Vietnam Veteran Sgt. Matthew Francis Kelly made a dying wish to his nurse

Strangers invited to funeral for Vietnam veteran who died alone. ‘I wanted to honor his final wishes,’ his nurse said.

Philadelphia Enquirer
by Melanie Burney
July 9, 2019

Kelly left Vietnam in November 1970 and received an honorable discharge, his records show. Little is known about his life after the military. He returned to Philadelphia. Richello said he had a hard life, “and he was one of the forgotten.”

BRADLEY C BOWER / FOR THE INQUIRER

Former Army Sgt. Matthew Francis Kelly made a dying wish to his nurse: He wanted to be buried with full military honors, a parade, bagpipes, and a 21-gun salute.

In death, Kelly will get what he did not receive in life when he returned home to Philadelphia from the Vietnam War nearly 50 years ago. His nurse, Jennifer Richello, has recruited a band of strangers to keep the promise she made to Kelly on his deathbed a few months ago.

“I wanted to honor his final wishes, and love and respect for his service to our country,” Richello, a registered nurse, said in a statement Tuesday. “Kelly was a good man and deserves this.”

Richello also made a special request to mourners: bring a can of Pepsi to the funeral. Kelly loved the soft drink, she said.

After graduating from high school, Kelly enlisted on Jan. 14, 1969, his 20th birthday. He completed training at Fort Bragg, N.C, and Fort Sill, Okla., according to his military record. He was deployed to Vietnam in December 1969 and served as a communications chief in the 13th Battalion Signal, First Cavalry Division.
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Disabled veteran left with nasty note for parking in handicap spot

DISABLED VETERANS PARK IN HANDICAP SPOT, RETURN TO FIND RACIST NOTE CRITICIZING THEM FOR USING THE SPACE

Newsweek
BY DONICA PHIFER
7/11/19

"You may not physically see their disability. But everyone wears their scars differently. You just have to simply go back to the Golden Rule: treating people how you want to be treated," Marqueena said.

Two veterans are speaking out after they discovered a racist note left on their car following a trip to the grocery store.

Kenneth and Marquenna Moore, both former military veterans who were injured in service, returned to their car to find a note telling them not to park in a handicap space, despite their car having a license plate that says they are disabled military veterans. KHOU

The incident occurred in Cypress, Texas when Kenneth and Marquenna Moore parking in a handicap space during their trip to H-E-B. The couple, who have been married for 15 years, returned to their car afterward to reportedly find a note that read, "just because you are black and have a nice car does not make you handicapped ;)," KHOU reports.

"(I was) Shocked. Then actually angry, because I'm like, the plates are right there! How do you not see?," Marquenna told KHOU.

The couple's car does not have a hangtag to designate their car as one for disabled persons, but the license plates — required by Texas law to be placed on the front and back of all vehicles — indicates that the car is registered to a disabled veteran. According to KHOU, the designation is noticeable by the "Disabled Veteran U.S. Armed Forces" text printed along the bottom of the plate.

Both Kenneth and Marqueena were injured while serving in the U.S. Military, they told the tv station. Both were stationed with the U.S. Navy and met while serving in Japan, Kenneth served for 12 years and Marqueena for eight.

Kenneth told KHOU that his time serving was "amazing" but added that "it does take a toll on your body mentally and physically."

Kenneth's injuries include a traumatic brain injury which created a stutter. Both say they suffer from PTSD.
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Disabled veteran, who was not D.B. Cooper, passed away

He died claiming to be a disabled veteran. But many believe he was hijacker D.B. Cooper.

The Washington Post
By Morgan Krakow
July 11, 2019

Rackstraw, a former Army helicopter pilot who had been awarded a Silver Star for valor, didn’t surface as a suspect until the late 1970s, according to news reports. He’d been arrested on charges of murdering his stepfather, but was acquitted in a trial in 1978.

A man who some believed to be the elusive D.B. Cooper died Tuesday in Southern California.

Robert Rackstraw, who was featured in a 2016 History Channel documentary about the notorious criminal, was pronounced dead at home in the early hours of July 9, according to the San Diego Medical Examiner’s Office. He died of a “long-standing heart condition,” according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Cooper, known for the hijacking of a flight bound for Seattle from Portland, Ore., is thought to have leaped from the plane with $200,000 in cash. Authorities tracked down hundreds of potential suspects but were never able to find Cooper or his body.

The hijacking, the longest unsolved crime of its kind in FBI history, has baffled official and unofficial investigators for decades. Though the FBI closed the case in 2016, theories about the identity of Cooper have continued to swirl.
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Disabled veteran attacked by man with knife

FLORIDA OFFICER SHOOTS DEAD MAN HOLDING KNIFE ON VETERAN IN WHEELCHAIR WHO ENDS UP WITH MINOR NOSE INJURY

By FOX 13 News staff
Posted Jul 11 2019

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (FOX 30/FOX 13) - Jacksonville police shot and killed a man holding a disabled Army veteran in a wheelchair at knifepoint, they said.

The officer-involved shooting occurred on State Street near the Ritz Theatre around 11:20 p.m. Wednesday, reports FOX 30. Police initially responded out to an “armed aggravated assault” report.

When law enforcement officers arrived, they found a man holding a knife to the victim’s neck. Officers said he refused to drop the knife even after they gave a verbal command, according to FOX 30.

The officer feared for the victim’s life and fatally shot the suspect, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. They said the officer was wearing a body camera.

The man in the wheelchair, who did not want to be identified, told FOX 30 he is an Army veteran who calls Jacksonville his home. He explained that he met the suspect this week and the man appeared to be nice and quiet. However, on Wednesday, the victim said the suspect was acting belligerent while holding the knife and threatening to harm people.
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Driver backed up to get around body of veteran he hit before driving off

77-year-old Army veteran in motorized scooter hit, killed by minivan in hit-and-run crash

WFTS News
By: Michael Paluska
Jul 09, 2019

"The driver was going way too fast, and the driver knew that he hit him never got out of his vehicle backed up a little bit to basically get around the body or around the wheelchair or the scooter and proceeded westbound down Moog Road," Zimmerman said.

HOLIDAY, Fla. — The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly hit-and-run crash in Pasco County.

Troopers tell us they located a 90-year-old man who is a person of interest along with the minivan they believe was involved in the fatal hit and run. The person of interest lives five blocks away from where 77-year-old Larry Small was hit and killed.

The Florida Highway Patrol responded to a call of a crash involving a pedestrian on a motorized wheelchair and a Dodge minivan just before 12:30 p.m. on Monday.

The incident happened on Moog Road at Pinehurst Drive.

Troopers say Small, of Holiday, was hit by a 1991 Dodge minivan as he entered the intersection. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the minivan drove away after striking Small.

That vehicle has since been seized as evidence.
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