At the risk of turning my blog into a memorial page, let me tell you a little bit about my nephew. It would have been his 28th birthday today. Corey seemed to take on life with a sort of happy, bold tenacity. Everything he did he seemed to bring huge passion and joy.
He went from being a kid that I liked hanging out with, reading, going to movies, playing ball in the yard to being a genuine hero to me. In his early life, I learned how cool it might be to be a father from him.
He jumped into his career with a drive like no other. I felt like I was always saying “He’s doing WHAT now?!” Army Intelligence training, serving in Germany, later at the NSA, Iraq, and probably some places that he didn’t tell me about. I was amazed and proud of my nephew. I was further struck when a huge line of co-workers from his last job at the National Ground Intelligence Center came to his funeral. Most of them had personal stories or memories of him and had come to tell his family how much this young man meant to them, meant to their work, meant to our service people in the field and to our country.
The last time I think I talked to him at length was when he was helping my son, Jason decide how to approach his military career. Actually, the last time I spoke to him, we were chatting online about how I didn’t call the last time I was in Virginia. He was indignant at first, but then he started showing me pictures of his dog and his latest motorcycle.
Happy Birthday, Corey. I miss you terribly. Godspeed, little man!
Love, Uncle Bill
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