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Tampa Bay's Gold Star Mothers hold day of love and remembrance for fallen sons, daughters

 
The Tampa Bay Chapter of American Gold Star Mothers and the Veterans Council of Hillsborough County honor fallen heroes and their families on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Park in Tampa.
The Tampa Bay Chapter of American Gold Star Mothers and the Veterans Council of Hillsborough County honor fallen heroes and their families on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Park in Tampa.
Published Sept. 25, 2016

TAMPA — Toni Gross and Annette Kirk stood close to each other as they shared a podium in Veterans Memorial Park and Museum on Saturday.

Their heads bobbed to and from a microphone as they traded off reading the names of fallen troops — until Kirk paused. She wouldn't say the next name, even though it was her turn. Her eyes locked with Gross'.

"Go ahead," she said.

"U.S. Army Cpl. Frank R. Gross," Gross replied.

A moment later, Kirk leaned in and said her son's name: "United States Army 1st Class Paul O. Cuzzupe II."

The third Saturday of every September marks Gold Star Family's and Mother's Day. It's a day mothers and families can hear or say their loved one's names — means to ensure they're never forgotten.

Gold Star families are those who lost a son, daughter, brother, sister or relative who was on active duty. President Franklin Roosevelt declared Gold Star Mother's Day a holiday in 1936, and in 2009, President Barack Obama extended it to include families. Gold Star Mothers itself was founded in 1928.

Despite the group and day's long history, they remain largely unfamiliar to those without ties to the military.

Although that changed somewhat last month, when Gold Star families were thrust into the spotlight following the Democratic National Convention speech given by Khizr Khan, a Gold Star father, against Republican nominee Donald Trump. Trump then made comments about Khan's wife, Ghazala Khan, not speaking. A feud began, creating a divide among Gold Star families — a group known to be tight-knit and supportive.

"It has not been a good reflection," Gross said. "We're here to change people's minds and build up Gold Star families."

She worries people view them as angry. "But we are not," she said.

And Saturday was clearly a service of love.

Another name read aloud belonged to Army Sgt. Terry Lisk, who died during combat in Iraq. He was 26.

"On June 26, 2006, I became a Gold Star Mother," his mother, Lorrie Fleming, told Saturday's crowd. "Actually, I didn't know I became a Gold Star Mother on that day, until the lieutenant governor of the state of Illinois told me. … All I knew is that in 2003, my son came to me and told me he wanted to join the Army."

It wasn't until moving to Florida in 2011 that Fleming discovered a strong network of Gold Star Mothers in the Tampa Bay area.

"Today is important because we all got to say our sons' names … so they're not forgotten." Fleming, of Polk City, said after the ceremony. "These were real people."

The mothers will also be at a service for Gold Star Family's and Mother's Day at the veterans park in Oldsmar today. Gross, the chapter's president, hosted the area's first such remembrance service in 2012.

Gross, Fleming and Kirk stood beside each other behind a large wreath as the ceremony ended. They dressed in white, a Gold Star Mothers tradition.

They bowed their heads down as doves were released into the sky and Taps played through the loudspeakers. The bangs of the three-shot salute hung in the air as the families began to break the silence, hug each other and admire a table displaying about a dozen photos of the fallen.

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Contact Sara DiNatale at sdinatale@tampabay.com. Follow @sara_dinatale.