Nearly three years ago, WFAA introduced viewers to Peter Burks.
The second lieutenant died in Iraq, but not before sending home a Christmas list to his dad. On the list, there was not one request for the soldier himself. Instead, it was all wishes for his fellow soldiers.
He asked for items the soldiers need for daily life in combat zones.
When WFAA aired his story, the response was so great that the Burks family sent seven tons of items overseas in what is now being called the Peter Burks Country Store. But, now there is a need to restock the shelves as Burks' old unit gets ready to deploy with 5,000 other men and women.
A roadside bomb took 2nd Lt. Burks' life nearly three years ago in Iraq. For his sister, Ali Burks, even seeing a soldier at the airport draws emotion.
"I cried picking up my luggage," she said.
Not a moment goes by that she doesn't long to laugh beside her big brother.
"Sometimes you try to immerse yourself in something like this to — I don't want to say forget — but to keep yourself busy," she said. "So, you're doing something to remember him and keep his legacy alive."
As Burks' old unit deploys again, volunteers work to restock his country store that will deploy as well. It's a place for soldiers to feel closer to home at no cost. Sometimes that item is a book or a certain kind of junk food that does the trick.
"It blows your mind what people are willing to do for people they don't know," Burks said.
One such example are some donated ties that were made by a woman in Amarillo. She hopes the ties will help keep the soldiers cool.
"It's a constant reminder of the power of the people and the power of a story , unselfish sacrifice and love," Burks said. "There is still goodness in the world."
E-mail: sslater@wfaa.com
