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Glenn Beck

Teens Help Soldiers Hear Tender Voice of Home; Saluting a Hero

Aired July 03, 2008 - 19:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): What does it mean to be an American today? We`re as diverse as we are proud. But something bigger unites us. Tonight, we honor a handful of remarkable people who prove the true love of country is expressed in deeds, not speeches.

Whether risking their life on the battlefield or in making life better in smaller ways here at home, they serve others before themselves, and in doing so, they serve their country. That is what it really means to be an American. Tonight, we celebrate their stories.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Hello, America. And welcome to a special edition of the GLENN BECK program.

You know, our country isn`t always the most popular kid in the class, but did you ever notice we`re the one that everybody turns to when the homework is tough and there`s a test to take? We didn`t become the world`s lone superpower by hiding in the back of the class, not raising our hand.

The time around the holiday always gets me thinking what it really means to be an American. I was thinking about it the other day. I have no life. Remember that Rocky movie -- remember the last Rocky movie? Didn`t see it? I had nothing to do. Rocky Balboa at the very end, he says, "It`s not how hard you can hit. It`s how hard you can get hit and keep coming back." To me, that`s America.

You should never count us out. From the soldiers who defend us to those who are at home who honor their service, Americans are not afraid to take a punch. We`ll keep coming back. We`re on the mat. Look out, man. That`s when we stand up.

Tonight, I want to show you some stories of extraordinary Americans who embody this spirit.

In 2005, the Lima Company Marine reserve unit went to Iraq for its first tour. There were 22 Marines and one Navy corpsman that never came home. Out of the 23, 17 were from Ohio.

The death of these soldiers hit communities in Ohio extraordinarily hard, including one woman who`s helping her country heal through an extraordinary gift of her extraordinary art.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANITA MILLER, ARTIST: Peace, understanding, acceptance, forgiveness.

BECK (voice-over): Anita Miller will never forget hearing the news about Lima Company.

MILLER: My heart tore just like the rest of Ohioans` tore and ached for those families and for those fallen.

BECK: The Ohio-based Marine Reserve unit once known as Lucky Lima has been one of the hardest hit, losing the most members fighting in Iraq than any other U.S. military company. One morning, Anita, a painter, woke up haunted by a dream.

MILLER: I saw eight life-sized paintings arranged in an octagon in the state house rotunda, and I knew that on the front of those paintings were portraits of the Lima Company Marines.

BECK: The vision was a larger than life tribute to the fallen soldiers.

MILLER: I don`t have the money. I don`t have the time. I don`t have the space. I don`t have the resources. I don`t have the contacts. I wouldn`t know how to do it.

BECK: But Anita couldn`t let it go. She contacted the Marines, tracked down family members, and then she took out a home equity loan to build an addition to her studio to fit the life-sized portraits.

MILLER: One by one, the families started calling me and bringing me pictures of their child, telling me stories about their sons. This would be a great healing for these families. They could connect with their sons through the paint.

BECK: For two years, she worked on nothing but the Lima project, and on Memorial Day, the paintings were unveiled at the Ohio state house with family and friends looking on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Timothy M. Bell.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It has been a few years. Honestly, it hurts just as much today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Justin F. Hoffman.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s important to be here. She was born in April of 2005, and he was killed in July of 2005. We just tell her he was a very good man.

BECK: So now the 23 fallen soldiers of Lima Company stand together, forever, just the way Anita Miller envisioned.

MILLER: When I stand here, and when I`m with the paintings, I`m overwhelmed with a profound sense of gratitude. And I think in a lot of ways, that`s part of what the message is, that everyone that goes to serve, they`re offering and laying down their life for the rest of us. The process has been painful, but beautiful at the same time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: The Lima Company memorial is currently on display at the Ohio state house. And it will be there until Veterans Day.

Joining us now from Ohio is Anita Miller. She is the creator and the artist of the Lima Company memorial. Also with us is Pat Murray, whose son, David Kreuter, was a member of Lima Company and was killed in Iraq on August 3, 2005. Sergeant Kreuter`s portrait is one of the 23 that make up the Lima memorial.

