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Celebrating Jessica Lynch

Aired July 22, 2003 - 15:15   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.


JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Patty Davis is there in Elizabeth, West Virginia.
Patty, help orient us a little bit. Jessica is from, is it Palestine? Is that the name of the town?

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Palestine, West Virginia.

That is about five miles from Elizabeth, where we are located right now and where you see that motorcade heading down the street. Now, she is heading basically towards me, towards the center of town. We're right in the middle by the courthouse, the Wirt County High School band just waiting until she gets a little bit closer to serenade her, to play their music for her, but a lot of anticipation on the streets here.

You can see her waving to the crowds. They have waited so long for this, in the hospital 100 days. She had been captured, as you said, Judy, and terribly hurt by a -- when a rocket-propelled grenade smashed into her vehicle in Iraq near Nasiriyah. She is finally home. And the people here are so anxious to see her -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: Patty, this is -- we were talking earlier about how well planned this was. Who was helping organize this? We assume there were Army officials involved. How did they pull this off? This is quite a homecoming.

DAVIS: It is amazing. This whole thing was taken over by West Virginia Governor Bob Wise's office. And, in fact, one of his staff happened to do advance for the Clinton administration at one point. So they know what they're doing. They know exactly what they're doing. And not only did they have to plan camera coverage of her coming in, but camera coverage, where people would be, how would she be transported, how long are we going to be able to see her.

And they're being very sensitive, because they do not want to overwhelm the private 1st class here. They don't really know what she can take emotionally or physically. So, what they're really calling this, a lot of spokespeople telling me today, this is considered very low-key. And they said that, come spring -- I was over at the county courthouse talking to the people over there -- when Jessica is feeling better, that is when they plan to have what they call a very proper celebration, a big, big festival, with a major parade.

And you'll see -- as you see her rolling down the street here, it is just her and her family, along with state police. There's no floats. There's no fireworks. We do expect that, though, to take place in the spring, according to people here who work in this city.

(CROSSTALK)

WOODRUFF: Jessica Lynch riding in the back of a red convertible with her brother Greg Lynch, who told the crowd a little while ago how proud of his sister he is. He said: When we were growing up, I always hoped to be a good example for her. And then he went on to say: She has became a good example for me -- so quite a turnaround story for the big brother here.

Patty, I know you have been there for some time. And you were in West Virginia earlier. Jessica Lynch is still going to need a fair amount of therapy, physical therapy, perhaps other types of therapy, occupational therapy. Is the -- the presumption is, she's going to be able to get all that from home?

DAVIS: Well, I was talking to the family spokesperson earlier today, who said they're still trying to work out where she will undergo that rehabilitation. There are some hospitals perhaps in Parkersburg, which is about 15 miles away.

Oh, and we see the motorcade now starting to come around the corner. I see the police officers now leading that motorcade into the center of town.

But, yes, she will absolutely need a lot of recuperation. Now, you know that her house has been expanded, at least one or two bedrooms, to make it easier for her to be able to get around her home, since she is still in a wheelchair. So, it could be that some of that will take place in her home as well. There certainly is a lot more room now -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: And, Patty, in terms of the people who've come, have you had a chance to talk to many of them about how they feel about this whole thing? Clearly, this happens at a time when some Americans are asking about whether this war has been -- the aftermath of the war has been handled as well as it might have been. American soldiers are still dying in Iraq. What are people saying there about all that?

DAVIS: They consider her a hero. And they don't want to forget about the people who have died.

You can see, she is now passing by a throng of media. People are absolutely thrilled to see her as she goes by. You can see, she's on the back of that with her brother, Private Greg Lynch. He has been a family spokesman throughout this entire process. He's really stepped up to the plate. He has been now promoted to a specialist. He is based at Fort Bragg, the Army's base in Fort Bragg. He came back, taking leave, to be with his sister.

The mother and father also have been by her side the whole time. And, also, her sister Brandi, I'm told, was instrumental, staying by her side, providing her with mothering. There was somebody, a family member, with her at all times in the hospital.

The crowd just going crazy here, the band playing songs and people obviously enjoying the fact that they're getting to see their hometown hero now for the very first time in months -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: Patty Davis with us in Elizabeth, West Virginia, very close, as Patty said, to Palestine. I may have pronounced it incorrectly. I think I said Palestine. I have heard it pronounced both ways, Patty.

The point is that it is Jessica Lynch's hometown. They might as well rename it Jessica Lynch's hometown, because that's why it's become famous.

Let's listen a little bit here.

DAVIS: Absolutely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNCH: I'm also grateful to several Iraqi citizens who helped save my life while I was in their hospital, and then a unit of our Special Forces soldiers did save my life.

I want to thank Sergeant Ruben Konkhers (ph). Ruben (ph), you never let me give up. When I wanted to quit PT, you kept me going. And you're my inspiration, and I love you.

I'm proud to be a soldier in the Army. I'm proud to have served with the 507th. I'm happy that some of the soldiers I served with made it home alive. And it hurts that some of my company didn't.

Most of all, I miss Lori Piestewa. She was my best friend. She fought beside me, and it was an honor to have served with her. Lori will always remain in my heart.

I read thousands of stories that said when I was captured I said, I'm an American soldier too. Those stories were right. Those were my words. I am an American soldier, too.

Thank you for this welcome, and it's great to be home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WOODRUFF: The first words we have heard from Jessica Lynch since she came back home from her terrible ordeal in Iraq and spending time at a hospital in Washington.

CNN will continue throughout the day more coverage of Jessica Lynch's homecoming.

