Tribute to a son
By Anne-Marie Smolski / Townsman Staff

Alma and Brian Hart, who lost their son in Iraq in October, lead the Pledge of Allegiance at the State House last Thursday. -- Photo by Dave Gordon

Alma Hart and her husband, Brian, had last seen Gov. Mitt Romney in person on Oct. 26, at a memorial service for their 20-year-old son, who was killed in Iraq on Oct. 18, 2003.

Last Thursday, the Bedford couple, along with many of the families of 16 military men who were casualties since Sept. 11, 2001, were invited to the State House, where the governor mentioned each of the deceased by name in a tribute at the end of his State of the State address.

"It was really nice," said Alma Hart, an administrative assistant in the Center for Technology and Enterprise at Babson College. They had previously received a call from the governor's office inquiring if the couple would be willing to lead the Pledge of Allegiance.

"We were just really honored to be singled out," Hart said.

She welcomed the chance to talk with other families who had lost a loved one. "You've got a real connection [with the other families]," she said.

Army Pfc. John Hart, the oldest of the couple's three children, was killed in action while on patrol in Iraq. His unarmored Humvee, the third vehicle in a group of three, was ambushed with grenades and small firearms. The first two vehicles got away as Hart, who was manning a machine gun, shot at the attackers. His vehicle ended up in a ditch, and the driver was thrown out. "An expert with a rifle," according to his mother, Hart was holding off the guerillas when he ran out of bullets. He, along with another soldier in the Humvee, died.

His parents think their son's death could have been prevented.

During a phone call home, John had told his dad that he was "flat out scared" because he and his fellow soldiers were using an unarmored Humvee - as had been many others. Alma Hart said that one out of eight Humvees being used in Iraq is armored. The rest are not. Her son had also mentioned that he didn't have proper body armor.

In Hart's unarmored Humvee, the doors had been taken off, offering little protection from the enemy. In an up-armored Humvee, among other features, there are bulletproof windows, a roof gun turret, gun shields and upgraded suspensions - safeguard measures that keep soldiers protected from grenades and bullets.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., who is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, met with the Harts after they buried their son in Arlington National Cemetery on Nov. 4, 2003. He has pledged his support to them to get more money so that the troops can have more protection.

In the meantime, as a stopgap measure, the Army has been testing armor kits that can be used for modification of unarmored Humvees. Out of desperation, some of the soldiers in Iraq are using scrap iron to strap on to their Humvees. Ironically, according to Alma Hart, there has been some exchange with Vietnam veterans who have been telling the soldiers in Iraq what they did so many years ago to protect themselves.

The Harts have pledged their support to see that the soldiers in Iraq are properly protected. It's what's keeping them going. "We're doing fine," Alma Hart said. "This is giving us something positive to do. There are young men over there who are in harm's way." Alma wants people to write to their congressmen about the issue.

She said that she and her husband had wanted John to go to college first, but he wanted to go straight into the Army. It was in his blood. He had uncles who had been in the Marines and the Navy. By Sept. 18, 2002, the well-liked Bedford High School, Class of 2002 graduate had joined the Army. He graduated from airborne training in March 2003, then went to Italy and rotated into Iraq that July. His patrol was part of the Fourth Infantry Division and the 173rd Airborne Brigade.

During high school, John had been co-captain of the rifle team during junior and senior years and had also been co-captain of the junior varsity lacrosse team. He'd taught swimming and had been an officer in Jr. ROTC.

"We're very proud of him," his mother said. John earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for bravery. "He was doing very well in the Army." she said. After he'd been in the service for a while, the Army had invited him to apply to West Point. The paperwork never made it into his hands.

Alma Hart said, "He was the kid who didn't grow out of wanting to be a soldier," she said.