Pat, first of all, I`m sorry for the loss of your -- of your son. When you first heard about this, you called Anita, and you actually wanted to be a part of this whole process. Can you tell me what you did?

PAT MURRAY, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: Yes. Many times, I went to Columbus. We took Anita a lot of photographs of our son. She was very generous in allowing us to be -- to actually participate in her creation and painting of David.

We wanted to make sure that David looked like we remembered him. He had exceptionally dark eyes, and we were very grateful that she was able to recreate those eyes.

BECK: Was it -- was it -- was it more than just making sure that he looked right? Was it -- because I understand your whole family came. Everyone came. It was almost therapy.

P. MURRAY: Yes, it most definitely was. It was really part of the healing process. I talk about my car being on autopilot to her studio. I went up there frequently, because I just felt a connection to David there and to the other Marines in his unit. And it was very healing and very therapeutic.

BECK: Anita, you say this came to you in a dream. And I have -- I mean, I hate to get all -- I hate to sound like a Jesus freak, but I am. I have had dreams, and then I think I have had spiritual dreams before that have pointed me in the right direction. Part of my alcoholism, I think -- I mean, I was healed through visions like that in my sleep.

Was this a dream, or was this a sleeping vision, if you will?

MILLER: No, it actually woke me up, actually. I -- it woke me up, and it was such a big picture that I saw. And I -- I immediately thought, oh, no. That`s just too much for me. And I really hoped that in the morning, I could go back to sleep, and in the morning, it would be all gone. But in the morning, instead, it gripped my mind even more powerfully than it had the night before.

BECK: Right. So what I`m asking, I think I hear your answer. This was -- this was not -- this wasn`t just something that came to you in a dream? You believe there was more to this? That this was a spiritual journey?

MILLER: Well, yes.

BECK: You were directed to do this?

MILLER: Yes, along with it came an overwhelming sense of love and confidence that I wouldn`t be alone and that I would have the help that I needed.

BECK: And you didn`t have the money. I mean, you were -- what were you doing right before? You were teaching, right?

MILLER: I`m a painter, and...

BECK: Yes, but you weren`t -- I mean, you just recently new to -- you didn`t paint until you were 30, right?

MILLER: Right. I`m 48.

BECK: You don`t look it. You don`t look it. Maybe it`s just because you`re sitting next to me. And it`s like, "Woo." Anyway, you were a teacher, and you quit everything to do this project.

MILLER: I am a painter, as well, and a portrait painter, and I knew that the power of this project was so intense that it required nothing but everything. I couldn`t -- I couldn`t split my time between that and other things, because it overwhelmed every thought. It was my first thought in the morning; it was my last thought at night. It was what I thought of when I woke up at night. So there was no room for anything else.

BECK: Pat, when -- when you were going through all this, you said at the beginning of the interview, you said that it was instrumental in your healing process. How, exactly? What happened to you during this?

P. MURRAY: Well, I felt a reconnection with David. To me, it was, you know, you didn`t get to say good-bye to David. This was an opportunity to say good-bye to David, to make peace, and to just feel like we were honoring David and the rest of the guys.

And also very important to me is on the final project, all the names of all the Marines who served in Lima are on the back of all the portraits. And I think it`s very important, because they -- all those Marines contributed and served.

BECK: Anita, you know, you look at the memorial and they`re bigger than life, and they`re surrounding you. And this is in your -- this was in your painter`s workshop for a long time. I heard you describe it as you felt you were with your brothers. They had become your brothers. What was it like to have them leave you?

MILLER: You know, it`s that same sort of thing that when someone you love is of doing the thing they need to be doing, so as much as I loved having their company with me in the studio, I knew that the time for them to serve other people was appropriate, and for them to go. And yes, I like to go down and still see the paintings down in the state house.

BECK: And it`s going to be in the state house, and then I hear there`s plans. It`s going to go to, where is it? Cincinnati, and then you`re trying to get it into Maryland. And you want this to be a traveling show. How are you working on this?

