Troop Talk

We received the following letter which is so special we want to share it with all of you.

To Maj. Gen. and Mrs. Lennox,

I write this letter to you and the Fort Bliss community with a heavy, but extremely grateful heart.

Nine months ago I lost my best friend, my husband ... a young officer with a very promising military career, to a very sudden, unexpected heart attack. Capt. Patrick W. Runyan was loved by his family and friends very much, but I was overwhelmed by how much he was loved by his military family.

I want you to know I am proud to call myself a military spouse. The overwhelming support and love shown to me, my children and my family by the Soldiers and family members of 1-7, 108th Brigade, the Fort Bliss community and the two of you was extremely touching and comforting to my family. We are all so thankful to each and every one of you.

Patrick truly loved being a Soldier each and every day of his life and I know he is proud of all of you for taking care of us during the hardest time we will ever have to face. I know he misses being there with you, as do I, but know that just as he spent his “entire” Army career at Fort Bliss, that is where his heart still lies.

Please know you have among you some of the finest Soldiers and hearts you will come across in this Army, sir, and I am glad we were able to call them friends. I also want the Soldiers to know the job they are doing is an honorable one and they should be proud of themselves, as should their family members. I never failed to tell Patrick I was proud of him and the job he was doing; it takes a special person to sign their name on the dotted line voluntarily. Mackenzie, our daughter, loved that her daddy was a Soldier, she was proud of him and she will never forget that!

Patrick’s funeral was truly a beautiful one. The love and support was tremendous. Every detail was taken care of. I did not have to deal with any difficult decisions; people were wonderful. The funeral detail was very precise and I know they worked very hard to make sure they would be perfect, which they were, so I thank Maj. Kevin Hutchison, Sgt. 1st Class Felipe Albino and the rest of the detail for their fine work.

It is so hard to thank everyone personally, but please know when a tragedy happens, your staff is professional and caring. There are so many details to think of, but I was in very good hands with Capt. Linda Jean. She was there through it all, even though this was a tough ordeal for her as well, Patrick was her colleague and friend. I would also like to thank Col. David and Mrs. Mann and Lt. Col. Brant and Mrs. Dayley for everything they have done for me and my family. These are truly two wonderful leaders and families who care about their Soldiers, their families and their well-being. They were there for us day and night and without them I truly would have lost my way.

In closing, I just want to again thank you for our time at Fort Bliss, the help we received, the wonderful friendships we made and for sharing your Soldiers with us. We are now in California trying to find our new way in life. We miss Patrick very much, but we are slowly trying to heal. Thank you for being part of Patrick’s life, he loved being part of all of yours.


Sincerely
Mrs. Julie Ann Runyan