FORT LEAVENWORTH. Kan. (Aug. 5, 2010) - On May 21 a Medical Department Activity Soldier doing physical training on the field in front of Gruber Fitness Center found an identification tag of another Soldier.
Spc. Bradley Benham, a laboratory technician at Munson Army Health Center, said he returned to work preparing to try to contact the Soldier the tag belonged to. Before he could, he read a story in a Kansas City newspaper about a Soldier from Fort Leavenworth who died in Afghanistan on May 18 from wounds received from a terrorist car bomb, Col. John McHugh. McHugh was the chief of Battle Command Training Program's Operations Group A.
"I was reading the article and I noticed the name and realized it was the same name as on the ID tag," Benham said.
Benham did some research to make sure it was the same person.
"When I found out it was his, I decided I wanted to do a plaque or something and give it to the family," Benham said.
Benham took his own MAHC coin, which he had received for making the commandant's list at the Warrior Leader Course, and the ID tag to the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks Sales Store to have a plaque made.
On May 27, Benham joined other MAHC staff lining the street outside the health center as McHugh's funeral cortege traveled from the funeral service at Main Post Chapel to the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery where McHugh was laid to rest.
McHugh is survived by his wife, five children and a granddaughter.
McHugh's widow, Connie, and four of his children were home when Benham delivered the plaque on July 23.
The inscription on the brass plate between Benham's coin and McHugh's ID tag reads "With our condolences, Munson Army Health Center."
"It is one thing to give a family an ID tag they probably already had," Benham said. "I wanted to do something special."
Benham said he would want the same for his own family, something they could always cherish, not just some tag that might get lost in a move.
"Being from Munson, that's what we're all about - helping others," Benham said.
After meeting McHugh's children, Benham said he was glad they were there when he presented the plaque. He said he hopes he set a good example.
"Maybe one day they'll do something good for someone else along the line," Benham said.
"The important thing is the Army family," Benham said. "We have to take care of Soldiers and their families - they are all our family."
Editor's note: Tisha Entwistle is the public affairs officer for Munson Army Health Center.
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