Kendra Helmer/USAID(WASHINGTON) — In her first public appearance since the weekend birth of granddaughter Charlotte, Hillary Clinton spoke at an event Wednesday evening in New York for an organization that cares for the families of fallen military members, who greeted her with moving stories of their loved ones.
“This a great privilege, but it is also for me emotional as we celebrate the birth of our granddaughter and as I look out and see all of you who are thinking of your loved ones and the life that he or she lived,” Clinton said at the event for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors or TAPS, a group that supports, connects and provides grief resources to military families who have lost loved ones.
In the introduction, TAPS president Bonnie Carroll told Clinton she is “family” and gave her the organization’s Lifetime Service Award. Clinton spoke at another event for the group in 2006 and has served as an honorary chairwoman.
Throughout her speech, some in the crowd became emotional and many of them took to the rope line afterwards to share stories of their deceased family members and show photos, with several telling her heartbreaking stories. Some just wanted to take a photo with Clinton, but many more had a story to tell.
One woman, after telling the former secretary of state about her fallen husband, said, “I miss him every day, thank you for coming.”
Clinton listened to their stories and expressed her condolences, saying over and over again, “I am so, so sorry,” at times holding the family members’ hands. One man told her about his nephew who he said “got the run around” and “got screwed at the VA.”
“We need to help the VA and we need to help the mental health system,” he told her. Clinton nodded in agreement.
He also urged her to run for president.
In her speech, she told the families “it’s really important to me that we never forget your loved ones and we never forget you.”
“At a time when sometimes we seem divided and people seem to be arguing all the time we really have to take stock of how blessed we are and grateful for the men and women who serve us and be thankful that we have through all of our ups and downs and our challenges continues to stand for the values that unite us: freedom and democracy and opportunity and by supporting you all who will serve in the future,” Clinton told the crowd at Stella 43 Trattoria, a restaurant inside the iconic New York City Macy’s store.
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