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Lou Dobbs Tonight

Salute to American Heroes

Aired May 31, 2004 - 18:00   ET

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

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


ANNOUNCER: This is special Memorial Day edition of LOU DOBBS TONIGHT. Sitting in for Lou Dobbs, Kitty Pilgrim.
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, in honor of Memorial Day, we salute our nation's heroes, the men and women serving in the armed forces, 130,000 in Iraq. Hundreds of thousands more are serving in some 120 countries around the world. Tonight, we honor the commitment and sacrifice of all the men and women who have served this country.

Many veterans face tremendous challenges after their military service is over. The size of the military has decreased to just a fraction of what it was during World War II. But there are nearly three million active duty service men and women and millions more veterans. They need and deserve support when their stores this country is complete. The main source of that support is often the Veterans Affairs Administration.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM (voice-over): There are an estimated 26 million veterans in the United States today, more than 10 percent of American adults. In World War II, there were 16 million service members, nine million during Vietnam, just two million during the first Gulf War. Today, there are 1.4 million active military personnel and 1.3 million in the reserves.

Nearly a third of all veterans are disabled. The median age is 57 years old. That means health care. The Veterans Administration, the second largest of the 15 Cabinet departments, has nearly 1,000 facilities, 218,000 employees and a $67 billion budget. Some say more money would help.

BILL BRADSHAW, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL VETERANS SERVICE: The budgeting process needs work. We believe that we need about $4 billion more than we had last year to take care of the current veterans that are enrolled already. Right now, I think the administration projected a 1.8 percent increase. Congress -- the House is playing with a $2.5 billion increase. We believe that that's short.

PILGRIM: Yet the veterans administration has been revamping. The $6 billion, six-year program the biggest overhaul in its history. A three-year study came up with a modernization plan. It was sorely needed. Most V.A. facilities are more than 50 years old. Consolidating some facilities has caused protests, but veterans give high marks with some improvement in the system. JOHN BRIEDEN III, NATIONAL COMMANDER, THE AMERICAN LEGION: The V.A. has transformed itself from a 20th century locked into the system that was there to a more modern medical system. It's not there, but it's transforming itself. A lot of the care is not being done in hospitals anymore, but it's being done in outpatient clinics that are closer to people, more access to people, more convenient to people. And I think that change is reaping a lot of benefits.

PILGRIM: Decisions on when and where to build reflect demographics shifts. Veterans are moving to the south and west. That is leaving the V.A. with vacant beds in the north and huge demand for care in the Sunbelt. For example, Las Vegas has one of the fastest growing veteran populations in the nation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: For the men and women who have served this country, Memorial Day is a chance to remember friends and fellow comrades who gave their lives serving the country.

General David Grange served this country all over the world for three decades. And I spoke with the general earlier.

I began by asking him what he is focused on this Memorial Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RETIRED BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The key thing is to remember to think about what the day stands for, May 30. Now, the day slips a little bit depending on the three-day weekend, according to the new law, but really the 30th of May is that day which honors those that have sacrificed, that gave the last full measure, their life, for their country.

Whether they or their parents or the American people supported or did not support that conflict, they did in fact give their life. And so it's to remember those that gave that sacrifice.

PILGRIM: You know, I've been going through that resume. You're the perfect person to talk to on this day. We talk to you quite a bit on this program, but I see you're with the Green Beret, you're with Delta Force, 30-year service in the Army, every place possible. It's impossible to go into. You have enormous perspective on what it's like to serve.

What do you feel about this day and what do you have to say to our veterans?

GRANGE: What happens is, you start to this day and even Veterans Day, but more so on this day because this -- Memorial Day is where people have died, your fallen comrades. And so you think back of your time in service with different units at different locations, whether it be Vietnam, whether it be in Granada, whether it be in Beirut or Desert Storm or the conflict right now, and you think about those that were your comrades in arms and what happened to them, why some died, why some didn't, why maybe you didn't in some very close situations. And then, did they in fact die in vain? Was it worth it or was it a waste? And so those things go through your mind as you're remembering this day and attending a service or just reading an article or thinking about what happened. It's very important to veterans. And I think all veterans that I know think about that the same way.

PILGRIM: General Grange, there's a lot of soul searching going on in this country right now because we are engaged in conflict. What do you think Americans can do here in the United States to show extra support to our troops overseas and how important to the troops is that?

GRANGE: Well, a couple things, Kitty.

First of all is that you want to have soldiers understand overseas that they are supported by the American people. That means more than anything else, that their will is there. And I think that that piece is critical to their morale and their ability to continue on with the mission. The other is that they know that people back here just don't look at this as a three-day weekend, a shopping spree, a cookout, that, in fact, there's people in harm's way still today and that their service, their duty is appreciated by their fellow Americans.

PILGRIM: Is there anything any one particular Memorial Day that stands out for you, whether you were serving at the time or you were here in the states? Is there any great moment where you just were particularly touched by the day?

GRANGE: You know, a lot of times on Memorial Day, I was not where there was a parade. I was -- or really actually a service at a cemetery or a service at a memorial site.

It was -- we were deployed, we were on a mission or we were training. But most recently, the foundation I'm a part of, we put up a carillon, a bell tower, in an American cemetery overseas every year in coordination with the American Veterans and with the American Battlefield Monuments Commission. And there's a service and that's on Memorial Day. And that just hits you very hard.

The older you get as a veteran, the more you look back on it. It's funny. You get the emotions, the sadness when it happens, but when you get older and you look back, it has more of an effect somehow. Maybe more things just race through your mind. And so these American cemeteries overseas, where we have our fellow citizens buried that gave their last full measure I think really hits you hard. And that's what I remember the most.

PILGRIM: Well, thank you so much for sharing it with us today and have a very nice holiday.

GRANGE: Same to you.

PILGRIM: Thank you very much, General Grange.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: There are over 130,000 American troops in Iraq. Many of those troops are reservists called up to serve this country in the war on terror. Others have chosen a career in the military service.

And tonight, two men share their very different experiences. We begin with a sergeant who serves as a cook in the Army's 3rd Infantry Division.

Casey Wian has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sergeant Kevin Hilton savors the little things -- picking his kids up at school, the rhythms of family life.

He's been to Granada, Kosovo, Bosnia, Hungary. But none kept him away as long as his mission in Kuwait, and Iraq.

SGT. 1ST CLASS KEVIN HILTON, U.S. ARMY: I deployed from Ft. Stewart the 21st of September for normal rotation to Kuwait and -- which was six months. And then, probably about a -- three, four days before that, deployment was supposed to end. We got word, Hey, get ready, because you're going to war.

WIAN: It would 11 months before the husband and father of three would return.

K. HILTON: It felt wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. I could explore every inch of my house. I didn't have to wait three hours in line to go to the PX. I could use my own bathroom. I have my own phone. TV. My own air conditioner.

WIAN: Hilton's wife, Tina, has her own reasons for being happy he's home.

TINA HILTON, WIFE: When your 6-year-old asks you if your daddy's still alive, I'm looking -- I'm glad I won't have to answer those questions anymore.

WIAN: Still, the transition can be challenging.

T. HILTON: There's these routines that you had with your children while he was gone, and now he's here and routines are changing. And it's like, OK, I wanted him here, but everything's changing so fast. And you're trying to keep up with it because you're trying to ease him back into your world.

WIAN: With the war and a homecoming behind them, the Hiltons now face another transition -- to civilian life.

K. HILTON: I'm going to retire, and then we're going to move to South Carolina. I'll get a little job. And I'll continue family life. T. HILTON: I have been a military dependent my entire life. I was born in an Army hospital, I went from being my dad's dependent to being my husband's dependent. I think I have two civilian friends, you know, that don't have anything to do with the military. Everything I know is based in the military.

WIAN: After 20 years in the army, Sergeant Hilton knows it's time to give back the time he's lost to his family.

K. HILTON: They can't take it from me again. I have done my service to my country. And, you know, I've had a lot of good experiences. And I'll just take this into the civilian world.

WIAN: Casey Wian, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Lieutenant Colonel Kirk Warner has a very different story to tell. He's a civilian lawyer who now has a Bronze Star for heroic service in Iraq. He's one of the thousands of American reservists who left work and family behind to fight for his country.

Casey Wian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WIAN (voice-over): Kirk Warner isn't your typical trial lawyer. Yes, there's the nice office, the big home in the Raleigh, North Carolina, but he's also a lieutenant colonel in the army Reserve who in October returned from eight months in Iraq. As a member of the Judge Advocate General Corps he set up a court system, interrogated some of the high value Iraqis depicted on playing cards and boarded and confiscated smuggler vessels.

LT. COL. KIRK WARNER, U.S. ARMY RESERVE: We were right where the action was, it was an absolutely remarkable experience for a bunch of civilians that do this part time. The adrenaline, action, accomplishment everything happening all at one time, it drives you through the whole time we were deployed.

