WASHINGTON -- Penny Vu was the first person in a long line of people waiting to pay their respects to the late Sen. John McCain in the Capitol Rotunda, where his body was lying in state.
Vu, 46, was very young when his family fled war-torn Vietnam and made their way to America.
One of the things he said he's most appreciative of is McCain's service and great sacrifice in Vietnam, particularly the years he spent as a prisoner of war and the hardships he endured while in captivity, all the while, never losing faith with fellow prisoners.
Not far behind Vu in line was Greg Brock, an Army veteran who served from 1982 to 1985 as a chaplain's assistant.
"Today and yesterday have been very emotional for me," Brock said, noting that on Thursday, he had been at Joint Base Andrews with a veteran friend to watch as McCain's body arrived from Arizona. Brock had driven there from his home in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
"McCain was a real American hero," Brock said.
In 2008, Brock met McCain and wife Cindy at a campaign rally in Jacksonville, Florida.
McCain was running for president at the time, but Brock said both candidate and wife took a moment to pose with him for a photo, which he had with him.
When McCain heard that Brock was a veteran, he became very interested and asked what branch and other questions relating to his service, he said.
"That he took time to talk to me was really special as was the connection we made, one veteran to another," Brock said.
Beside Brock was another vet, retired Army Capt. Mark Schivley, who had taken the train from New York City.
Schivley said it was a big honor to be in the nation's capital to pay tribute to a great leader and a great American.
"He didn't need to stay in the Navy after being a POW, but he did, because he wanted to serve. He didn't have to go to Congress, but he did because he wanted to serve. I respect that," said Schivley, who himself was in combat during the Gulf War and retired in 1995 after serving 20 years.
Christina Ladd, with her daughter Liberty, were also at the Capitol to pay their respects.
Ladd was a member of McCain's staff during his run for president in 2000 and 2008. She coordinated his press events.
Over her many interactions with the senator, what stands out the most, she said, was his advice to her on the importance of building personal relationships and being respectful, not just with friends and allies, but with adversaries, be they political, business, military or other. Do that and good things will follow, he told her.
Ladd said she knows it's easy to get angry with those you vehemently disagree with, she said, but it takes a person with a big heart to be civil and to agree to disagree. McCain was that person with a big heart, she said.
Ladd also remembers McCain as being a very caring individual. He'd frequently ask her and other staff members how they were doing and if there was anything he could do to help them, she said.
Liberty said she was just six when she met McCain during the 2008 campaign. Nonetheless, over the years, she said, the senator has had a big impact on her and she said that helped influence her desire to serve America in some future capacity, perhaps even in Congress.
Long-time senator John McCain, of Arizona, died August 25 after a bout with brain cancer. McCain was a Navy aviator, a Vietnam War veteran, and a prisoner of war. He served as the U.S. senator from Arizona since 1987, was a fixture on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and since 2015, served as chairman of the SASC.
A funeral for the senator is scheduled for Saturday at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
(Follow David Vergun on Twitter: @vergunARNEWS)
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