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 July 22, 2003 - 15:15   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Patty Davis is there in Elizabeth, West Virginia.
Patty, help orient us a little bit. Jessica is from, is it Palestine? Is that the name of the town?

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Palestine, West Virginia.

That is about five miles from Elizabeth, where we are located right now and where you see that motorcade heading down the street. Now, she is heading basically towards me, towards the center of town. We're right in the middle by the courthouse, the Wirt County High School band just waiting until she gets a little bit closer to serenade her, to play their music for her, but a lot of anticipation on the streets here.

You can see her waving to the crowds. They have waited so long for this, in the hospital 100 days. She had been captured, as you said, Judy, and terribly hurt by a -- when a rocket-propelled grenade smashed into her vehicle in Iraq near Nasiriyah. She is finally home. And the people here are so anxious to see her -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: Patty, this is -- we were talking earlier about how well planned this was. Who was helping organize this? We assume there were Army officials involved. How did they pull this off? This is quite a homecoming.

DAVIS: It is amazing. This whole thing was taken over by West Virginia Governor Bob Wise's office. And, in fact, one of his staff happened to do advance for the Clinton administration at one point. So they know what they're doing. They know exactly what they're doing. And not only did they have to plan camera coverage of her coming in, but camera coverage, where people would be, how would she be transported, how long are we going to be able to see her.

And they're being very sensitive, because they do not want to overwhelm the private 1st class here. They don't really know what she can take emotionally or physically. So, what they're really calling this, a lot of spokespeople telling me today, this is considered very low-key. And they said that, come spring -- I was over at the county courthouse talking to the people over there -- when Jessica is feeling better, that is when they plan to have what they call a very proper celebration, a big, big festival, with a major parade.

And you'll see -- as you see her rolling down the street here, it is just her and her family, along with state police. There's no floats. There's no fireworks. We do expect that, though, to take place in the spring, according to people here who work in this city.

(CROSSTALK)

WOODRUFF: Jessica Lynch riding in the back of a red convertible with her brother Greg Lynch, who told the crowd a little while ago how proud of his sister he is. He said: When we were growing up, I always hoped to be a good example for her. And then he went on to say: She has became a good example for me -- so quite a turnaround story for the big brother here.

Patty, I know you have been there for some time. And you were in West Virginia earlier. Jessica Lynch is still going to need a fair amount of therapy, physical therapy, perhaps other types of therapy, occupational therapy. Is the -- the presumption is, she's going to be able to get all that from home?

DAVIS: Well, I was talking to the family spokesperson earlier today, who said they're still trying to work out where she will undergo that rehabilitation. There are some hospitals perhaps in Parkersburg, which is about 15 miles away.

Oh, and we see the motorcade now starting to come around the corner. I see the police officers now leading that motorcade into the center of town.

But, yes, she will absolutely need a lot of recuperation. Now, you know that her house has been expanded, at least one or two bedrooms, to make it easier for her to be able to get around her home, since she is still in a wheelchair. So, it could be that some of that will take place in her home as well. There certainly is a lot more room now -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: And, Patty, in terms of the people who've come, have you had a chance to talk to many of them about how they feel about this whole thing? Clearly, this happens at a time when some Americans are asking about whether this war has been -- the aftermath of the war has been handled as well as it might have been. American soldiers are still dying in Iraq. What are people saying there about all that?

DAVIS: They consider her a hero. And they don't want to forget about the people who have died.

You can see, she is now passing by a throng of media. People are absolutely thrilled to see her as she goes by. You can see, she's on the back of that with her brother, Private Greg Lynch. He has been a family spokesman throughout this entire process. He's really stepped up to the plate. He has been now promoted to a specialist. He is based at Fort Bragg, the Army's base in Fort Bragg. He came back, taking leave, to be with his sister.

The mother and father also have been by her side the whole time. And, also, her sister Brandi, I'm told, was instrumental, staying by her side, providing her with mothering. There was somebody, a family member, with her at all times in the hospital.

The crowd just going crazy here, the band playing songs and people obviously enjoying the fact that they're getting to see their hometown hero now for the very first time in months -- Judy.

WOODRUFF: Patty Davis with us in Elizabeth, West Virginia, very close, as Patty said, to Palestine. I may have pronounced it incorrectly. I think I said Palestine. I have heard it pronounced both ways, Patty.

The point is that it is Jessica Lynch's hometown. They might as well rename it Jessica Lynch's hometown, because that's why it's become famous.

Let's listen a little bit here.

DAVIS: Absolutely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNCH: I'm also grateful to several Iraqi citizens who helped save my life while I was in their hospital, and then a unit of our Special Forces soldiers did save my life.

I want to thank Sergeant Ruben Konkhers (ph). Ruben (ph), you never let me give up. When I wanted to quit PT, you kept me going. And you're my inspiration, and I love you.

I'm proud to be a soldier in the Army. I'm proud to have served with the 507th. I'm happy that some of the soldiers I served with made it home alive. And it hurts that some of my company didn't.

Most of all, I miss Lori Piestewa. She was my best friend. She fought beside me, and it was an honor to have served with her. Lori will always remain in my heart.

I read thousands of stories that said when I was captured I said, I'm an American soldier too. Those stories were right. Those were my words. I am an American soldier, too.

Thank you for this welcome, and it's great to be home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WOODRUFF: The first words we have heard from Jessica Lynch since she came back home from her terrible ordeal in Iraq and spending time at a hospital in Washington.

CNN will continue throughout the day more coverage of Jessica Lynch's homecoming.

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