WIAN: Once home, he took a week's vacation to reconnect with his wife.

DIANE WARNER, WIFE: When he was gone sometimes I would go in and smell his cologne just to know, just to make sure he was still with me.

WIAN: Then he returned to work.

WARNER: That was way too early. I was a total zombie. We didn't realize how fatigued we were.

WIAN: Warner says he was ineffective for weeks but was ready when it came time to go to trial.

WARNER: Unfortunately, I'm probably fearless going into a courtroom anymore because nothing could be as fearful as some of the things that we probably went through. I didn't know there was evil on this planet until you see some of the things that were going on there. We were in a position of dealing with the people that had their hands chopped off. I was also involved in the mass grave situation. When you see that type of devastation and what they have done through this regime, man, I'll tell you -- it just knocks you back.

WIAN: But there are more good memories.

WARNER: You see the results. And you see the kids smiling. You see the rest of the Iraqis giving you thumbs up. At least I think they are giving us thumbs up.

WIAN: Back home his office is filled with reminders of Iraq. Including marble from the Saddam Hussein palace and a model of Saddam next to one of John Wayne. Warner explains, quoting the movie "Green Berets."

WARNER: Out here, due process is a bullet. And you know, that's as good as you get for a litigator. That's why he's on the wall. He's my hero.

WIAN: And Lieutenant Colonel Warner is one of ours.

Casey Wian, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: When we return, the tremendous challenges facing this country's veterans. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi will be my guest.

Then, more than a half century later, honoring the veterans of World War II. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur has been at the forefront of that effort. And she will join me.

And American troops return home to a rousing welcome from a group of grateful strangers. We'll have that story and much more still to come.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The United States military is a volunteer force, 1.5 million men and women who choose to serve their country, not including more than a million reservists.

Now, tonight, the story of one Army private who chose to go above and beyond what the military asked of him.

Casey Wian has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Private Christopher Bowser joined the Army in March, 2002, motivated by 9/11 and family tradition. His mom is an inactive Army reserve major. Chris served in Korea for a year. Though guaranteed six months stateside after that, he instead signed a waiver, volunteering for Iraq.

PFC. CHRISTOPHER BOWSER, U.S. ARMY: I signed that waiver so I could go over and get with my guys and be there with them while they were at war instead of just hanging out back at the States, relaxing, while they're getting shot at. I wouldn't have felt right.

WIAN: In Iraq, Bowser was a gunner, standing atop a Humvee, manning a machine gun and grenade launcher. He'd been there just 19 day.

BOWSER: We were escorting a bunch of troops who were on foot. They were walking the street doing a patrol looking for anything suspicious.

WIAN: Bowser's leader saw a suspicious vehicle. He warned the others, but not in time.

BOWSER: And the next thing I know, I hear a big explosion, big, just, boom. And big flash of light. As the driver was getting out is when the grenade went off. It landed right by my feet. The blast broke both my legs and I got hit with about 30-some pieces of shrapnel.

So, I pushed myself on to the top of the truck so I can sort of sitting there with the legs in the gunner's spot and all of my legs are smoking. Just my pants are billowing smoke. And I was, like, oh God, this is bad.

WIAN: Private Bowser threw himself off the Humvee, landed on the ground unarmed and in shock. Fellow soldiers dragged him to safety as tracer bullets flew overhead aimed at the Iraqi attackers. Bowser remembers no pain until medical help arrived.

BOWSER: That hurts a lot.

WIAN: Two months and three major surgeries later, he's in physical therapy, making remarkable progress. Doctors said it would be at least a year before he'd walk normally. But he's already donated his walker to a medical facility near his Indiana home.

Now back at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Bowser says the experience hasn't changed him, except for one thing.

BOWSER: I notice the American flag that I would have been like down the street and see a couple of houses. Now I see every flag. The whole -- the patriotism thing really stands out.

WIAN: As does Private Bowser.

Casey Wian, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Tonight's thought is on the true meaning of heroism: "By hero, we tend to mean a heightened man who, more than other men, possesses qualities of courage, loyalty, resourcefulness, charisma and, above all, selflessness. He's an example of right behavior, the sort of man who risks his life to protect his life to protect his society's value, sacrificing his personal needs for those of the community." Those are the words of American educator Paul Zweig.

When we return, Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi will join us. He says he has a plan to bring veterans health care into the 21st century. We'll hear how he plans to accomplish that.

And a unique charity that makes it easier for soldiers wounded in combat to feel at home in their own homes. We'll have that story coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced the most sweeping overhaul of the veterans' health care in half a century. Now, the plan will cost as much as $7 billion over the next seven years.

Earlier, I spoke with Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi. I began by asking him about what he hopes to accomplish with this massive reorganization.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANTHONY PRINCIPI, VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY: Well, I want to bring the V.A. health care system into the 21st century. Many of our facilities across America were built at a different time in health care delivery.

We have facilities dating back to after the Civil War, 1895, after World War I, another major expansion, after World War II. And we know that health care has changed so dramatically in America. And we need to conform our system to build a blueprint to ensure that the 21st century veterans, the 25 million veterans who are alive today are being seen in facilities that are modernized for 21st century medicine.

And it also takes into account the demographics of our veteran population. They're aging, as we know, and they're moving, as the rest of the American population, from east to west, north to south. So the V.A. needs to transition with them.

PILGRIM: You did a very important three-year study on just what was needed. What sparked that study and what did you conclude at the end of it?

PRINCIPI: Well, the study was sparked by a General Accounting Office report to the Congress that indicated the V.A. was wasting $1 million every day, every year to maintain excess capacity, buildings that were no longer used, large tracts of land that were once Army posts that became V.A. tuberculosis hospitals and V.A. long-term psychiatric hospitals when we had 2,000 patients in them, and today we may have 100 or 150, and the fact that we needed to use that money to provide modern health care, to purchase the technology, to bring on the doctors and the nurses, and to build new clinics closer to the veterans' homes.

So it was that study that was the genesis, Kitty, for this blueprint.

PILGRIM: You have two sons in the service. Your wife was a Navy nurse. You were in Vietnam. You certainly know the issues related to veterans and Veterans Affairs. What is the most important thing that you think going forward to give them the support that they need after so unselfishly dedicating their lives to this country?

PRINCIPI: Well, clearly, you know, first, we owe them a very, very big thank you.

And we need to continually remind them how grateful we are as Americans for the freedoms we enjoy and to transform those words into meaningful benefits, the right benefits for them, to make sure we have the health care system for an aging veteran population way out in front of the general American general population, so that we have the facilities to treat them, but also for the younger generation, the men and women who are coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, some with grievous bodily wounds, to ensure that we're going to be able to treat them and that they will have seamless access into the V.A. health care system.

And I think very importantly, it's education to ensure that they have the opportunity to have the key to the door to a successful life, to give every man, woman on active duty the educational benefits they need to be successful in life.

PILGRIM: Are you satisfied with the level of educational support that's going on? After all, after World War I, it used to cover the cost of pretty much any college degree. Now there's some limits on it.

PRINCIPI: That's correct.

I believe that was the greatest piece of legislation or one of the greatest pieces of legislation in the history of our Republic, because it built modern middle class and modern America. And I believe the advances we've made to the current G.I. Bill, so that now veterans can receive up to around $1,000 a month to go to school, they can attend courses taught by corporations if they want to go into computing and get the entire training package paid for, I think we've made some very positive changes.

It's not the same as the one after World War I, where you can go to any school in America and get all tuition paid and a small stipend, but we've come a long way in the past 3 1/2 years.

PILGRIM: All right, thanks very much for the efforts in supporting our veterans. And thank you for joining us today.

Anthony Principi, secretary of Veterans Affairs, thank you.

PRINCIPI: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Sergeant Peter Damon was wounded in action in Iraq. He is recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center after losing both his arms in combat. Thanks to a unique organization, he will return to a brand new home that will be fully equipped to meet his special needs.

Bill Tucker reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a fund- raiser for Homes For Our Troops. It is a group founded by John Gonsalves, a man who is not a vet but who is driven by a sense of duty.

JOHN GONSALVES, HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS: Homes For Our Troops is not a left thing. It is not a right thing. It's the right thing to do for these soldiers. We have a responsibility as Americans to do more than is being done now.

TUCKER: John is a construction supervisor. He's persuaded developers to donate land, contractors to donate material and tradesmen to donate their time. Sergeant Peter Damon will be the first vet to receive a home. He's a double amputee with a wife and two children.

SGT. PETER DAMON, ARMY NATIONAL GUARD: The words can't express how grateful I am to be a part of this and be the first recipient of this great organization.

TUCKER: The homes will be built to meet the needs of disabled veterans as Sergeant Damon explained on this walk through his mother's house.