MILLER: I`m working with a couple of different options and hoping to find a traveling exhibit service that will help me, because I don`t have the logistical know-how to do that at this point in time.

BECK: Yes.

MILLER: So I`m hoping to find people that know more than I do.

BECK: Thank you, guys, very much. God bless you. Have a great holiday.

MILLER: Thank you.

P. MURRAY: Thank you.

BECK: You bet.

Coming up, birthdays are always best spent with friends and family. But what happens if you`re serving thousands of miles in the middle of nowhere away from home. Can you have a birthday cake? Find out next.

And a reminder, tonight`s show brought to you by the Sleep Number Bed by Select Comfort. Sleep Number, it`s the bed that counts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Welcome back to a special GLENN BECK real America, one that involves a fork. A birthday celebration really not complete without a cake, at least in my world.

But when you`re serving your country overseas, blowing out candles is not always possible. It`s not like there`s a bakery, you know, on every corner in Afghanistan. I don`t even know if they have corners over there. Josh Kaye is a guy who decided to do something by sending sweet reminders of home to those who need it most.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSH KAYE, FOUNDER, BAKEMEAWISH.COM: I grew up in a financially- challenged background. I never had a cake growing up. I remember the feeling of how I felt on my birthday, not having a cake. And I pictured myself in that soldier`s -- being with that soldier, feeling how lonely it is. You know they`re in harm`s way, and it`s their birthday.

BECK (voice-over): Josh Kaye is the founder of BakeMeAWish.com, an online company that sells and delivers cakes anywhere in the country.

Two years ago, Josh received a phone call that changed his company forever.

KAYE: I received a call from a mom, and the mom said, "Could you send my -- my son is having a birthday. He`s in Iraq. Could you send him a cake?"

The first thing I said, yes, right. Send Iraq a cake? I just don`t think so. Then I stopped, and I thought to myself, what an amazing possibility that could be.

BECK: So Kaye created Operation Birthday Cake. Through a partnership with Soldiers` Angels and the Armed Forces Foundation, he sends 5,000 cakes a year to soldiers overseas, all for free.

KAYE: I received this -- a letter from a soldier. And she was stationed in Afghanistan. And she received a cake on her birthday in the mountains of Afghanistan. And she said, "You just don`t know what it meant to me. It picked me up; it gave me a lift."

KAYE: Kaye also gives free cakes to kids through the Make-a-Wish Foundation, in addition, to 5 percent of his company profits.

KAYE: When a child receives a cake, their illness disappears for that moment. They feel special. They feel wonderful. It`s all about them getting that cake and taking them from the moment of being a child with a life-threatening illness to being just a child.

BECK: Kaye`s next mission: secure a large corporate sponsor so he can provide a sweet taste of home to every single soldier on their birthday.

KAYE: I`m excited because I`m making a difference in this world, and that`s my goal in life. It`s about me being here to make this world a better place to live.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: You know, that`s what I love about America. An entrepreneur says I`m going to make a difference. His name is Josh Kaye. He`s the owner of BakeMeAWish, and he is here.

Josh, what a pleasure, sir, to meet you. You never had a cake growing up?

KAYE: No, I didn`t. And you know what? It`s nice to be with someone, Glenn, who gets it. You get what a cake means.

BECK: You know -- is that a fat joke?

KAYE: No fat joke.

BECK: I tell you, you brought a cake, and it took an act of God to get a fork.

KAYE: Oh, my goodness.

BECK: You want some?

KAYE: Oh, no.

BECK: This is what you do when you get a cake like this. You eat it right from the center.

KAYE: Oh, my goodness.

BECK: You eat it from the center. That way, nobody else will...

KAYE: Of course.

BECK: Everybody else there is like, you ate out of the center of the cake. No I don`t want it.

KAYE: Our cakes, you want it anyway.

BECK: You have -- you have something going on all through the summer now, through Labor Day where, if I ordered a cake from you, you send another one to a soldier, is that the way it works?

