill goes on and, and people
around the globe have benefited from the actions taken by a
great many nations. But to be able to share those
stories, you know, temporally, like when it should be like
(28:54):
now's the time. Because more often than not,
what happens is, is we're beyondthat.
And that normalization that Kirsten was talking about starts
to occur and it's it's not quiteas important anymore.
You don't recognize that there was a cost paid that you might
have safer air travel. There was a cost paid that
(29:16):
buildings are set in a certain way and you can only get so
close to a building now that security that folks enjoy, they
ought to know why they have that.
And, and I think it's just important to tell this story
now. Yeah, absolutely, Sir.
We talk internally amongst the foundation leadership that we
(29:36):
know that this memorial will save lives.
And you might have noticed at the beginning of the podcast, I
said welcome home because one ofthe things that we've started
doing is referring to the futuresite and ultimately the memorial
as our home. And we want it to be a home for
everyone, a place to gather, to share stories, all of the things
(29:58):
that that you just mentioned. But back to that saving lives
piece. We feel really strongly that
it's going to save lives. And I'm wondering when you hear
that, what comes up for you? You know, as you were talking,
the image I get is my dad seeinga guy, seeing a name of a guy on
(30:23):
the Vietnam War Memorial. And he pointed to the name and,
and another gentleman that was aVietnam veteran came through and
they talked about where they were and, and, and they, they,
they came together. And those that I don't know, but
you can extrapolate from that, that these two men from
different places of different races sat together and they
(30:44):
talked to the point where I grabbed my son, who is much
younger, and I said, come on, man, we're going to go up here
to the bench and sit down. But they sat there and they
talked. And, and you don't know what
happened from that conversation,but it might have made somebody
feel like they were home. They were at that memorial and
they were home and he might haveput him at peace, but I just
(31:05):
remember when my dad came away from.
There he goes. Yeah, that guy was in Vietnam
same time I was 6567. And yeah, we were talking about
these places, man. He said sorry about that.
But but I I remember how excitedhe was.
And it was shortly thereafter, Kirsten, that he started wearing
that Vietnam veteran hat. I.
Don't think he's taking him. But the, the potential to save
(31:28):
lives by having conversations, it's it's like your story, Jen,
that you continue to thrive. Your story helps people.
And in there, there are those left behind that are in
situations that aren't like yours, that resilience that you
have, that drive that you have to continue to move forward for
(31:51):
your family to see. Those are the kind of stories
that I would hope in the future are shared at that site.
Hey, you were in Ramadi. I was in Ramadi, you know.
When were you there? You know, I I was in Fallujah.
Were you up in Kurdistan? Yeah, I was up there, too.
Were you in in in the Corngal Valley?
Yeah, I was in the Corngal Valley the first time.
(32:13):
And then I went back a year later.
But but those things that that sort of very similitude that we
have in our service. Yeah.
I wasn't in Iraq, but I was in Afghanistan, man, that same
year. Let me tell you what those
stories kind of keep you like, you know what?
I'm not alone. I'm not alone.
There are other people that feeljust like I do.
(32:34):
And Kirsten, what do you think Imean about still on this saving
lives topic as a retired Army Colonel, but also as a family
member, knowing that this memorial will also honor the
families, how do you think that that will translate to them?
(32:55):
As you were asking me that question, I started thinking of,
you know, the the perspective ofa family member who lost their
service member after the fight. And what could this memorial be
for them? I mean, everything, right?
(33:18):
It just, and again, it's just imagine like what are all the is
there anger is there is there, you know, anger, sadness,
whatever the emotions are behindthat.
So you came home from the war, but you never really came home.
And then we lost you. So for them to be able to to go
to a place which, which celebrates, which salutes the
(33:42):
service that their family membergave and helps them to better
understand what they were going through.
And, you know, like Xavier was saying, maybe talk to other
people who can help them understand what their service
member was going through. Maybe talk to other people who
are going through what they're going through because they're
visiting the memorial for the same reason.
(34:03):
This thing is so important to somany people.
And I hope people really do understand this is not a
memorial to celebrate a war. You know, this, this is so much
bigger and better than that. This is, this is to recognize
the sacrifices, this is to educate, this is to remember to
(34:25):
honor, but it's also to heal. And so I think it, I think it
can do that for especially for those families who are who are
struggling with even understanding, you know, like
you asked before, what did we accomplish?
Was it worth it? Did it even matter?
I think it can help with that. I hope it can.
(34:46):
I hope so too. So I have one final question for
each of you. I'm wondering if you can imagine
dedication day or your first time visiting this completed
Global War on Terrorism memorial.
What do you hope to feel in thatexperience?
(35:12):
Pride that I was a part of it. I imagine taking my kids there,
you know, and really just listening and seeing what they
take from it. But when this thing comes to
fruition, looking around at everybody who's there,
(35:35):
everybody, the service members, the non uniform civilians, the
family members and seeing probably something different on
all of their faces and being so thankful that we got it done and
then giving my husband a big hugfor what he's going.
(35:57):
For yes. The the real story of this for
me will be the names that we carry with us as we walk through
and everyone that served over there has a name.
Some have more names than other folk, but they'll be able to
leave them there. They won't have to carry that
anymore. So to your point earlier about
(36:18):
saving lives, lives may be savedbecause they'll be able to close
out that chapter. Like I said, I don't spend a lot
of time thinking on this. What this conversation has
brought up for me is just thinking about those people who
are, you know, you always say never forget, and it sometimes
(36:40):
takes people to remind you of those people that they not be
forgotten. So.
Yeah, on that note, I, I just feel compelled to share that
today, the day that we're pre recording this episode is the 15
year anniversary of the day thatmy husband's Staff Sergeant
(37:01):
Eduardo Laredo was killed in action.
And just as you were sharing that, I just want to say thank
you and couldn't agree more thathis and many other names will be
at the top of my mind that day and and moving forward.
(37:22):
Sir, ma'am, welcome home. Thank you so much for spending
this time with us today. It it really means a lot and I
hope to speak with you both soon.
Thank you so much. Love you, Kat.
Thanks, Jen. You're welcome, Sir.
(37:45):
Welcome Home is produced by Jennifer Blum, Holly Soria and
me. Jennifer Blue, our operations
manager, is Henry Howard. Art for Welcome Home is by
Minerva Consulting. Our theme, A Place like Home is
by Bergenson Lunberg via Epidemic.
Sound mixing and editing is by Jennifer Blum.
(38:05):
Thank you to Tal Podcast and TheAmerican Legion for their
collaboration on this inaugural series.
You can find their episodes, guests, and more at legion.org
slash Tal. You can find out more about the
Global War on Terrorism MemorialFoundation, get updates on the
(38:26):
National War Memorial, and learnhow you can get involved by
following us on your favorite social media platforms or by
visiting GWOT Memorial foundation.org.
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