DAMON: Certain cabinets handles I wouldn't be able to use. I think there's over 200 amputees coming back from this war and a lot of guys could use something like this.

TUCKER: Homes For Our Troops is a grassroots organization.

GONSALVES: All the tickets, programs and promotional materials that have gone on over town, all the kids at the schools did it. It was their project they put together.

TUCKER: That's right. The local high schools got in on the action, too. This fund-raiser netted roughly $6,000, which was then matched by a local bank. Many donations come by mail. And reveal a wealth of character.

GONSALVES: "I'm 79 years old and have very little savings left. I do hope many others will match my amount for you. You are a true hero." She sent $12.

TUCKER: Letters like that come from all across the country.

GONSALVES: A whole bunch from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Tennessee.

TUCKER: Homes For Our Troops has raised more than $120,000 so far. That's without any corporate sponsorship which would help it meet its goal of expanding nationally.

Bill Tucker, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: For more information on Homes For Our Troops, visit their Web site at HomesForOurTroops.org.

When we return, a stunning tribute to World War II 60 years later. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur was instrumental in making the memorial a reality and she will join us.

And honoring a remarkable group of veterans who were forever changed by their service to this country. We'll have their story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The World War II memorial was dedicated this weekend in our nation's capital. The memorial is the first to honor all of the men and women who served in World War II.

Memories of that conflict live on in its four million veterans whose numbers are dwindling, but whose recollections remain strong.

Brian Todd has one soldier's story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At the center of America's most famous concourse, a long-awaited unveiling.

These archways, columns and fountains seem a natural fit to the landscape, a serene, dignified tribute to the conflict that disrupted, then defined a century.

(on camera) Just a couple of miles away, there's another kind of World War II memorial, one that few people know about, here in the forgotten corner of Washington, on the grounds where Abraham Lincoln spent his summers.

It's now called the Armed Forces Retirement Home, and it's a living, breathing testament to sacrifice.

(voice-over) Take a walk with Emil Byke on these grounds and it hits you, this is a rare opportunity to hear a firsthand account of the war from one of its remaining survivors.

Walk with him at Andzio Beach (ph) in Italy 60 years ago. You find yourself with a young soldier who would charge through anything, through withering fire to set up an observation post for his 3rd Infantry Division. He takes a chestful of mortar shrapnel for that, gets a Silver Star and a Purple Heart -- oh, and rejoins his unit the same day.

EMIL BYKE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Never had a break.

TODD: More than a year later the Nazis still can't stop him, not with antitank mines, small arms fire and the bomb they placed on the bridge that Emil Byke needs to capture.

BYKE: I saved a bridge and got the corps -- the corps moved over the bridge.

TODD: And those men go on to capture two crucial German towns.

Through it all, Emil Byke fights his way through North Africa, Italy, France and Germany. Wins two Bronze Stars, three Silver Stars, a Purple Heart and some perspective.

BYKE: We're together. Your friend, you're buddy-buddy. You've got to be buddy-buddy. You rely on him and he relies on you for protection, you know?

TODD: Perspective that so many-year-olds are learning again, firsthand, all these years later.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: My next guest was an instrumental part of the effort to create a World War II memorial. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur filed a bill to create the memorial in 1987.

Now, 17 years later, it is a stunning tribute to all who served in World War II.

I spoke with Congresswoman Kaptur earlier and began by asking her how this effort began.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REP. MARCY KAPTUR (D), OHIO: In 1987, I was at an event here in our congressional district, the Ninth District of Ohio, a township trustees' annual meeting in Lucas County just outside Toledo.

And a voice boomed at me across this township trustees' annual meeting saying, "Congresswoman Kaptur, why is there no World War II memorial in Washington where I can take my grandchildren?"

And I peered into the crowd, trying to pick out the voice, and all of a sudden I saw this man standing over on the other side of the room, feet firmly planted, churlish grin, kind of, and twinkling eyes under his glasses, and I said, "Well, sir, I think there is."

He goes, "Oh, yes? What is it?"

And I said, "Well, I think it's Iwo Jima."

And he said, "Wrong. That is to one service and one campaign."

PILGRIM: So now we have a beautiful memorial that you managed to muscle through, and I'd like to, actually, our viewers to take a look at it as we talk. It is absolutely spectacular.

A lot of controversy in picking the site. Tell us a little bit about that and why you think it's perfectly situated now.

KAPTUR: It's perfectly situated because its location between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial represents its placement as the greatest achievement of the 20th Century, and that is the victory of liberty over tyranny in a just war by the World War II generation.

And if you look at the Washington monument as symbolic of the founding of the republic in the 18th Century and the Lincoln Memorial, the preservation of the union in the 19th, this then, sitting between them, brings our entire history together at one point on the mall.

PILGRIM: You feel very strongly about this. You have family, but also bring this home to you. Tell us a little bit about that.

You've called this group, the World War II veterans, the most unselfish generation America has ever known. How is it personally related to you?

KAPTUR: Well, our entire family was affected by the war. Our uncle, Stanley Rodowsky, our mother's youngest brother, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, three Bronze Stars, Army engineer, shelled, short of hearing his entire life as a result of that. Never talked about it very much, just a beautiful, beloved uncle.

The other uncle on Mom's side, Anthony Rodowsky, in the office of strategic searches and a parachutist, behind enemy lines in the Pacific, China Burma, India, contracting malaria and knifed in a foxhole.

I remember as a young child his telling me stories and both of them giving war medals to me. I was very affected by that as a youngster, and yet it was the most unselfish generation. They never asked anything for themselves. They even hardly talked about it.

PILGRIM: It's true.

KAPTUR: ... very special moments.

PILGRIM: Many of our viewers, I'm sure, have family stories. And the just sort of reticence to actually describe hardship among this group is really, really remarkable.

There's an incredibly beautiful quote, and I'd like to read it. It says, "Americans came to liberate, not to conquer, to restore freedom and to end tyranny." And that's written around monument.

It's a beautiful testimony to the generation. It also is a little bit reminiscent of the mission today.

Tell me a little bit about the veterans who were invited to be opening ceremony?

KAPTUR: Of the 16 million who fought, four million remain. The Baby Boom generation did this for them. They obviously would not do it for themselves.

So we say to them, to their kin, to their survivors, to those who served on the home front, a grateful nation does remember, and so long as there shall be a United States of America their service and their sacrifice will not be forgotten.

PILGRIM: Congresswoman Kaptur, let's our viewers have the moment of experiencing to me what it's standing right there. Describe to me what it's like to be at this memorial.

KAPTUR: This memorial was designed to be a gathering place for America.

It is a plaza with major waterfalls and water fountains. It sounds like Niagara Falls. When you're down on the site, the sound of the water blurs all other sounds in the region. And you're in central Washington, but you really don't know it.

The water cascades over the waterfalls that are there near the wall of remembrance with all of the gold stars in memory of those who lost their lives.

And you look across these huge fountains and falls, and there are chairs. It's actually built into the side of the marble. You can sit on the plaza as many people do.

And you look out at each of the columns, representing the states and the territories who fought. You see the quotes from the great leaders of the time, reminding us of the nature of the sacrifice.

And you look at the eagles, the massive bronze eagles in the victory arches and the laurel wreaths. They're just simply exquisite.

And it has a very respectful, understated presence as a memorial. I don't think that it can be criticized in any way for being overblown. It's an unusual memorial in that people feel welcome there as the World War II generation would want them to be.

PILGRIM: Well, thank you so much for being so instrumental in bringing it to us and also helping us share it today. Thank you very much, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Another remarkable group of veterans sacrificed greatly to serve this country. Now a tremendous effort is under way to recognize their sacrifice.

Veterans from all across the country recently gathered to raise money to build a memorial worthy of millions of disabled veterans.

Bill Tucker reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The cost of war is not measured only by the dead as these men bear witness. Men like Leslie Brown, severely beaten as a prisoner of war.

LESLIE BROWN, U.S. ARMY (RET.): I was beaten to an inch of my life. I lost half of my liver of that beating.

TUCKER: Sergeant Tyler Hall, who suffered a punctured lung, a broken back and has a face that's built on a skeleton of titanium after every bone in it was broken.

TYLER HALL, U.S. ARMY, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: They planted some artillery rounds in the ground and blew them up from underneath our vehicle.

IAN LENNON, U.S. MARINE CORPS, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I was over in Kuwait and the fuel tank exploded. And it got my face and my arms.

VICTOR THIEBEAULT, U.S. ARMY, AFGHANISTAN WAR VETERANS: I lost four of my fingers. My thumb. Pointer, half my middle finger and my ring finger.

TUCKER: Men who learned to reject self-pity and who radiate honor.

BOBBY BARRERA, U.S. MARINE CORPS, VIETNAM VETERAN: They feel like a hero (ph). Those that are recognized in events such as this represent thousands and thousands of others who served quietly, never asked for anything, never complained about anything.

