Local family, friends remember those who have fallen
HOUSTON
"Seven o'clock in the morning, I got a knock on the door, with three Marines standing there," said Shellie Greer. "Honestly, the worst day of my life."
Greer says Memorial Day used to be about going to the beach or getting an extra day off work. But everything changed when her son joined the Marines. This Memorial Day is one she won't forget.
It's a visit no mother should ever have to make - a visit to her child's grave.
"It's tough, it's tough. I'm still amazed that you can feel such pride and pain at the same time," Greer said. "I've never felt that before."
She does not make the visit alone.
On this Memorial Day, she is surrounded by fellow members of Houston Marine Moms. They have come to honor her son, Garret Gamble, who died in Afghanistan a little more than two months ago.
"There's strength in numbers. The Marine Corps is a family, so we come together as a family and let them know they'll never be forgotten," said Kay Gibson, founder of Houston Marine Moms.
It's a family which also includes Marshal Field. He went through boot camp with Gamble and never thought he would spend Memorial Day remembering his friend and fellow Marine.
When we asked Field what Gamble would want him to do, even on a day like this, Field replied, "Smile."
It is not the Memorial Day they ever planned, but for friends and family of Garrett Gamble it's a day they will cherish.
"It hurts every day, but yet I got to look at what he did, what my son accomplished and how brave he was. So that helps," said Greer.
The group Houston Marine Moms was founded seven years ago as a way for local Marine moms to support each other, and also their children serving in the military.