KAYE: That`s exactly the way it works. We wanted to give Soldier`s Angels, a military moms support group partnered with us. And we wanted to give Americans a chance to participate and enjoy it while they`re participating.

BECK: Holy cow. This is good. You know, it is. Are there real strawberries in it?

KAYE: Strawberry filling.

BECK: That`s really good. I`m sorry. You were saying?

KAYE: What we`re doing is we`re sending out cakes to your friends and relatives. People order cakes online from us, called the Freedom Cake. So with every cake ordered, we`re donating a cake to a soldier overseas. So it gives Americans a chance to participate. They get a cake, and they get to send a soldier a cake at the same time.

BECK: How are you doing this with the price of wheat and eggs and milk and everything else?

KAYE: Well, it`s most difficult. It`s become a very, very difficult challenge for us. And that`s why we`re asking Americans to pitch in and help us and become a part of it.

BECK: Yes.

KAYE: Because the more we get the word out and the more Americans sample and understand that we ship cakes to relatives and friends all over America, the more we take our profits and put it back into being -- be able to send soldiers cakes.

BECK: You know, it`s amazing to me how -- how few businesses really understand, or few even families or individuals. I learned -- I just learned this -- oh, I don`t know -- eight years ago, that the idea of tithing, the idea of giving at least 10 percent of everything you earn, giving it away. And it`s amazing how your business and your life and everything prospers.

KAYE: Absolutely. And Jesus says if you give -- whatever you give, you get back 80 times over. And you know something? Giving is -- makes you feel good. And when you feel good, you actually become better at what you do.

If your business is just about making yourself and all for yourself, then it becomes about you and not about anything else. But when you give back, you feel better about yourself, and then your business prospers because of it.

BECK: Yes, and I think it`s -- I think it`s also the law of attraction on -- you know, if you`re busy hording your money or holding onto your money, you`re sending out the message that money is not coming to you. You know what I mean?

KAYE: Absolutely, absolutely. And I wish businesses would learn from this. Because I`ll tell you what: we`re a small company, started small. We`re growing every day. And because of what we have done, we`ve gathered so much publicity and so much recognition that our brand recognition has gone up significantly. We didn`t start out with that idea, but it has become a tremendous resource for us.

BECK: Quickly, because we have less than a minute, how did you go from a guy who didn`t have cake? Was that because you were poor?

KAYE: No, it was because we were poor. We grew up with -- with not a lot of dollars.

BECK: And then how did you go to making cakes?

KAYE: Our idea is to -- they bring goodwill to people to make people feel good. And when people eat cake, they feel better about themselves.

BECK: I feel better.

KAYE: And they feel recognized, remembered and cared about. When people gets a cake, wherever they are, they feel like they`re a special person. You know, they say how does one bake a cake today? We put all the ingredients in the bowl, go to the computer, and we click the mouse. And that`s the way we make people feel good. We send cakes out, and we make them feel like it`s not a cake but a gift, or recognizing peace (ph).

BECK: I`m feeling really good and special. Josh, thank you very much. I really appreciate it.

KAYE: Thank you for all you do.

BECK: Well, I spent a lot of time talking about our troops on this program, the importance of respecting real American values. When we come back, I`m going to bring you a story of an incredible woman who took these words to heart. Don`t go anywhere. You don`t want to miss this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Welcome back to our special, "The Real America." Tonight, we pay tribute to our country and a group of men and women who are serving others before themselves. Those who show what it really, truly means to be an American.

Now I want to introduce you to a woman who`s made it her mission to honor American troops returning home from the battlefields.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: It`s the kind of homecoming that a soldier dreams about. For Private Leah Murray, it`s a homecoming that makes her want to go back to Iraq and continue serving her country.

LEAH MURRAY, PRIVATE FIRST CLASS, U.S. ARMY: You have somebody looking up to you. You`re setting a good example. So it makes you want to fight harder to come back home.

BECK: Murray is back in Pennsylvania, on rest, after receiving a Purple Heart for her service. She will deploy again soon.

