Womack says 27 faces a reminder
War-dead poster to stay up as long as he’s in office, he vows
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Steve Womack walks past the faces of 27 Arkansans who died in Iraq or Afghanistan each time he enters his congressional office.
He led some of the men in the Arkansas National Guard. He watched others grow up in his 3rd District.
“It strengthens my resolve to make a difference in our nation because they were willing to die for it. We need to remind ourselves,” the Republican from Rogers said. “To do it on occasion is OK, but to me, it requires having a daily appreciation for what they have endured.”
There were 5,323 U.S. combat-related deaths between March 19, 2003, and Nov. 8, 2013, according to the U.S. Defense Department. A list of Arkansas-related soldiers who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan is available at www.arkansasonline.com/ warcasualties.
Outside Womack’s office, a poster showing individual pictures of the service members spans several feet and includes names, birthplaces, ranks, military branches and regiments, along with the locations and dates of death.
“There’s a lot of times I’m standing out in the hallway … and I catch myself focusing in on one of those pictures,” Womack said.
He said he remembers the service members’ memorials, the moment he heard about their deaths and how proud their communities are.
“I leave my office, and I’ll find complete strangers out there transfixed on that wall and reading about those strangers,” Womack said.
He said people see the sacrifices and respect the congressional district for the heroes it produced.
“I like that feeling,” Womack said.
Womack is a retired colonel and 30-year veteran of the Arkansas Army National Guard. He led the first Army National Guard unit called to active duty in the Middle East after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The first photo on the poster is of Army Sgt. Russell Lee Collier, 48, a medic from Harrison who died in Taji, Iraq, on Oct. 3, 2004, from small-arms fire during a firefight. The most recent photo is of Army Spc. Payton Jones, 19, who was born in Van Buren and died in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on March, 1, 2012, during an attack on his base.
“The 3rd District of Arkansas has certainly given more than its share in defense of our country,” Womack said. “They are all important. There’s not one of them up there that stands out more than the others because they are all heroes.”
The photos are of men from Clarksville, Harrison, Hector, Russellville and a dozen other towns in the northwest corner of the state. Most of the photos show men in military garb in front of a flag or on duty.
Similar posters were common along the halls of the House office buildings when Womack entered Congress in 2012, he said.
Womack is one of a handful of representatives who still has the sheet of color photos, labeled “Fallen Heroes,” outside his office. Across the hall, visitors to the office of U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher, R-Tenn., see similar faces. A floor below, the faces of nearly 150 Washington state service members stretch from ceiling to floor.
Dan Weiser, a spokesman for Congress’ chief administration officer, said the House Graphics Office started getting requests for the posters in 2003. He didn’t know the last time a poster was requested.
“Whenever an office orders one, we are perfectly happy to make it,” he said.
None of the other members of the Arkansas delegation have the posters outside their congressional offices, though other members display photos inside their offices or have information available that is specifically aimed at veterans.
Similar photos are in the corridor outside Womack’s office in Rogers.
Womack said the photos remind him of a Bible verse: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
“That’s a visual proof of that passage of scripture,” Womack said.
Although combat has wound down in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the last photo was added in 2012, the pictures aren’t going anywhere, Womack said.
“I’m sure it will come down when that office is no longer occupied by me. Not before,” Womack said. “I’m just hopeful that we’re not going to have to add to it.”
He’s never made a point of informing the families about the photos and isn’t sure whether they know.
“I’m sure it’s not going to bother them,” Womack said. “It’s done in the interest of honoring them and their sacrifice.”