CHAD COLLEY, U.S. ARMY, VIETNAM VETERAN: I'm a triple amputee. My left arm is off beyond the elbow. I have no left leg or hip whatsoever. My right leg is nine inches long, and fortunately the rest of me is whole.

Some of the stuff that happens in life is not good, but it doesn't mean you have to be defined by it.

JEREMY FELDBUSCH, U.S. ARMY, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I am definitely honored that I was a soldier for this country and honored to do what I had done. And I lost my vision doing what I was doing. I would have given my life doing what I was doing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're shoulder to shoulder with heroes here.

TUCKER: And with people who want them recognized.

ROSS PEROT, BUSINESSMAN: For those who fought and almost died, freedom has a taste the protected will never know.

LOIS POPE, DISABLED VETERAN'S WIFE, MEMORIAL FOUNDATION: So many Americans who are unaware of the sacrifices that they -- they gave for our democracy and freedom.

ANTHONY PRINCIPI, SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS: We have the greatest fighting force, and they're very dedicated. They're very courageous. And it's just our responsibility to care for them when they come home.

GARY SINISE, ACTOR: One of the things we learned from Vietnam is that you support the troops, no matter who sends them out and no matter where they go.

TUCKER: To care and honor those who served.

Bill Tucker, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Coming up, a retired general is more active than ever when it comes to supporting military families. We'll have his inspiring story when we return.

But as we go to break, here are some thoughts from some of the visitors to the World War II memorial.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Veterans should be the kings of our society, I think. I mean, they really deserve all honor, all praise that we can give them. I mean, they put their life on the line on a day-to- day basis for us, and they deserve everything we can give them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I walked into this place. I could just feel the spirit of all of the men and women who fought in that war. My father fought in that war, and thank God he came back safe.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We can never repay the sacrifice that they made. And that's the truth. Because the only way you can repay it is to live out the ideals that they lived for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: For hundreds of thousands of military families, the USO is an invaluable source of help and support.

Now, there are more than 12,000 USO volunteers all over the world, working hard for the troops and their families. But among those volunteers, one man's dedication stands out.

Jen Rogers has the story of Michael Teilmann.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEN ROGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is probably what comes to mind when you think of the USO: stars like Bruce Willis, Mariah Carey and Robin Williams, entertaining troops around the globe. ROBIN WILLIAMS, COMEDIAN: Good morning, Bagram!

ROGERS: While big names get the cheers, it's the USO's smaller programs that may make the biggest difference.

The 63-year-old nonprofit offers childcare, an emergency travel fund and over 120 centers that are safe havens for military men and women all over the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a place to relax. I mean, that just eases your mind so you're not thinking about training. I really couldn't picture what I'd didn't have a USO.

ROGERS: It's a sentiment echoed over and over again by members of the armed forces.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like a home away from home for me.

ROGERS: Since 9/11, military deployments have increased substantially, putting pressure on the USO to respond, as well.

MICHAEL TEILMANN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THE BOB HOPE USO AT LAX: When I first joined the board of the USO I would say, "Gee, you know, you guys are only open two or three days a week down there and only for several hours a day. And I think you ought to do this, and I think you ought to do and the other."

And pretty soon I got a call from one of the boys who said, "You talk a good game, Teilmann. Why don't you go out and do something about it?"

ROGERS: So he did. Under retired Brigadier General Michael Teilmann's management, the USO center at Los Angeles International Airport expanded its hours to seven days a week, 18 hours a day.

TEILMANN: Where are you headed off to?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For the Air Force base, Texas.

ROGERS: Keeping this USO running is just Teilmann's day job. He also moonlights as a producer for USO events overseas.

TEILMANN: We hit the bases, and the guys and gals when they're in there in their work space and they're out in the field or wherever and all of a sudden they see this group of very famous people coming by, it's a great morale booster.

ROGERS: Teilmann has one day off a week, and he says he needs it for his other passion, the American Volunteer Reserve, an organization he created to get retired military personnel back into uniform.

TEILMANN: Seventeen-hundred veterans are dying each and every day, and the armed forces are only able to provide military funerals for a small portion of those.

So we are -- that's one of our principle missions, is to find the soldiers to do the honors details.

And since 9/11 we realize that homeland security is a major, major program. It's something we've got to support.

ROGERS: Supporting it all leaves Teilmann with a full plate, but it's one other volunteers say he can easily handle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's his personality. He's very upbeat, always a smile, very energetic, just that sort of positive outlook that he can do it. He can do it.

ROGERS: For Teilmann, it's a way to stay active without being on active duty.

TEILMANN: I just enjoy being able to still contribute at my advanced age!

ROGERS: And these young guys seem pretty grateful for that contribution.

Jen Rogers, CNN financial news, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Coming up, we'll have some of your thoughts on the troops and the story of a very special homecoming for a group of soldiers. We'll have that and a great deal more still ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: Now for a look at some of your e-mails on the troops.

Jack Aguirre writes, "We are at war and our troops need our support. The issue of Iraqi is being twisted for political reasons. I support our troops and our country."

Roger Crane from Spokane, Washington, writes, "Our troops are giving their lives to our country, and I'm sure as I write this e-mail to you they are all going through very tough times that we here at home do not understand.

Kathy from Iowa writes, "Many Americans don't like our president's policies, but right or wrong we need to support our troops. We need to stand together, to fight together. We need to support our troops together, no matter what the rest of the world thinks."

And Tony Medrick of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma writes, "We get a nonstop feed of gloom and doom, but we don't hear about the heroes, the incredibly brave G.I.s who honorably do their duty, the ones our grandparents would have carried on their shoulders down Fifth Avenue."

We appreciate you sharing your thoughts with us. E-mail us at LouDobbs@CNN.com. Still ahead, American troops are greeted with a hearty welcome home from a group of giving strangers. We'll continue in a moment. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: In the past year nearly 100,000 troops have landed in Bangor, Maine, after serving this country in wartime.

As those troops set foot on American soil for the first time in many months, they are greeted by a warm welcome and a thank you from some of the many strangers grateful for their service.

Frank Buckley has the story from Bangor, Maine.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The planes pull up in Bangor Maine to refuel.

For the soldiers, it's the first time their boots are on the ground in America on their way home from war.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome back.

BUCKLEY: Every time it's a celebration.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome back to the states.

BUCKLEY: The Maynors (ph) are strangers to these Marines, but troop greeters like Elaine Greene and Joanne Miller say it's their duty to say thanks.

ELAINE GREENE, MAINE TROOP GREETER: He's why we're here. They deserve to have this country telling them how much they care.

BUCKLEY: It's enough to make a tough as nails Marine major with 19 years in the corps choke up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've just never really had a welcome home.

BUCKLEY: A local cell phone company donates phones in minutes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love you, mom. I miss you.

BUCKLEY: The greeters, many of them veterans themselves, trade stories with the troops or just listen.

For Donna Sorkin, it's a chance to be mom. She's got a son, that little boy in the picture, Chris, greeting a soldier. That was in 1991. Today, Chris is a soldier himself, in Iraq.

Being a surrogate mother for the other soldiers helps Sorkin get through it.

DONNA SORKIN, MARINE TROOP GREETER: When their mother can't be here when they first set foot on U.S. soil, it's nice to be here and be a mother for awhile.

BUCKLEY (on camera): The troop greetings began here in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm. A year ago they resumed. Since then, more than 460 planes and 82,000 U.S. service members have been greeted in Bangor, Maine.

(voice-over) And at the head of the line for each flight that passes through, 82-year-old Bill Knight.

BILL KNIGHT, MARINE TROOP GREETER: Welcome home. Welcome home. Welcome home.

BUCKLEY: Knight was Army Air Corps during World War II. Later he was Navy.

Hours before each plane comes in...

KNIGHT: That plane will be in at 2:15 today.

BUCKLEY: ... Mr. Knight works the phones to get the greeters to the airports. He's determined to prevent what happened to some soldiers of an unpopular war called Vietnam.

KNIGHT: The only thing I would rather be doing, is I'd rather be back in the service doing my time with these boys.

BUCKLEY: And occasionally one of these boys sees, not a stranger's face, but the mom who lived across the street when he was a kid.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't believe this.

TUCKER: Sergeant First Class John LeClair was welcomed home by Dee Winthrop Denny. Dee still lives in Maine. In some ways, so does John.

SGT. JOHN LECLAIR, WITH MOUNTAIN DIVISION: I'm proud to be here from here, everywhere I go. I'm from Maine, even though I've lived around the world.

BUCKLEY: For most of the soldiers, though, Maine is just a refueling stop.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just a few more hours. Just a few more hours.

BUCKLEY: They're headed home, Maine, a memory of war.

