Jay Rockefeller: “in the lush green hills of Arlington Cemetery, where peace holds its gentle sway, there is a headstone inscribed with…”

“in the lush green hills of Arlington Cemetery, where peace holds its gentle sway, there is a headstone inscribed with the name of John W. Engeman. On it are his rank of chief warrant officer, and his honors, the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart. But, like all of the iconic white markers at Arlington, it only tells part of a hero's story. Chief Warrant Officer Engeman enlisted in the Army when he was 18, and was stationed in Korea and Germany, and served in Kosovo and Operation Desert Storm. Two years ago, he moved with his family to West Virginia, where he was the active duty liaison between the National Guard and Reserves. But he was more than a career military man; he was also a devoted father and husband, brother and son. The soldiers in his unit called him a father figure and a great story teller. They recalled that whenever they needed advice, they always went to the Chief. They said they would follow him anywhere because he was a great leader, a good decisionmaker, and a good friend. And, they said, he loved to talk about his wife Donna or his two children, Nicole and Patrick. So I can only imagine how he must have felt when the Army made special arrangements for him to watch his wife graduate from college. It had been a shared goal between the two of them, and on the day before Mother's Day, he sat half-a-world away and watched the dream turn into a reality.”