Ray Estrada was flipping through the Sunday paper during the Memorial Day weekend when his eyes lit upon Parade magazine's cover story about a 22-year-old Marine who gave his life by throwing his helmet over a hand grenade to save his men.
"The fact that he had the character, the conviction to do that -- it was a really touching story," Estrada said.
The Marine's character and conviction were precisely the traits Estrada wanted his sons, Josh, 16, and Jordan, 14, to have. "They needed to understand what other youngsters were doing out there," he said.
The article also struck a chord with Josh and Jordan, so much so that the Ashburn brothers, both All-County guitarists, decided to put the story of Cpl. Jason L. Dunham to music.
Dunham was patrolling near the Iraq-Syria border April 14, 2004, when he and another member of the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment began searching a vehicle for weapons. The hand grenade was thrown by the Iraqi driver, wounding Dunham and two of his men. A metal fragment the size of a pencil eraser was embedded in Dunham's brain, the Parade article said. He was flown to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, where his parents removed him from life support a week later.
"I know a lot of people sacrifice their lives, but something about what Jason did hit me and my brother," Josh Estrada said.
Within a month, the brothers had written and recorded "Last Letters and New Tears," a four-minute rock ballad. The brothers and 14-year-old percussionist Jordan Faett, who call themselves the "Josh Estrada Project," performed the song in public for the second time Friday evening at the Broadlands Live! summer concert in Ashburn.
"It gets you a little teary-eyed when you think about what's behind it," said Gail Bottoms, a member of the audience who lives four houses down from the Estradas.
The song's title and refrain come from President Bush's Memorial Day speech: "Today is a day of last letters and fresh tears," the president said after reading from the final correspondence of several soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. "Because of the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform, two terror regimes are gone forever, freedom is on the march and America is more secure," Bush said.
"Last Letters and New Tears" is the Estrada brothers' way of supporting the troops. "Whatever our issues, [the troops] need our support -- let them do their job and bring them home," Ray Estrada said.
The brothers have received numerous e-mails from veterans and their family members who have heard the song, which is available only on the Internet ( http://www.joshestrada.com ).
"Even though before now, you probably didn't know [my husband] by name, to know that you are remembering all our heroes brings me a comfort I can't describe," wrote one woman whose husband was killed in Iraq in 2003.
