Perspective: Somber duty

TEXAS CITY — Around the lunch table at Rosario’s Italian Restaurant, the 15 young men looked and acted no different from any others their age.

They wore T-shirts, jeans and ball caps turned backward, and many sported elaborate tattoos. The conversation was about anything but the war in Iraq or the Army. In less than three hours, though, these 15 average-looking 20-somethings would shed civilian garb for tailored Army uniforms.

As the county pauses today to honor a soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice, these young men are charged with making sure everything goes as planned.

There was a time when Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Sabean and Spc. Jake Janke kept track of how many military funerals they had attended.

“I don’t even count anymore,” Janke said. “I just know it’s too many.”

Read the rest at the Galveston Daily News