At home, Murray has the support of her family, her friends, and her community. She exemplifies the true spirit of American values, something I talk about all the time. Lucky for me, Sharon Keyser was listening.

SHARON HYLAND KEYSER, AHEROS-WELCOME.ORG: The day before my husband left to go back to Afghanistan, I heard Glenn on the radio talking about how our troops aren`t considered heroes anymore and what a shame and, you know, how did we ever get to this point? So I was thinking to myself, "Glenn, you could not be talking more about what I`m doing here in Philadelphia."

BECK: A Heroes Welcome is the brain-child of Sharon Keyser. Her mission is simple: welcome home our armed forces like the heroes they are.

In July, she quit her six-figure job to start the foundation. At the time, Sharon was on the fast track, racing up the corporate ladder. Yet, inside, she felt like a failure.

KEYSER: I quit my job. I gave up a pretty -- a pretty nice paycheck. Started this with my life savings. So this was very scary. I think that`s why it took me about a month to do, because I was really hesitating over that.

BECK: Now, just four months later, her dedication is paying off. Sharon is personalizing homecoming celebrations based on the passions of the individual soldiers. For some, it`s a ticker-tape parade. For Private Murray, it was more simple. Her passion is her cause.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We`d like to install this GPS for you, as well.

L. MURRAY: OK.

BECK: Families get in touch with Sharon through her Web site. From there, she gets local donors involved to help with the welcome home celebration.

She also gets local schools involved, making sure all the students get a chance to meet a real hero.

(MUSIC)

BECK: The only problem she has now: topping what she`s done for other soldiers, with a surprise welcome home for her own husband when he`s completed his tour of duty.

KEYSER: He loves the Philadelphia Eagles, so if that would be something where he got a chance to meet Donovan McNabb or any of the players, he would -- I think he`d pass out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: You know, I`m a conservative. I make no bones about it. I have a conservative point of view. I`m not a Republican. I don`t hate Democrats. I just love our country. And everybody keeps running it and running it down.

I think the problem is we keep looking for solutions from Washington. There aren`t any solutions in Washington. The solutions come from you. Come from people that you`ve been watching. The last lady and people you`ve been watching all hour. People just deciding, I can make a difference. That`s what America is truly all about. Just you deciding, yes, I can make a difference.

Coming up, I`m going to introduce you to two teenagers who are recycling your old cell phones to make things easier for troops overseas. They decided they could make a difference. Don`t go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: All right. Welcome back to the "Real America" special holiday edition of the GLENN BECK program.

We hear lots of stories about kids who screw up all the time. You see it in the news. But not nearly enough about the ones who do the right thing and think of others before themselves. The next story is about kids like that.

While most of their friends are talking on cell phones, they decided to recycle them. Now, normally, when it`s a recycling story, I hate it. This one I don`t, because along the way these kids found some needy soldiers and helped them hear the tender voice of home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECK (voice over): Brittany and Robbie Bergquist are typical teenagers. They have school, sports and friends that keep them busy. And, oh, yeah, they also run a nonprofit organization.

ROBBIE BERGQUIST, CELL PHONES FOR SOLDIERS: Brittany and I heard a story about a soldier who had run up about an $8,000 cell phone bill trying to call home. And so Brittany and I talked and we were like, we have got to help out this soldier. So we ran upstairs and got $21 out of our own piggybanks and started this organization.

BECK: And that`s when Cell Phones for Soldiers was born, conceived four years ago, when Brittany and Robbie were just 13 and 12 years old.

BRITTANY BERGQUIST, CELL PHONES FOR SOLDIERS: We did a little bit of research, talked to our cousins who are in the military, and tried to figure out ways to help the troops call home and realized that phone cards were the best way.

R. BERGQUIST: And we talked to our parents and we figured out that we could recycle phones. And so it`s just jumped into this huge business.

BECK: Soon their home was filled with unused cell phone and chargers.

R. BERGQUIST: We had about 40 or 50 boxes filled with phones. I mean, the boxes are huge themselves. And it really -- it did look like a mountain. It really did.