Frank Buckley, CNN, Bangor, Maine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: That's our show for the tonight. We thank you for being with us and we hope you had a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend. For all of us here, good night from New York.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired May 31, 2004 - 18:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: This is special Memorial Day edition of LOU DOBBS TONIGHT. Sitting in for Lou Dobbs, Kitty Pilgrim.
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, in honor of Memorial Day, we salute our nation's heroes, the men and women serving in the armed forces, 130,000 in Iraq. Hundreds of thousands more are serving in some 120 countries around the world. Tonight, we honor the commitment and sacrifice of all the men and women who have served this country.

Many veterans face tremendous challenges after their military service is over. The size of the military has decreased to just a fraction of what it was during World War II. But there are nearly three million active duty service men and women and millions more veterans. They need and deserve support when their stores this country is complete. The main source of that support is often the Veterans Affairs Administration.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM (voice-over): There are an estimated 26 million veterans in the United States today, more than 10 percent of American adults. In World War II, there were 16 million service members, nine million during Vietnam, just two million during the first Gulf War. Today, there are 1.4 million active military personnel and 1.3 million in the reserves.

Nearly a third of all veterans are disabled. The median age is 57 years old. That means health care. The Veterans Administration, the second largest of the 15 Cabinet departments, has nearly 1,000 facilities, 218,000 employees and a $67 billion budget. Some say more money would help.

BILL BRADSHAW, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL VETERANS SERVICE: The budgeting process needs work. We believe that we need about $4 billion more than we had last year to take care of the current veterans that are enrolled already. Right now, I think the administration projected a 1.8 percent increase. Congress -- the House is playing with a $2.5 billion increase. We believe that that's short.

PILGRIM: Yet the veterans administration has been revamping. The $6 billion, six-year program the biggest overhaul in its history. A three-year study came up with a modernization plan. It was sorely needed. Most V.A. facilities are more than 50 years old. Consolidating some facilities has caused protests, but veterans give high marks with some improvement in the system. JOHN BRIEDEN III, NATIONAL COMMANDER, THE AMERICAN LEGION: The V.A. has transformed itself from a 20th century locked into the system that was there to a more modern medical system. It's not there, but it's transforming itself. A lot of the care is not being done in hospitals anymore, but it's being done in outpatient clinics that are closer to people, more access to people, more convenient to people. And I think that change is reaping a lot of benefits.

PILGRIM: Decisions on when and where to build reflect demographics shifts. Veterans are moving to the south and west. That is leaving the V.A. with vacant beds in the north and huge demand for care in the Sunbelt. For example, Las Vegas has one of the fastest growing veteran populations in the nation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: For the men and women who have served this country, Memorial Day is a chance to remember friends and fellow comrades who gave their lives serving the country.

General David Grange served this country all over the world for three decades. And I spoke with the general earlier.

I began by asking him what he is focused on this Memorial Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RETIRED BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The key thing is to remember to think about what the day stands for, May 30. Now, the day slips a little bit depending on the three-day weekend, according to the new law, but really the 30th of May is that day which honors those that have sacrificed, that gave the last full measure, their life, for their country.

Whether they or their parents or the American people supported or did not support that conflict, they did in fact give their life. And so it's to remember those that gave that sacrifice.

PILGRIM: You know, I've been going through that resume. You're the perfect person to talk to on this day. We talk to you quite a bit on this program, but I see you're with the Green Beret, you're with Delta Force, 30-year service in the Army, every place possible. It's impossible to go into. You have enormous perspective on what it's like to serve.

What do you feel about this day and what do you have to say to our veterans?

GRANGE: What happens is, you start to this day and even Veterans Day, but more so on this day because this -- Memorial Day is where people have died, your fallen comrades. And so you think back of your time in service with different units at different locations, whether it be Vietnam, whether it be in Granada, whether it be in Beirut or Desert Storm or the conflict right now, and you think about those that were your comrades in arms and what happened to them, why some died, why some didn't, why maybe you didn't in some very close situations. And then, did they in fact die in vain? Was it worth it or was it a waste? And so those things go through your mind as you're remembering this day and attending a service or just reading an article or thinking about what happened. It's very important to veterans. And I think all veterans that I know think about that the same way.

PILGRIM: General Grange, there's a lot of soul searching going on in this country right now because we are engaged in conflict. What do you think Americans can do here in the United States to show extra support to our troops overseas and how important to the troops is that?

GRANGE: Well, a couple things, Kitty.

First of all is that you want to have soldiers understand overseas that they are supported by the American people. That means more than anything else, that their will is there. And I think that that piece is critical to their morale and their ability to continue on with the mission. The other is that they know that people back here just don't look at this as a three-day weekend, a shopping spree, a cookout, that, in fact, there's people in harm's way still today and that their service, their duty is appreciated by their fellow Americans.

PILGRIM: Is there anything any one particular Memorial Day that stands out for you, whether you were serving at the time or you were here in the states? Is there any great moment where you just were particularly touched by the day?

GRANGE: You know, a lot of times on Memorial Day, I was not where there was a parade. I was -- or really actually a service at a cemetery or a service at a memorial site.

It was -- we were deployed, we were on a mission or we were training. But most recently, the foundation I'm a part of, we put up a carillon, a bell tower, in an American cemetery overseas every year in coordination with the American Veterans and with the American Battlefield Monuments Commission. And there's a service and that's on Memorial Day. And that just hits you very hard.

The older you get as a veteran, the more you look back on it. It's funny. You get the emotions, the sadness when it happens, but when you get older and you look back, it has more of an effect somehow. Maybe more things just race through your mind. And so these American cemeteries overseas, where we have our fellow citizens buried that gave their last full measure I think really hits you hard. And that's what I remember the most.

PILGRIM: Well, thank you so much for sharing it with us today and have a very nice holiday.

GRANGE: Same to you.

PILGRIM: Thank you very much, General Grange.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: There are over 130,000 American troops in Iraq. Many of those troops are reservists called up to serve this country in the war on terror. Others have chosen a career in the military service.

And tonight, two men share their very different experiences. We begin with a sergeant who serves as a cook in the Army's 3rd Infantry Division.

Casey Wian has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sergeant Kevin Hilton savors the little things -- picking his kids up at school, the rhythms of family life.

He's been to Granada, Kosovo, Bosnia, Hungary. But none kept him away as long as his mission in Kuwait, and Iraq.

SGT. 1ST CLASS KEVIN HILTON, U.S. ARMY: I deployed from Ft. Stewart the 21st of September for normal rotation to Kuwait and -- which was six months. And then, probably about a -- three, four days before that, deployment was supposed to end. We got word, Hey, get ready, because you're going to war.

WIAN: It would 11 months before the husband and father of three would return.

K. HILTON: It felt wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. I could explore every inch of my house. I didn't have to wait three hours in line to go to the PX. I could use my own bathroom. I have my own phone. TV. My own air conditioner.

WIAN: Hilton's wife, Tina, has her own reasons for being happy he's home.

TINA HILTON, WIFE: When your 6-year-old asks you if your daddy's still alive, I'm looking -- I'm glad I won't have to answer those questions anymore.

WIAN: Still, the transition can be challenging.

T. HILTON: There's these routines that you had with your children while he was gone, and now he's here and routines are changing. And it's like, OK, I wanted him here, but everything's changing so fast. And you're trying to keep up with it because you're trying to ease him back into your world.

WIAN: With the war and a homecoming behind them, the Hiltons now face another transition -- to civilian life.

K. HILTON: I'm going to retire, and then we're going to move to South Carolina. I'll get a little job. And I'll continue family life. T. HILTON: I have been a military dependent my entire life. I was born in an Army hospital, I went from being my dad's dependent to being my husband's dependent. I think I have two civilian friends, you know, that don't have anything to do with the military. Everything I know is based in the military.

WIAN: After 20 years in the army, Sergeant Hilton knows it's time to give back the time he's lost to his family.

K. HILTON: They can't take it from me again. I have done my service to my country. And, you know, I've had a lot of good experiences. And I'll just take this into the civilian world.

WIAN: Casey Wian, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Lieutenant Colonel Kirk Warner has a very different story to tell. He's a civilian lawyer who now has a Bronze Star for heroic service in Iraq. He's one of the thousands of American reservists who left work and family behind to fight for his country.

Casey Wian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WIAN (voice-over): Kirk Warner isn't your typical trial lawyer. Yes, there's the nice office, the big home in the Raleigh, North Carolina, but he's also a lieutenant colonel in the army Reserve who in October returned from eight months in Iraq. As a member of the Judge Advocate General Corps he set up a court system, interrogated some of the high value Iraqis depicted on playing cards and boarded and confiscated smuggler vessels.

LT. COL. KIRK WARNER, U.S. ARMY RESERVE: We were right where the action was, it was an absolutely remarkable experience for a bunch of civilians that do this part time. The adrenaline, action, accomplishment everything happening all at one time, it drives you through the whole time we were deployed.

