By Dennis Brent Melby
Her Dad was so proud of his girl – she was so mature and patriotic, smart and beautiful (even if he was biased). And she had volunteered to enlist and volunteered again to re-up to serve in DC during the Thanksgiving holiday – so that others could spend time with their kids and so the people she has come to love in our Nation’s capital would feel a little bit safer this holiday season.
When she and her partner came around the corner she was shot in the face, then shot again with her own gun. She hung on for two days clinging to life and hope…and then she was gone. She wasn’t 21 yet, but her life was taken on the DC streets by an angry man from another country – and it was so wrong on all counts. He also shot her partner, who’s now clinging to life.
I know the area well. For about a year, 6 days a week, I worked at my White House office around the corner on Lafayette Park, a great area in a townhouse that was saved and renovated by Jackie Kennedy. The Guard Officer Beckstrom was killed just yards away; outside the subway I took almost every day. Her father was devastated, her National Guard partners were distraught – yet continued to patrol our capital city to keep it safe for residents, tourists, folks from MoCo and workers.
The face of evil is a man rescued from Afghanistan’s Taliban – who came here on our dime, stayed in our housing, accepted our food and hospitality and became convinced that Americans are evil and must be taught a lesson in blood. And he leaves us with 5 kids and a wife to take care of too – even though he was told Americans are horrible he was sure they’d be OK here with us.
Are you as amazed as I am of the voices on the far left? She shouldn’t have been trying to help patrol DC. She was terrifying the residents. She was helping ICE drag off every foreigner and person of color. It’s all hogwash. “Watch her!” they said – these soldiers are trigger happy and here to serve the fascists and nazi sympathizers. Now she’s gone, one less patriotic good neighbor trying to help us make DC safer. And her Dad will mourn until he sees her again.
God bless our troops, God bless the volunteer National Guard, we support our troops, we back the Blue, we value our neighbors and DC residents and are glad they’ve gotten a taste of safety and security. Keep it up, God Bless America.
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Dennis Brent Melby, a Republican Central Committee Member served as the Montgomery County Republican Party Chair in 2020 and 2024. He's a previous 4 term Councilmember in Friendship Heights and former local REALTOR President. To reach him email [email protected].