Nathan Deal: “last Saturday, I attended a birthday party in Ellijay, Georgia. It was not an ordinary birthday party. The honoree…”

“last Saturday, I attended a birthday party in Ellijay, Georgia. It was not an ordinary birthday party. The honoree, Lieutenant Noah Harris, was not physically present. He had been killed in Iraq the week before. But his spirit engulfed all of us as we celebrated the life of this extraordinary young man. I first met Noah Harris several years ago when he served as an intern in my Washington office. I had been told that he was something special, and after meeting him, I certainly knew that was true. To become a State wrestling champion, an outstanding football player, the leading actor in his school drama and a Presidential Scholar requires someone special. To be a friend to people from all walks of life, to excel in everything that he undertook, to dare to dream big dreams takes someone special. After September 11, 2001, Noah Harris, who was a senior, in his senior year in college at the University of Georgia, wanted to join the Army ROTC program. He was told that that was normally too late to qualify, but because of his outstanding credentials, he was accepted and was later commissioned as a second lieutenant. As we attended the ceremony and listened to his commanding officer who told a story of the fact that he had understood that this young man was the captain of the cheerleader squad at the University of Georgia, he decided to pick on him for hand-to-hand combat, not knowing until the day of his funeral that he had been the State wrestling champion.…”