WIAN: Once home, he took a week's vacation to reconnect with his wife.

DIANE WARNER, WIFE: When he was gone sometimes I would go in and smell his cologne just to know, just to make sure he was still with me.

WIAN: Then he returned to work.

WARNER: That was way too early. I was a total zombie. We didn't realize how fatigued we were.

WIAN: Warner says he was ineffective for weeks but was ready when it came time to go to trial.

WARNER: Unfortunately, I'm probably fearless going into a courtroom anymore because nothing could be as fearful as some of the things that we probably went through. I didn't know there was evil on this planet until you see some of the things that were going on there. We were in a position of dealing with the people that had their hands chopped off. I was also involved in the mass grave situation. When you see that type of devastation and what they have done through this regime, man, I'll tell you -- it just knocks you back.

WIAN: But there are more good memories.

WARNER: You see the results. And you see the kids smiling. You see the rest of the Iraqis giving you thumbs up. At least I think they are giving us thumbs up.

WIAN: Back home his office is filled with reminders of Iraq. Including marble from the Saddam Hussein palace and a model of Saddam next to one of John Wayne. Warner explains, quoting the movie "Green Berets."

WARNER: Out here, due process is a bullet. And you know, that's as good as you get for a litigator. That's why he's on the wall. He's my hero.

WIAN: And Lieutenant Colonel Warner is one of ours.

Casey Wian, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: When we return, the tremendous challenges facing this country's veterans. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi will be my guest.

Then, more than a half century later, honoring the veterans of World War II. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur has been at the forefront of that effort. And she will join me.

And American troops return home to a rousing welcome from a group of grateful strangers. We'll have that story and much more still to come.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The United States military is a volunteer force, 1.5 million men and women who choose to serve their country, not including more than a million reservists.

Now, tonight, the story of one Army private who chose to go above and beyond what the military asked of him.

Casey Wian has his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Private Christopher Bowser joined the Army in March, 2002, motivated by 9/11 and family tradition. His mom is an inactive Army reserve major. Chris served in Korea for a year. Though guaranteed six months stateside after that, he instead signed a waiver, volunteering for Iraq.

PFC. CHRISTOPHER BOWSER, U.S. ARMY: I signed that waiver so I could go over and get with my guys and be there with them while they were at war instead of just hanging out back at the States, relaxing, while they're getting shot at. I wouldn't have felt right.

WIAN: In Iraq, Bowser was a gunner, standing atop a Humvee, manning a machine gun and grenade launcher. He'd been there just 19 day.

BOWSER: We were escorting a bunch of troops who were on foot. They were walking the street doing a patrol looking for anything suspicious.

WIAN: Bowser's leader saw a suspicious vehicle. He warned the others, but not in time.

BOWSER: And the next thing I know, I hear a big explosion, big, just, boom. And big flash of light. As the driver was getting out is when the grenade went off. It landed right by my feet. The blast broke both my legs and I got hit with about 30-some pieces of shrapnel.

So, I pushed myself on to the top of the truck so I can sort of sitting there with the legs in the gunner's spot and all of my legs are smoking. Just my pants are billowing smoke. And I was, like, oh God, this is bad.

WIAN: Private Bowser threw himself off the Humvee, landed on the ground unarmed and in shock. Fellow soldiers dragged him to safety as tracer bullets flew overhead aimed at the Iraqi attackers. Bowser remembers no pain until medical help arrived.

BOWSER: That hurts a lot.

WIAN: Two months and three major surgeries later, he's in physical therapy, making remarkable progress. Doctors said it would be at least a year before he'd walk normally. But he's already donated his walker to a medical facility near his Indiana home.

Now back at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Bowser says the experience hasn't changed him, except for one thing.

BOWSER: I notice the American flag that I would have been like down the street and see a couple of houses. Now I see every flag. The whole -- the patriotism thing really stands out.

WIAN: As does Private Bowser.

Casey Wian, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Tonight's thought is on the true meaning of heroism: "By hero, we tend to mean a heightened man who, more than other men, possesses qualities of courage, loyalty, resourcefulness, charisma and, above all, selflessness. He's an example of right behavior, the sort of man who risks his life to protect his life to protect his society's value, sacrificing his personal needs for those of the community." Those are the words of American educator Paul Zweig.

When we return, Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi will join us. He says he has a plan to bring veterans health care into the 21st century. We'll hear how he plans to accomplish that.

And a unique charity that makes it easier for soldiers wounded in combat to feel at home in their own homes. We'll have that story coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced the most sweeping overhaul of the veterans' health care in half a century. Now, the plan will cost as much as $7 billion over the next seven years.

Earlier, I spoke with Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi. I began by asking him about what he hopes to accomplish with this massive reorganization.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANTHONY PRINCIPI, VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY: Well, I want to bring the V.A. health care system into the 21st century. Many of our facilities across America were built at a different time in health care delivery.

We have facilities dating back to after the Civil War, 1895, after World War I, another major expansion, after World War II. And we know that health care has changed so dramatically in America. And we need to conform our system to build a blueprint to ensure that the 21st century veterans, the 25 million veterans who are alive today are being seen in facilities that are modernized for 21st century medicine.

And it also takes into account the demographics of our veteran population. They're aging, as we know, and they're moving, as the rest of the American population, from east to west, north to south. So the V.A. needs to transition with them.

PILGRIM: You did a very important three-year study on just what was needed. What sparked that study and what did you conclude at the end of it?

PRINCIPI: Well, the study was sparked by a General Accounting Office report to the Congress that indicated the V.A. was wasting $1 million every day, every year to maintain excess capacity, buildings that were no longer used, large tracts of land that were once Army posts that became V.A. tuberculosis hospitals and V.A. long-term psychiatric hospitals when we had 2,000 patients in them, and today we may have 100 or 150, and the fact that we needed to use that money to provide modern health care, to purchase the technology, to bring on the doctors and the nurses, and to build new clinics closer to the veterans' homes.

So it was that study that was the genesis, Kitty, for this blueprint.

PILGRIM: You have two sons in the service. Your wife was a Navy nurse. You were in Vietnam. You certainly know the issues related to veterans and Veterans Affairs. What is the most important thing that you think going forward to give them the support that they need after so unselfishly dedicating their lives to this country?

PRINCIPI: Well, clearly, you know, first, we owe them a very, very big thank you.

And we need to continually remind them how grateful we are as Americans for the freedoms we enjoy and to transform those words into meaningful benefits, the right benefits for them, to make sure we have the health care system for an aging veteran population way out in front of the general American general population, so that we have the facilities to treat them, but also for the younger generation, the men and women who are coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, some with grievous bodily wounds, to ensure that we're going to be able to treat them and that they will have seamless access into the V.A. health care system.

And I think very importantly, it's education to ensure that they have the opportunity to have the key to the door to a successful life, to give every man, woman on active duty the educational benefits they need to be successful in life.

PILGRIM: Are you satisfied with the level of educational support that's going on? After all, after World War I, it used to cover the cost of pretty much any college degree. Now there's some limits on it.

PRINCIPI: That's correct.

I believe that was the greatest piece of legislation or one of the greatest pieces of legislation in the history of our Republic, because it built modern middle class and modern America. And I believe the advances we've made to the current G.I. Bill, so that now veterans can receive up to around $1,000 a month to go to school, they can attend courses taught by corporations if they want to go into computing and get the entire training package paid for, I think we've made some very positive changes.

It's not the same as the one after World War I, where you can go to any school in America and get all tuition paid and a small stipend, but we've come a long way in the past 3 1/2 years.

PILGRIM: All right, thanks very much for the efforts in supporting our veterans. And thank you for joining us today.

Anthony Principi, secretary of Veterans Affairs, thank you.

PRINCIPI: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Sergeant Peter Damon was wounded in action in Iraq. He is recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center after losing both his arms in combat. Thanks to a unique organization, he will return to a brand new home that will be fully equipped to meet his special needs.

Bill Tucker reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a fund- raiser for Homes For Our Troops. It is a group founded by John Gonsalves, a man who is not a vet but who is driven by a sense of duty.

JOHN GONSALVES, HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS: Homes For Our Troops is not a left thing. It is not a right thing. It's the right thing to do for these soldiers. We have a responsibility as Americans to do more than is being done now.

TUCKER: John is a construction supervisor. He's persuaded developers to donate land, contractors to donate material and tradesmen to donate their time. Sergeant Peter Damon will be the first vet to receive a home. He's a double amputee with a wife and two children.

SGT. PETER DAMON, ARMY NATIONAL GUARD: The words can't express how grateful I am to be a part of this and be the first recipient of this great organization.

TUCKER: The homes will be built to meet the needs of disabled veterans as Sergeant Damon explained on this walk through his mother's house.

DAMON: Certain cabinets handles I wouldn't be able to use. I think there's over 200 amputees coming back from this war and a lot of guys could use something like this.

