I had the honor of serving with a great American in Somalia and the Balkans,
"Spark" was a proud, tough, down and dirty grunt, he was also gay and firmly in the closet as this was the Don't Ask Don't Tell Army, and as infantry he knew it would be "most bad juju" if anyone knew. He remained in the Army after I got out and I learned of his death, in combat, in the Al Anbar Province in 2005.
He served with utmost pride and dedication for, and gave all to this nation, but at his burial, his partner, the man he had planned to spend his life with, was not allowed to receive his flag, nor the thanks of a grateful nation.
Our only consolation was he was buried, in full uniform, with Freedom Rings on his dog tags, and a picture of Judy Garland in his pocket (an inside joke between a few of us).
I am so glad that now hopefully ALL spouses will given the same respect, honors and recognition.
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