And we couldn`t get -- we couldn`t get to our piano. I know, I`m an avid piano player. I don`t play the piano.

BECK: They get $5 for each recycled phone which they use to purchase prepaid calling cards.

R. BERGQUIST: We know that on average, it`s around 20,000 to 30,000 phones per month. And it`s changing every month.

B. BERGQUIST: And in January, we became the largest cell phone recycler in the country. We passed Vernon and Sprint. We recycled about 160,000 phones that month.

BECK: So what started with 21 bucks out of a piggybank has grown to raise almost $1 million in donations and distribute more than 400,000 prepaid calling cards to our troops.

B. BERGQUIST: It is really incredible to think that at 12 and 13, we had the ability to start a program like Cell Phones for Soldiers that has impacted so many people`s lives.

BECK: Leave to it two kids with big ideas and big hearts to figure out something the rest of us couldn`t.

B. BERGQUIST: There are about 500 million used cell phones out in the country right now that are just lying around and nobody is doing anything with. And if we do get just half of those, we could make it so that the troops never have to pay for another phone call home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: All right. Here they are, these two incredible teens who started Cell Phones for Soldiers when they were 12 and 13 years old.

Now you guys are what, 16 and 17?

B. BERGQUIST: Exactly.

R. BERGQUIST: Yes.

BECK: And Brittany, you`re on vacation?

B. BERGQUIST: Yes.

BECK: I mean, Robbie, you just -- you don`t to go on vacation?

R. BERGQUIST: Well, I guess.

BECK: OK.

B. BERGQUIST: He gets...

(CROSSTALK)

BECK: Let me -- I just have to ask -- I have to ask this question. What the hell did your parents do right? I mean, really, what did you parents do that made you guys into, like, you know, non-animal teens?

B. BERGQUIST: Well, I think...

R. BERGQUIST: I think that just from the beginning, they instilled in us that, you know, we do have to help out others, and really other people do come before we do. So they -- right from the beginning when we saw someone who was on the street, they told us, you know, go give them a couple dollars, or when an ambulance went by they said, you know, cross your fingers, hope everyone is OK.

So, really, they said you need to care about other people before you care about yourselves. So when this story came up, it was really Brittany and I -- finally our big opportunity to help out someone who was really in need.

BECK: I am amazed by you guys.

Brittany, you actually just wrote a letter. You went to the AT&T Web site, right?

B. BERGQUIST: Yes.

BECK: And you, like, found a name and you`re like, I`m going to write to that guy. And it turned into a $500,000 donation from AT&T?

B. BERGQUIST: Yes. They have done so much for us since they became partners in Cell Phones for Soldiers. They`ve donated over, I think, $850,000 worth of phone cards to Cell Phones for Soldiers, which is absolutely amazing. And they have created co-branded phone cards for us, so it has Cell Phones for Soldiers and AT&T so we can send those over to the troops.

And they have been absolutely amazing. And they gave us scholarships for college. They have been incredible.

BECK: For you two?

B. BERGQUIST: Yes. They gave us...

BECK: What are you guys -- besides ruling the world, what do you guys want to do?

B. BERGQUIST: I have no idea yet. I think possibly media broadcasting.

BECK: Really?

B. BERGQUIST: It would be really fun to do that.

BECK: You come and intern for me any time. Anybody who has that kind of drive, anybody who can see something and move it, you come and intern for me any time.

Robbie, what do you want to do?

R. BERGQUIST: You know, I`m still trying to enjoy high school for what it is. I`m coming into my junior year.

BECK: Yes, me too.

R. BERGQUIST: So I`m still not really sure. I mean, I would love to -- I would love to, you know, maybe do some broadcasting as well, but more in the sports area. I love sports, so I think that would be a great area for me. But, you k now, I`m still trying to enjoy some of my teenage years.

BECK: You are welcome as well to intern.

Tell me about this, if you go to -- if you go to amazon.com, you get this little bag on any order, right? Is this still going on?

B. BERGQUIST: Yes, it is.

R. BERGQUIST: Yes.

BECK: OK. What is it?