TUCKER: Homes For Our Troops is a grassroots organization.

GONSALVES: All the tickets, programs and promotional materials that have gone on over town, all the kids at the schools did it. It was their project they put together.

TUCKER: That's right. The local high schools got in on the action, too. This fund-raiser netted roughly $6,000, which was then matched by a local bank. Many donations come by mail. And reveal a wealth of character.

GONSALVES: "I'm 79 years old and have very little savings left. I do hope many others will match my amount for you. You are a true hero." She sent $12.

TUCKER: Letters like that come from all across the country.

GONSALVES: A whole bunch from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Tennessee.

TUCKER: Homes For Our Troops has raised more than $120,000 so far. That's without any corporate sponsorship which would help it meet its goal of expanding nationally.

Bill Tucker, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: For more information on Homes For Our Troops, visit their Web site at HomesForOurTroops.org.

When we return, a stunning tribute to World War II 60 years later. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur was instrumental in making the memorial a reality and she will join us.

And honoring a remarkable group of veterans who were forever changed by their service to this country. We'll have their story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: The World War II memorial was dedicated this weekend in our nation's capital. The memorial is the first to honor all of the men and women who served in World War II.

Memories of that conflict live on in its four million veterans whose numbers are dwindling, but whose recollections remain strong.

Brian Todd has one soldier's story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At the center of America's most famous concourse, a long-awaited unveiling.

These archways, columns and fountains seem a natural fit to the landscape, a serene, dignified tribute to the conflict that disrupted, then defined a century.

(on camera) Just a couple of miles away, there's another kind of World War II memorial, one that few people know about, here in the forgotten corner of Washington, on the grounds where Abraham Lincoln spent his summers.

It's now called the Armed Forces Retirement Home, and it's a living, breathing testament to sacrifice.

(voice-over) Take a walk with Emil Byke on these grounds and it hits you, this is a rare opportunity to hear a firsthand account of the war from one of its remaining survivors.

Walk with him at Andzio Beach (ph) in Italy 60 years ago. You find yourself with a young soldier who would charge through anything, through withering fire to set up an observation post for his 3rd Infantry Division. He takes a chestful of mortar shrapnel for that, gets a Silver Star and a Purple Heart -- oh, and rejoins his unit the same day.

EMIL BYKE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Never had a break.

TODD: More than a year later the Nazis still can't stop him, not with antitank mines, small arms fire and the bomb they placed on the bridge that Emil Byke needs to capture.

BYKE: I saved a bridge and got the corps -- the corps moved over the bridge.

TODD: And those men go on to capture two crucial German towns.

Through it all, Emil Byke fights his way through North Africa, Italy, France and Germany. Wins two Bronze Stars, three Silver Stars, a Purple Heart and some perspective.

BYKE: We're together. Your friend, you're buddy-buddy. You've got to be buddy-buddy. You rely on him and he relies on you for protection, you know?

TODD: Perspective that so many-year-olds are learning again, firsthand, all these years later.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: My next guest was an instrumental part of the effort to create a World War II memorial. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur filed a bill to create the memorial in 1987.

Now, 17 years later, it is a stunning tribute to all who served in World War II.

I spoke with Congresswoman Kaptur earlier and began by asking her how this effort began.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REP. MARCY KAPTUR (D), OHIO: In 1987, I was at an event here in our congressional district, the Ninth District of Ohio, a township trustees' annual meeting in Lucas County just outside Toledo.

And a voice boomed at me across this township trustees' annual meeting saying, "Congresswoman Kaptur, why is there no World War II memorial in Washington where I can take my grandchildren?"

And I peered into the crowd, trying to pick out the voice, and all of a sudden I saw this man standing over on the other side of the room, feet firmly planted, churlish grin, kind of, and twinkling eyes under his glasses, and I said, "Well, sir, I think there is."

He goes, "Oh, yes? What is it?"

And I said, "Well, I think it's Iwo Jima."

And he said, "Wrong. That is to one service and one campaign."

PILGRIM: So now we have a beautiful memorial that you managed to muscle through, and I'd like to, actually, our viewers to take a look at it as we talk. It is absolutely spectacular.

A lot of controversy in picking the site. Tell us a little bit about that and why you think it's perfectly situated now.

KAPTUR: It's perfectly situated because its location between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial represents its placement as the greatest achievement of the 20th Century, and that is the victory of liberty over tyranny in a just war by the World War II generation.

And if you look at the Washington monument as symbolic of the founding of the republic in the 18th Century and the Lincoln Memorial, the preservation of the union in the 19th, this then, sitting between them, brings our entire history together at one point on the mall.

PILGRIM: You feel very strongly about this. You have family, but also bring this home to you. Tell us a little bit about that.

You've called this group, the World War II veterans, the most unselfish generation America has ever known. How is it personally related to you?

KAPTUR: Well, our entire family was affected by the war. Our uncle, Stanley Rodowsky, our mother's youngest brother, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, three Bronze Stars, Army engineer, shelled, short of hearing his entire life as a result of that. Never talked about it very much, just a beautiful, beloved uncle.

The other uncle on Mom's side, Anthony Rodowsky, in the office of strategic searches and a parachutist, behind enemy lines in the Pacific, China Burma, India, contracting malaria and knifed in a foxhole.

I remember as a young child his telling me stories and both of them giving war medals to me. I was very affected by that as a youngster, and yet it was the most unselfish generation. They never asked anything for themselves. They even hardly talked about it.

PILGRIM: It's true.

KAPTUR: ... very special moments.

PILGRIM: Many of our viewers, I'm sure, have family stories. And the just sort of reticence to actually describe hardship among this group is really, really remarkable.

There's an incredibly beautiful quote, and I'd like to read it. It says, "Americans came to liberate, not to conquer, to restore freedom and to end tyranny." And that's written around monument.

It's a beautiful testimony to the generation. It also is a little bit reminiscent of the mission today.

Tell me a little bit about the veterans who were invited to be opening ceremony?

KAPTUR: Of the 16 million who fought, four million remain. The Baby Boom generation did this for them. They obviously would not do it for themselves.

So we say to them, to their kin, to their survivors, to those who served on the home front, a grateful nation does remember, and so long as there shall be a United States of America their service and their sacrifice will not be forgotten.

PILGRIM: Congresswoman Kaptur, let's our viewers have the moment of experiencing to me what it's standing right there. Describe to me what it's like to be at this memorial.

KAPTUR: This memorial was designed to be a gathering place for America.

It is a plaza with major waterfalls and water fountains. It sounds like Niagara Falls. When you're down on the site, the sound of the water blurs all other sounds in the region. And you're in central Washington, but you really don't know it.

The water cascades over the waterfalls that are there near the wall of remembrance with all of the gold stars in memory of those who lost their lives.

And you look across these huge fountains and falls, and there are chairs. It's actually built into the side of the marble. You can sit on the plaza as many people do.

And you look out at each of the columns, representing the states and the territories who fought. You see the quotes from the great leaders of the time, reminding us of the nature of the sacrifice.

And you look at the eagles, the massive bronze eagles in the victory arches and the laurel wreaths. They're just simply exquisite.

And it has a very respectful, understated presence as a memorial. I don't think that it can be criticized in any way for being overblown. It's an unusual memorial in that people feel welcome there as the World War II generation would want them to be.

PILGRIM: Well, thank you so much for being so instrumental in bringing it to us and also helping us share it today. Thank you very much, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Another remarkable group of veterans sacrificed greatly to serve this country. Now a tremendous effort is under way to recognize their sacrifice.

Veterans from all across the country recently gathered to raise money to build a memorial worthy of millions of disabled veterans.

Bill Tucker reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The cost of war is not measured only by the dead as these men bear witness. Men like Leslie Brown, severely beaten as a prisoner of war.

LESLIE BROWN, U.S. ARMY (RET.): I was beaten to an inch of my life. I lost half of my liver of that beating.

TUCKER: Sergeant Tyler Hall, who suffered a punctured lung, a broken back and has a face that's built on a skeleton of titanium after every bone in it was broken.

TYLER HALL, U.S. ARMY, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: They planted some artillery rounds in the ground and blew them up from underneath our vehicle.

IAN LENNON, U.S. MARINE CORPS, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I was over in Kuwait and the fuel tank exploded. And it got my face and my arms.

VICTOR THIEBEAULT, U.S. ARMY, AFGHANISTAN WAR VETERANS: I lost four of my fingers. My thumb. Pointer, half my middle finger and my ring finger.

TUCKER: Men who learned to reject self-pity and who radiate honor.

BOBBY BARRERA, U.S. MARINE CORPS, VIETNAM VETERAN: They feel like a hero (ph). Those that are recognized in events such as this represent thousands and thousands of others who served quietly, never asked for anything, never complained about anything.

