For All Who Have Served — Thank You

– Gold Star Mothers Live With Ultimate Sacrifice –

The following story is from the Midland Daily News.

Memorial Day is Every Day for Gold Star Mothers
by Angela E. Lackey

They are Gold Star mothers — women who have lost a son or daughter serving in the military.

Kim Burgess and Jamie Zylman are still grieving for their sons, and indeed, say they will never stop. They will take part in this year’s Memorial Day observances to honor their sons. See Memorial Day observances schedule.

This is their story.

Lance Cpl. Ryan J. Burgess

“He was kind and loving,” Kim Burgess said. “He was the son every mother dreams of.”

Lance Cpl. Ryan J. Burgess was 21 years old when he was killed in Iraq on Dec. 21, 2006. He died while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. He was with the 3/4 India Company, 1st Marine Division out of Twentynine Palms, Calif.

He graduated from Meridian High School in 2003, and joined the Marines about a year later in April 2004. Burgess was frightened when her son enlisted — the country was at war and she knew he would be in harm’s way.

“But I felt it was important to support his goals and decisions in life,” she said. “He wanted to serve his country.”

Burgess said she felt cheated by her son’s death.

“Of course you have the overwhelming grief, and you feel cheated,” she said.

“Then you go through the phase where you feel honored to have him,” she added. “Even though his death brought us great sorrow, his life brought us great joy.”

Burgess began to think about all the positive aspects of her son’s life.

“I tried to remember all the joy he brought me,” she said.

There was the joy from simple hugs, and phone calls home. He called her every Sunday while stationed at Twentynine Palms. She thought of those calls as their “soul to soul time.”

“We really talked about his dreams and his goals,” she said. “I always looked so forward to those phone calls.”

Ryan had attended college before joining the Marines, and planned to return to college after the military. His dream was to start a construction management company with his father, Jon Burgess. His dad had already started the process, registering the future company’s name, Thunderbolt Construction.

He continued to call her weekly, this time on Wednesdays, when he was in Iraq. Burgess talked with her son the day before he was killed, which was on a Thursday.

“I feel very fortunate to get that last phone call,” she said.

Burgess said Ryan was very upbeat and happy during that last call, in spite of the fact he wasn’t able to come home for Christmas.

“He wanted us to be happy and enjoy Christmas and said he would see us soon,” she said.

Burgess said she and her family were helped by other family members and friends when Ryan was killed. She also learned about the camaraderie of Marines.

“One of our biggest surprises and greatest blessings is the support we’ve received from Ryan’s Marine brothers,” she said.

Burgess said several Marines show up every year around Christmastime, just to visit her son’s grave site. It’s their way of honoring him.

“One year, they put a snowman on the gravesite. They put a Marine Corps hat on it and dressed it as a Marine,” she remembered.

She agreed to take part in the Memorial Day parade for her son, even though she knows it will stir up “raw feelings” for her again.

“I want him to be remembered and I want people to be grateful for his contributions,” she said.

Burgess still grieves for the son she lost.

“I always tell people I will always feel the way I do, but I will learn to deal with the way I feel,” she said.

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Cpl. Casey Zylman

“He was my hero before he ever went to Iraq,” Jamie Zylman said.

Cpl. Casey Zylman, 22, died May 25, 2007, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Tallafar, Iraq. He was serving in the U.S. Army, and awarded the Purple Heart. He also was awarded the Bronze Star, Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Combat Infantry Badge and Iraqi Campaign Medal.

“You don’t believe it, for one thing,” Zylman said about learning of her son’s death. Family and friends, plus a strong marriage, helped her and Casey’s father, Randy.

He was a 2003 Coleman High School graduate, and joined the Army in 2005. Zylman was concerned about her son joining the military during wartime, but supported his choice.

“He figured he should serve his country,” she said.

Casey grew up on a farm, where the Zylmans still care for his horse and dog. The family was very close, and their daughter, Amie Balliet, moved back to Coleman to support her parents after her brother’s death.

He was 3 years old when he joined 4-H, and loved animals. He was into sports, especially football and baseball, and playing video games.

“That boy would stay up all night playing video games,” Zylman said, laughing.

He also was well liked by everybody. His funeral was held at his high school, and drew between 700 and 800 people. His mom said his friends still come around, and one of his best friends from the Army lives with the family while attending college.

“He had a big heart,” Zylman said. “There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for you.”

Casey was going to go back to college after leaving the military. He planned to study something related to the outdoors.

“He was the kind of kid anybody would want. All-American. Very patriotic,” Zylman said. “He was always a good kid.”

She is taking part in the Memorial Day parade for her son, and the other men and women who have been killed while serving.

Meanwhile, she still grieves.

“I think I’m still waiting for him to come home,” Zylman said.

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The Special Forces Creed

I am an American Special Forces Soldier!

I will do all that my nation requires of me.
I am a volunteer, knowing well the hazards of my profession.

I serve with the memory of those who have gone before me.
I pledge to uphold the honor and integrity of their legacy
in all that I am – in all that I do.

I am a warrior.
I will teach and fight whenever and wherever my nation requires.
I will strive always to excel in every art and artifice of war.

I know that I will be called upon to perform tasks in isolation,
far from familiar faces and voices.
With the help and guidance of my faith,
I will conquer my fears and succeed.

I will keep my mind and body clean, alert and strong.
I will maintain my arms and equipment in
an immaculate state befitting a Special Forces Soldier,
for this is my debt to those who depend upon me.

I will not fail those with whom I serve.
I will not bring shame upon myself or Special Forces.

I will never leave a fallen comrade.
I will never surrender though I am the last.
If I am taken, I pray that I have the strength
to defy my enemy.

I am a member of my Nation’s chosen soldiery,
I serve quietly, not seeking recognition or accolades.
My goal is to succeed in my mission – and live to succeed again.