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Last October, this community was saddened with the news that one of its own -- Patrick King -- had been seriously injured as he served in the U.S. Army in Iraq.
In early November, after King, 38, had been brought home to the U.S. and was getting settled in for treatment at Walter Read Army Hospital in Washington D.C., his father, George King, spoke to an audience at the Veterans Day ceremony here, thanking people for their support as his son recovered. There wasn't a dry eye in the house.
This past Sunday, the place was different, and the speaker was different, but again, there wasn't a dry eye in the house.
Sgt. First Class Patrick King, a 1987 graduate of O'Neill High School and a nearly 21 year Army veteran, was in town, and spent some of his precious time talking to a group of family and friends at St. John's A.M.E. Zion Church.
He was at the church to receive one of seven awards that Mayor Joe D'Onofrio was giving out that day -- awards that had been intended to be given out during February's Black History Month celebration, but were delayed due to a weather situation then. And King did receive his award, and quickly 'stole the show' from Mayor D'Onofrio.
"Thank you," he said, like his dad did back in November. "Thank you for being here today, and thank you for the support you've shown to my family."
King said that his wound -- he lost the lower part of his left leg -- was a "small sacrifice". And he paid tribute to the families, like his, who are left at home, "sometimes dealing with stuff a lot harder than we have to".
King, who was part of a group receiving awards that included two former Army Buffalo Soldiers, also paid tribute to them, saying that "without them, there's no way I'd be standing right here, talking about what I'm talking about".
King was at the ceremony with his parents, George and Juanita, and his sister. Also there were two of his fellow soldiers, friends, he said who'd been with him through the thick and thin of his recent tour in Iraq. This last tour was, it should be noted, King's second in Iraq. His brothers, George and Tyrone have also served multiple tours in the war zone.
When D'Onofrio introduced King, he walked quickly to the front of the church, no obvious limp or disability. He was smiling broadly -- several of those in the audience noted his ever-present smile -- and bantered back in and forth with the mayor as he presented the award.
"If what happened to you happened to me, I'd be home crying," D'Onofrio said.
"No time for that." King said, still smiling.
When D'Onofrio recounted how the elder King told the audience on Veterans Day how he'd cried when he saw his son, the younger King laughed out loud and quipped: "oh did he. He cried so much I didn't think he was going to make it into my room!"
The audience quickly responded to King's demeanor, and D'Onofrio even joked with him, telling him to turn off the charm -- "they're going to think you're running for mayor".
King, who is still in outpatient therapy at Walter Reed, was only home for the weekend, and still has some therapy time ahead of him.
"They told me it might take up to a year." he said after the ceremony, "but I told them I don't see that."
He must decide now upon his future -- remaining on active duty, he can, or retiring. Should he retire, he said, he's thinking he'd like to take a civilian job with the government, perhaps with Homeland Security. And, he's thinking he might like to stay in the Washington D.C. or Virginia area -- "somewhere close to the water," he said.
King, obviously got a bit more attention on Saturday than the other awards -- although none of them seemed to mind a bit.
After D'Onofrio's presentation King was presented with a $1,000 check -- "to do whatever you want with" -- from the West Point Highland Falls Rotary Club. Presented by club secretary Steve Scott, the check is part of a program established by the Rotary to give funds to the families of victims of the war. Recently they changed the program to include injured soldiers. The program is paid for via fundraisers the Rotary conducts in the region.
"The motto of the Rotary is 'service above self' and you epitomize that," Scott told King.
A second presentation was by the Hudson Valley Wood Carvers, based in Pleasant Valley. President John Helmeyer and Secretary Patrick Paraggio gave King a beautiful carved can with an eagle's head at the top, inscribed with King's name, date of service, etc
King, speaking to the crowd, also took a minute to offer "thanks to Jesus Christ, without him, I might not be here today."
And he told the audience not to feel sorry for him in any way.
"I lost my foot," he said, "but I'm still alive!"
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