Thomas Daschle: “Tomorrow is a very special day for two little twin brothers in Rapid City, South Dakota. Ethan and Abraham Allen turn 2…”

“Tomorrow is a very special day for two little twin brothers in Rapid City, South Dakota. Ethan and Abraham Allen turn 2 tomorrow. Among the people who will be there to celebrate with them is their father, Lt. Jeff Allen. Lt. Allen came closer than he likes to think to not seeing his sons' birthday. On April 6, he was in a convoy near Mosul, traveling south through Iraq, when a homemade bomb exploded under his Humvee. The explosion filled the calves on both of Lt. Allen's legs with shrapnel. His right ear drum was shattered, the retina in his right eye was torn, and he suffered serious lacerations on his face. He had been in Iraq for just under a month. Like more than 40 percent of the American troops in Iraq today, Lt. Allen is a reservist. He is a nurse anesthetist with the Army Reserve's 348th Combat Support unit. When he is not on active duty, he works at Rapid City Regional Hospital. Like so many others civilian and military--he was in Iraq trying to save lives.”