A Tribute Before War's End

"We found a way to put our political baggage at the door," Del Gallo said. "I think the goal is to try to create the environment where people can do the same."

They also agreed that the memorial needed to be done now, before the war ends.

"It's a place for these soldiers to come back to -- to right now have a place to do this," Del Gallo said. "They have names and faces, and here they are. . . . They aren't just numbers and blips on the television."

Roustazad said he would like the memorial to stay in Manassas, and at the ceremony, Mayor Douglas S. Waldron (R) promised to do what he could to help. "It's very fitting to me . . . that the effort for this would take place in Manassas," Waldron said. "The first death in Afghanistan was a person from Manassas."

CIA officer Johnny "Mike" Spann, 32, of Manassas Park was killed Nov. 25, 2001, in an uprising by Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners in northern Afghanistan.

As he stood before the smooth black stones, Waldron said he knew they weren't blank. "I know there are names that are waiting to be engraved on this," he said.

When it was Roustazad's turn to speak, he uttered only a few sentences, mostly offering his thanks. He then held up a pin that a Marine had given him after hearing about the memorial. The Marine told Roustazad that he'd taken it off a soldier of Saddam Hussein's elite guard whom he had shot.

"By passing over that pin to me, he handed over his conscience to me and his nightmares to me," Roustazad said, his voice raspy with emotion. "In my opinion, this is the most important thing about this memorial." That it will be there for those who come home as well as those who don't.