Gold Star Mother Interview
(As some of you know, I am the Content Coordinator for a small-town magazine here in Texas. I had the unexpected privilege of interviewing a Gold Star Mother. Here is an excerpt from the interview. I’m sharing this because I don’t want to lose how precious this was to me.)
And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” – Isaiah 6:8
I’m going to do something a little out of the ordinary with this article. Normally, I try to remove myself as much as possible from the interview and let the family simply talk and share themselves. These stories are about Pecan, not myself. For this story, I’m going to make an exception. I’m going to use myself as a bridge to help capture the emotion of this interview.
There are two things you need to know upfront. First, I am an amateur (meaning a lover of something) modern military historian. I have shelves of books about and written by men who have served in the military. My love is for boots-on-the-ground stories and my main points of study have been Easy Company from the 101st Airborne in WW2, Fifth Marines operating in the Pacific during WW2, Operation Red Wing from the War on Terror, and Operation Gothic Serpent, better known as the Battle of Mogadishu, or Black Hawk Down. I believe that well-made war movies provide civilians with a sense of what our military does for us, the sacrifices they make for each other, and for our country. I think our war movies are our modern myths and legends.
Second, I had no idea who Gail Joyce was when I called her up to do her interview. She had been suggested by Brenda who introduced her to me as a “board member for MOAA (Military Officers Association of America). Gail is so knowledgeable about MOAA to the point that she travels giving lectures and promoting MOAA across the country.” I know Gail would be an interesting interview and looked forward to talking with her. I’m not familiar with the MOAA, so I was also looking forward to learning something new about the military.
The interview started fairly normally with talks about the MOAA, her husband’s years of service, and her family. As Gail told me about her three children, she told me about Steven, then Sancy, and then “Casey who is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.”
“What?” I asked.
“I haven’t mentioned Casey yet?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Casey was an Army Ranger. He died in the Battle of Mogadishu.”
I wish I could fully impart to you what I felt when Gail said that relatively short sentence. I felt shocked like someone had struck me. My love of military history is deeply personal to me. Having something that matters so much to me brought up unexpectedly emotionally staggered me. It was disorienting. I felt my worlds collide. My love of boots-on-the-ground stories isn’t one that often touches my Pecan Neighbors writing. Most of all, I felt a profound sense of honor. To speak with Gail, the mother of Casey Joyce is something I will never forget. I am profoundly humbled by this privilege. Women who tend the home fires and those who pay the ultimate price for our freedoms—the lives of their sons and daughters—can never be given enough praise or tears from grateful citizens. Along with all of this was the sense of being so close to a battle I’ve studied, to men who fought with such courage in such desperate circumstances. Like I want to be a bridge for you, Gail was a bridge for me to men I love but have never met. The only thing I could do when Gail said, “He died in Mogadishu,” was cry.
I did not know when I started talking to Gail, that I would end up uncontrollably sobbing and that we would both end up in tears. I don’t think Gail expected to find herself on the phone with someone who would know who her son was.
“Sergeant Jim Telscher and Sergeant Casey Joyce were my right-hand men. The sergeants were my two team leaders. Jim had worked for me for almost a year, and Casey had been with me for a couple of months. They were capable young men whom I admired and trusted wholeheartedly…Casey was “Mr. Dependable”—always there to lend a hand, always calm and collected, and always there to listen and offer opinions at the right time.” – Matt Eversmann, The Battle of Mogadishu.
“Casey was 30 hours away from graduating college when he told us he wanted to join the Army and be a Ranger,” Gail shared her story. “Larry (Gail’s husband, more about him later) wanted to talk him out of it because Casey was used to a very comfortable life and had a temper. Larry kept telling him how hard basic training was and how tough the drill sergeants could be. But Casey would respond that it wasn’t like that anymore—drill sergeants couldn’t be so hard on recruits. The recruiter he talked to said so! But when Casey made his first call home, he told his dad, ‘I met him!’ Larry said, ‘Who?’ and Casey replied. ‘The Devil! The drill sergeant!”’
“Casey successfully completed basic training and jump training and graduated from Ranger training the first time through. Then his Ranger unit got sent to Mogadishu.’
“He was 24 years old and married to his high school sweetheart. He’s buried in Arlington National Cemetery. His dad is buried there also—just 55’ away.’
“Casey was killed early on in the battle. A young soldier on his team, Todd Blackburn, missed the repelling rope coming out of the helicopter at the beginning of the operation --falling 75’ to the ground. He was seriously injured.”
“Time was critical for Ranger Blackburn. We had been under steady fire from the Somalis almost since we inserted. I never looked at my watch, so I have no idea how long we were there, but it seemed like an eternity. I called Sergeant Joyce. Casey was there in an instant for my instructions.” – Matt Eversmann, The Battle of Mogadishu.
“Casey organized a team to take Blackburn to safety. They put him on a stretcher and began running with him under heavy enemy fire. They finally had to put him down and Casey ran off to get a jeep so they could get him medical care more quickly. He got a jeep; they loaded Blackburn on it and Casey returned to his assigned blocking position near a downed helicopter. According to reports, he was under good cover, down on one knee, returning disciplined fire just the way he had been taught when a gun barrel poked out from a window above and behind him. With a quick burst, a round hit Casey in the upper back where the Rangers’ new Kevlar flak vest did not have a protective plate. The round pierced his heart, and he died instantly. Casey received the Silver Star posthumously for his actions that day.”
Through our tears, Gail continued, “I met Blackburn at a viewing of Black Hawk Down for the Ranger unit at Ft. Benning, Georgia. I went with an army friend of ours for a pre-release for the military. Keni Thomas, who was Casey’s best friend, sat with me to prepare me for what I was going to see. After the movie, they had a reception. Todd Blackburn was there. He gave me a great big hug and thanked me for Casey. ‘I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for Casey’s efforts,’ Blackburn said, ‘and I want you to meet someone.’ Blackburn introduced me to his daughter named Casey.”
At this point, we both paused to regain some emotional control. “I don’t know how many kids are running around out there named James or Casey because of Casey. Whenever I think I’ll never again meet someone who remembers him, I run into someone who knew him or has a story to tell about him.”
It is my poignant privilege to do my part to make sure Casey and all the men involved in the Battle of Mogadishu aren’t forgotten. It is my honor to make sure Gail’s sacrifice isn’t forgotten.
“I stay in touch with Casey’s widow, DeAnna. In 2012 I created an event for Memorial Day in Granbury to honor and remember Casey and Larry and all those who serve. DeAnna joined us in 2023 for the event when Mike Kurth, one of Casey’s Ranger buddies spoke. And, in 2024, I retired from the event and DeAnna joined us. That was special. We usually talk on their wedding anniversary (which is always Memorial Day weekend!) and the anniversary of Casey’s death. She is married and has three kids.”
I’ve talked to some real treasures, salt-of-the-earth type people, but only Gail has made me cry in an interview. Take a moment to consider what she has done for this country: two of her men are buried in Arlington National Cemetery 55 feet from each other. She travels the country helping other military families prepare for the loss of their loved ones. What an amazing woman you are, Gail. I’m thankful to have gotten to talk with you for just a few short minutes.
“When I get home people'll ask me, "Hey Hoot, why do ya do it man? Why? Just some war junkie?" Ya know what I'll say? I won't say a word. Why? They won't understand. They won't understand why we do it. They won't understand that it's about the men next to you, and that's it. That's all it is.” –Black Hawk Down