B. BERGQUIST: Well, our recycling company has developed prepaid mailing envelopes that go out with every package from amazon.com, and also from a few different Web sites and organizations that are sending out packages as well all over the country. And people can take their used cell phones, put them into the envelope, just close it up. It has, like, sticky stuff already on it.

It`s really simple. And all you have to do is put it into the mailbox and it will get sent straight to our recycler.

BECK: And Robbie, you`re also seeing that AT&T is sponsoring concerts and they`re urging concert-goers to do the same thing?

R. BERGQUIST: Exactly. When people go to a concert, they -- there will be AT&T little areas where they can go and they can find out all about Cell Phones for Soldiers, and people who go to concerts can actually pick up these little mailing envelopes that they can send their cell phones through.

BECK: Listen, real quick, what are your parents` names?

B. BERGQUIST: Gale (ph) and Bob.

R. BERGQUIST: Bob and Gale (ph).

BECK: Bob and Gale (ph). I want you to say thank you to them right now. Right now.

B. BERGQUIST: Thanks, mom and dad.

BECK: Yes.

And Robbie...

R. BERGQUIST: Thanks, mom and dad.

BECK: And Robbie, you say whatever -- "You were right the whole time." Say it. "You were right, mom and dad, the whole time."

R. BERGQUIST: You were right the whole time.

BECK: All right. Good. Thanks a lot.

Coming up, the story of an inspirational soldier whose courage and spirit will shake you to the core. He is truly a hero walking among us, and his story is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: I have had the pleasure of meeting a lot of soldiers, and I really, truly believe that all of them -- they`re all heroes in their own right and they have all touched me in certain ways. But there`s one guy that I met. His life and story has inspired me more than any other.

His spirit and determination not only helped him conquer his own battle, but now he is helping to heal his brothers in arms as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECK (voice over): Once in a great while, you`ll hear somebody speak. And their story, their passion, their spirit sticks with you. For me, that person was Sergeant First Class Greg Stube.

SGT. 1ST CLASS GREG STUBE: I wanted to be a fighter. I wanted to be a shooter.

BECK: Stube is one of the Army`s elite. Part of the Special Forces that represents less than one percent of the Army Corps.

STUBE: The training is tough enough where you come through something together long before you reach the battlefield.

BECK: The intense training took him to the hills of Afghanistan.

STUBE: As we moved up the hill, an improvised explosive device went off and blew the vehicle up. It was excruciating, it was very painful.

I felt the fire burning me. I felt holes in my body. I felt -- I felt my right leg dangling and dragging behind me.

BECK: Stube`s wife Donna got the call that every military spouse dreads.

DONNA STUBE, WIFE OF SGT. 1ST TONIGHT CLASS GREG STUBE: I made up in my mind before I heard the next call that no matter what -- what it was, I just wanted him alive. I didn`t care if he was missing limbs. I just wanted him back.

BECK: Donna got her husband back, but Greg was unrecognizable. After spending more than a year in the hospital, Greg Stube was finally well enough to return home. He lost 70 percent of his intestines, but miraculously remains active duty. He now spreads his message of hope and help off the battlefield by helping other wounded soldiers.

G. STUBE: It`s worth it. Every bit of it is worth it. I don`t have a single regret.

People in uniform have left parts of their bodies and their lives on battlefields worldwide to protect this wonderful thing we know as freedom.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: I have to tell you, I am humbled that Greg Stube and I have become friends. He was at my July 4th party at my home.

He is a true American hero and so is his wife. They have sacrificed so much.

Earlier this year, I sat down with Sergeant Stube, and when we talked, he didn`t even talk about sacrifice. Instead, he again focused on his wife and the wives of our servicemen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

G. STUBE: I learned a big lesson through this, and that`s that our wives that stand behind us, particularly in the military. They don`t raise their right hand and swear in. They don`t take the oath to defend. They don`t get the sense of adventure to go on a mission and accomplish things in the defense of freedom. They stand by us and our decisions.

