?? Photos: President Barack Obama visits Fort Bliss
FORT BLISS -- The four-hour wait, the heat inside a stuffy hangar and dealing with a large overflow crowd were all worth it.
That's the verdict from some of the 5,000 soldiers and family members who gathered Friday at East Fort Bliss to see and hear President Barack Obama on his third trip to the ever-growing installation.
To them, it was all about receiving a big personal "thank you" from the nation's commander in chief for their service and sacrifice.
Spc. Heath Howes was severely injured in a bomb blast in Afghanistan just two months ago. Howes got to celebrate his 31st birthday by meeting Obama and shaking his hand.
"I couldn't ask for a better birthday present," said Howes, who is recovering but remains in a wheelchair after injuring his back, head and knee and suffering a broken ankle.
Outside, an overflow crowd sat on heavy equipment, a Bradley Fighting Vehicle and Abrams tank.
Staff Sgt. Abdul Kamara was so excited about seeing the president that he could hardly stand still during the four-hour wait he and most soldiers endured.
Kamara is originally from Sierra Leone in West Africa, but has become a naturalized U.S. citizen. This November will bring the first election in which
he gets to vote."Wow. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said Kamara, who has done four tours of duty in Iraq. "I wouldn't miss this for the world. I would have waited another four hours. I'd camp out here if I had to."
Kamara's wife, Mozella, said it was a wonderful gesture on the president's part to visit Fort Bliss.
"What other way to say thank you than to show up in person?" she said.
Brig. Gen. Dennis D. Doyle, commander of Beaumont Army Medical Center, said soldiers at the event were "pumped" to see and hear the president.
"It's even uplifting for us old soldiers too," Doyle said.
Maj. Margie Brown, the 1st Armored Division's deputy provost marshal, said the visit shows strong support for America's troops.
"We still have troops in Afghanistan and throughout the world," Brown said. "It shows we are not forgotten. It boosts morale for troops, especially those who have deployed or are getting ready to deploy. To come to Fort Bliss, it's a positive thing. It says a lot."
Fort Bliss is now the largest deployment point for the nation's military, Fort Bliss officials said. Each year about 20,000 soldiers, reservists, National Guard and members of sister services deploy out of Fort Bliss.
"It was always the Fort Braggs and Fort Campbells that got the attention," Brown said.
But that's changing, as evidenced by Obama's most recent visit, she said.
Fort Bliss continues to play a major role in the war in Af ghan istan.
About 3,400 soldiers from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division returned from Afghanistan this summer.
About 350 soldiers from the 4th Infantry Brigade, 1st Armored Division are still in Afghanistan, and up to 4,000 soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division are preparing to deploy this winter.
Second Lt. John Bockmann is one of the soldiers getting ready to deploy. He is a helicopter pilot who flies Army medics.
Bockmann brought his wife, Katherine, and 9-month-old daughter, Emily, to see Obama.
When Bockmann was 6 years old, he got to see the soon-to-be-elected President Ronald Reagan come to his hometown of Tyler, Texas.
He wanted his daughter to be part of history, too.
"You can't ever count on something like this being more than a once-in-lifetime happening," he said.
Maj. Robin Pulley, a military police officer, also brought her daughter, 3-year-old Zoey.
"I told her that President Obama was coming. She said she wanted to see him," Pulley said. "She recognizes him on TV."
Master Sgt. Caesar Llanez has deployed twice to Iraq and twice to Afghanistan. Llanez, originally from Alpine, and his wife, Diana, from Marfa, said having the president visit recognizes the sacrifices that soldiers and their families go through.
"It's an acknowledgement that we're here, have gone through so many deployments and that he supports us," said Llanez, who one day hopes to attend the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss.
"We have not been forgotten," Llanez said. "It's a definite morale boost."
David Burge may be reached at dburge@elpasotimes.com; 546-6126. Follow him on Twitter @dburge1962.
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