soldiers' families

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Hero's Tragic Life Led Him to Iconic Marathon Photo

Carlos Arredondo's son was killed in Iraq, other son committed suicide

(Newser) - Carlos Arredondo was waiting at the Boston Marathon finish line for runners who were racing on behalf of fallen soldiers—one of those fallen soldiers being Arredondo's son—and handing out American flags when the blast went off across the street. He ran to help injured spectators, including one...

Troop Death Benefits: We Pay, Prudential Profits

American legion calls for 'overhaul' of system

(Newser) - Prudential is making a profit on death benefits owed to military families—and it's doing so using government funds. When a service member dies, the feds send the full amount of the life insurance policy, usually $400,000, to Prudential. If survivors opt to receive a lump-sum payment, which 95%...

Should We Allow Coffin Pics?
 Should We Allow Coffin Pics? 
analysis
Feb 15, 2009 4:26 PM CST

Should We Allow Coffin Pics?

(Newser) - President Obama is reviewing a media ban at Dover Air Force Base, where dead soldiers arrive in flag-draped coffins, but "in truth, it's not an easy issue," John Barry writes in Newsweek. There is widespread support for raising the ban "as a way of reminding the...

Army Sends 'John Doe' Letter to Slain Soldiers' Kin

Gen. Casey writes apology to 7,000

(Newser) - The Army had good intentions in mind when it sent a letter to families of soldiers killed in Iraq to inform them of available services. Problem is, the letters to ease the most personal of sacrifices all began the same way: "Dear John Doe." Now Army chief of...

Bush Sacrificed Golf to 'Honor War Dead'

Says he did it for moms who lost their sons

(Newser) - President Bush gave up playing golf five years ago because he felt it was inappropriate to play while families mourned loved ones killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, he revealed in an interview with Politico. Bush was lampooned for playing golf while discussing terrorism in Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911.

Army Battles High Divorce Rates

'Marriage education' aims to bridge gulf between love and war

(Newser) - A jump in divorce rates since the start of the Iraq war has the Army concerned. Marriages are falling apart as soldiers return home from tours of combat duty emotionally distant and unwilling to discuss their experiences. The military has now launched 'marriage education' retreats to try and repair the...

A Colonel's Toughest Duty: the Condolence Letter

US commanders continue 18th-century custom

(Newser) - American warfare has changed over hundreds of years, but one tradition that remains is a commander’s condolence letter to the family of a fallen soldier. The Wall Street Journal spends time with a lieutenant colonel in Iraq who writes his letters by hand whenever one of his men dies....

Overseas Tours Cost Soldiers Child Custody

Deployment often means troops have rough time in court

(Newser) - In what the Pentagon and parent-advocacy groups agree is a growing trend, troops serving overseas are unable to maintain custody of their children upon their return, NPR reports. One National Guardswoman raised her son until her unit deployed to Iraq, when his father took temporary custody. AFter she returned home,...

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