And in Donna`s case, she has served in a greater capacity than many in uniform have. I believe that. And the impact that these women have on our society, I think, is obvious in the World War II generation, to present.

And I saw changes in my own son. From the time I left to go into this combat mission until the time I was reacquainted with this little boy, he had changed in so many positive ways. And I was arrogant enough to think that my influence in his life would be the only thing that would make him strong and have him grow up right. I was wrong.

BECK: How long -- how long were you in the hospital? A year, right?

G. STUBE: I`ve been in and out of surgeries for over a year.

BECK: How many -- how many surgeries?

G. STUBE: I think 14 procedures.

BECK: So your son for much of his memory is you in a hospital. Is there - - as you go through, is there -- is there anything now that you are limited to? Is there anything that you can`t do with your son that you, growing up, always thought you would?

G. STUBE: I have to be careful about roughhousing with him. I still have some weak points and sensitive points. And I worry about the old gut because if it -- if it tears again, it`s a big problem.

BECK: Wow. And you -- is there anything now that has changed? Because you didn`t sign up.

And quite honestly, Greg, you know how much I respect you. And I respect the people who do what you do.

But I have to tell you something. I think you`re right on the money. The ones that are staying home -- he prepared for 19 years. You didn`t. He knew what he was getting in to. First of all, did you?

D. STUBE: In a way, yes. But I wouldn`t change anything that I`ve been through.

BECK: I think that the women of our military, they`re the ones home. So they`re the ones watching the crap spilling out of the television all the time. They`re the ones hearing the anti-propaganda. They`re hearing the, you know, people like Code Pink who are saying, "I support our troops" but then just ripping them all apart. And parking spaces in front of the - - you know, the recruiter`s station out of Berkeley, California.

You`re hearing all of that. You`re only hearing the bad news on television. I think that the -- I think people like you are at least as brave as your husband.

G. STUBE: And Glenn, even -- even in a day where we get bipartisan support -- across the board, it`s popular to support the troops right now. And even in a time like that, our wives are still in the shadow. They don`t get the credit.

The cameras get pointed at us. The thanks are given to us as the soldiers, the fighters. But we`re not the ones who are raising the children by ourselves back here at home, creating America`s tomorrow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: I`ll tell you that now that I have gotten to know the Stubes -- and like I said, they were over at my Fourth of July party this summer, and how many people on the set knew that they were even there? Most of them didn`t even know -- you know, the people that I work with every day didn`t know they were there because Greg and Donna and Gregory their son had to stay inside my house most of the time because Greg`s body doesn`t process heat as well, and he was very, very tired.

He has paid an enormous price, but you know what? He`s still not finished giving. This guy you`re going to hear a lot from in the coming months and years. An American hero. The Stube family.

Back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: You know, sometimes it`s so easy to get caught up in politics in the search for a new leader that we forget we already have one. And I don`t mean President Bush, I don`t mean members of Congress. I mean you. It`s we the people of this country who are our real strength and give me hope for tomorrow.

I was lucky enough to be asked to deliver that message in person recently to a giant crowd at America`s Freedom Festival in Utah. I wanted to share a little bit of that speech with you tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: We, as a nation, are facing tough times. Jeez, if you listen to me, you know. You`re like, Glenn, shut up about it. I get it.

Now that everybody is recognizing that the tough times are here, I bring you a new message. It`s not about the floods or the fires or the twisters in Kansas. It`s not about the stock market being down. It`s not about the gas, it`s not about oi being up 700 percent. It`s none of those.

It is that all is well. And we will make it as long as we look at ourselves and ask ourselves the question: Who are we?

In a time when America is begging for a leader. In a time when America is shouting out, "Where is the leader, when will he step forward?" I am here to tell you, you are the leader.

(APPLAUSE)

We cannot continue down buying into the lies that somehow or another this country isn`t a special place, that we aren`t a special people. We are the United States of America. We can solve any problem. Not in Washington. Here. here.

The answer never comes from Washington. We, the people, that`s the answer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: From New York, America, good night.

END