CHAD COLLEY, U.S. ARMY, VIETNAM VETERAN: I'm a triple amputee. My left arm is off beyond the elbow. I have no left leg or hip whatsoever. My right leg is nine inches long, and fortunately the rest of me is whole.

Some of the stuff that happens in life is not good, but it doesn't mean you have to be defined by it.

JEREMY FELDBUSCH, U.S. ARMY, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I am definitely honored that I was a soldier for this country and honored to do what I had done. And I lost my vision doing what I was doing. I would have given my life doing what I was doing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're shoulder to shoulder with heroes here.

TUCKER: And with people who want them recognized.

ROSS PEROT, BUSINESSMAN: For those who fought and almost died, freedom has a taste the protected will never know.

LOIS POPE, DISABLED VETERAN'S WIFE, MEMORIAL FOUNDATION: So many Americans who are unaware of the sacrifices that they -- they gave for our democracy and freedom.

ANTHONY PRINCIPI, SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS: We have the greatest fighting force, and they're very dedicated. They're very courageous. And it's just our responsibility to care for them when they come home.

GARY SINISE, ACTOR: One of the things we learned from Vietnam is that you support the troops, no matter who sends them out and no matter where they go.

TUCKER: To care and honor those who served.

Bill Tucker, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Coming up, a retired general is more active than ever when it comes to supporting military families. We'll have his inspiring story when we return.

But as we go to break, here are some thoughts from some of the visitors to the World War II memorial.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Veterans should be the kings of our society, I think. I mean, they really deserve all honor, all praise that we can give them. I mean, they put their life on the line on a day-to- day basis for us, and they deserve everything we can give them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I walked into this place. I could just feel the spirit of all of the men and women who fought in that war. My father fought in that war, and thank God he came back safe.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We can never repay the sacrifice that they made. And that's the truth. Because the only way you can repay it is to live out the ideals that they lived for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: For hundreds of thousands of military families, the USO is an invaluable source of help and support.

Now, there are more than 12,000 USO volunteers all over the world, working hard for the troops and their families. But among those volunteers, one man's dedication stands out.

Jen Rogers has the story of Michael Teilmann.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEN ROGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is probably what comes to mind when you think of the USO: stars like Bruce Willis, Mariah Carey and Robin Williams, entertaining troops around the globe. ROBIN WILLIAMS, COMEDIAN: Good morning, Bagram!

ROGERS: While big names get the cheers, it's the USO's smaller programs that may make the biggest difference.

The 63-year-old nonprofit offers childcare, an emergency travel fund and over 120 centers that are safe havens for military men and women all over the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a place to relax. I mean, that just eases your mind so you're not thinking about training. I really couldn't picture what I'd didn't have a USO.

ROGERS: It's a sentiment echoed over and over again by members of the armed forces.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like a home away from home for me.

ROGERS: Since 9/11, military deployments have increased substantially, putting pressure on the USO to respond, as well.

MICHAEL TEILMANN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THE BOB HOPE USO AT LAX: When I first joined the board of the USO I would say, "Gee, you know, you guys are only open two or three days a week down there and only for several hours a day. And I think you ought to do this, and I think you ought to do and the other."

And pretty soon I got a call from one of the boys who said, "You talk a good game, Teilmann. Why don't you go out and do something about it?"

ROGERS: So he did. Under retired Brigadier General Michael Teilmann's management, the USO center at Los Angeles International Airport expanded its hours to seven days a week, 18 hours a day.

TEILMANN: Where are you headed off to?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For the Air Force base, Texas.

ROGERS: Keeping this USO running is just Teilmann's day job. He also moonlights as a producer for USO events overseas.

TEILMANN: We hit the bases, and the guys and gals when they're in there in their work space and they're out in the field or wherever and all of a sudden they see this group of very famous people coming by, it's a great morale booster.

ROGERS: Teilmann has one day off a week, and he says he needs it for his other passion, the American Volunteer Reserve, an organization he created to get retired military personnel back into uniform.

TEILMANN: Seventeen-hundred veterans are dying each and every day, and the armed forces are only able to provide military funerals for a small portion of those.

So we are -- that's one of our principle missions, is to find the soldiers to do the honors details.

And since 9/11 we realize that homeland security is a major, major program. It's something we've got to support.

ROGERS: Supporting it all leaves Teilmann with a full plate, but it's one other volunteers say he can easily handle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's his personality. He's very upbeat, always a smile, very energetic, just that sort of positive outlook that he can do it. He can do it.

ROGERS: For Teilmann, it's a way to stay active without being on active duty.

TEILMANN: I just enjoy being able to still contribute at my advanced age!

ROGERS: And these young guys seem pretty grateful for that contribution.

Jen Rogers, CNN financial news, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Coming up, we'll have some of your thoughts on the troops and the story of a very special homecoming for a group of soldiers. We'll have that and a great deal more still ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: Now for a look at some of your e-mails on the troops.

Jack Aguirre writes, "We are at war and our troops need our support. The issue of Iraqi is being twisted for political reasons. I support our troops and our country."

Roger Crane from Spokane, Washington, writes, "Our troops are giving their lives to our country, and I'm sure as I write this e-mail to you they are all going through very tough times that we here at home do not understand.

Kathy from Iowa writes, "Many Americans don't like our president's policies, but right or wrong we need to support our troops. We need to stand together, to fight together. We need to support our troops together, no matter what the rest of the world thinks."

And Tony Medrick of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma writes, "We get a nonstop feed of gloom and doom, but we don't hear about the heroes, the incredibly brave G.I.s who honorably do their duty, the ones our grandparents would have carried on their shoulders down Fifth Avenue."

We appreciate you sharing your thoughts with us. E-mail us at LouDobbs@CNN.com. Still ahead, American troops are greeted with a hearty welcome home from a group of giving strangers. We'll continue in a moment. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: In the past year nearly 100,000 troops have landed in Bangor, Maine, after serving this country in wartime.

As those troops set foot on American soil for the first time in many months, they are greeted by a warm welcome and a thank you from some of the many strangers grateful for their service.

Frank Buckley has the story from Bangor, Maine.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The planes pull up in Bangor Maine to refuel.

For the soldiers, it's the first time their boots are on the ground in America on their way home from war.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome back.

BUCKLEY: Every time it's a celebration.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome back to the states.

BUCKLEY: The Maynors (ph) are strangers to these Marines, but troop greeters like Elaine Greene and Joanne Miller say it's their duty to say thanks.

ELAINE GREENE, MAINE TROOP GREETER: He's why we're here. They deserve to have this country telling them how much they care.

BUCKLEY: It's enough to make a tough as nails Marine major with 19 years in the corps choke up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've just never really had a welcome home.

BUCKLEY: A local cell phone company donates phones in minutes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love you, mom. I miss you.

BUCKLEY: The greeters, many of them veterans themselves, trade stories with the troops or just listen.

For Donna Sorkin, it's a chance to be mom. She's got a son, that little boy in the picture, Chris, greeting a soldier. That was in 1991. Today, Chris is a soldier himself, in Iraq.

Being a surrogate mother for the other soldiers helps Sorkin get through it.

DONNA SORKIN, MARINE TROOP GREETER: When their mother can't be here when they first set foot on U.S. soil, it's nice to be here and be a mother for awhile.

BUCKLEY (on camera): The troop greetings began here in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm. A year ago they resumed. Since then, more than 460 planes and 82,000 U.S. service members have been greeted in Bangor, Maine.

(voice-over) And at the head of the line for each flight that passes through, 82-year-old Bill Knight.

BILL KNIGHT, MARINE TROOP GREETER: Welcome home. Welcome home. Welcome home.

BUCKLEY: Knight was Army Air Corps during World War II. Later he was Navy.

Hours before each plane comes in...

KNIGHT: That plane will be in at 2:15 today.

BUCKLEY: ... Mr. Knight works the phones to get the greeters to the airports. He's determined to prevent what happened to some soldiers of an unpopular war called Vietnam.

KNIGHT: The only thing I would rather be doing, is I'd rather be back in the service doing my time with these boys.

BUCKLEY: And occasionally one of these boys sees, not a stranger's face, but the mom who lived across the street when he was a kid.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't believe this.

TUCKER: Sergeant First Class John LeClair was welcomed home by Dee Winthrop Denny. Dee still lives in Maine. In some ways, so does John.

SGT. JOHN LECLAIR, WITH MOUNTAIN DIVISION: I'm proud to be here from here, everywhere I go. I'm from Maine, even though I've lived around the world.

BUCKLEY: For most of the soldiers, though, Maine is just a refueling stop.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just a few more hours. Just a few more hours.

BUCKLEY: They're headed home, Maine, a memory of war.

Frank Buckley, CNN, Bangor, Maine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: That's our show for the tonight. We thank you for being with us and we hope you had a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend. For all of us here, good night from New York.

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