Vienna, Austria—The following opinion piece is authored by GySgt. George Bottorff, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.). Regarding the recent murder of VA hospital nurse Alex Pretti, which occurred in broad daylight by federal agents, the author speaks to the situation in Minnesota and why Pretti’s unnecessary death was a blow to veterans. George is a California UOCAVA voter, a resident of Austria, and a member of the Democrats Abroad Global Veterans and Military Families (VMF) Caucus.
My name is George Bottorff, and I am the Representative for Veterans and Military Families in Austria. Allow me to draw your attention to an excerpt from a notable 19th-century poem that brings together the trauma of injured service members and the hope offered to patients by those tending to the wounded.
“Santa Filomena”
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Lo! In that house of misery
A lady with a lamp I see
Pass through the glimmering gloom,
And flit from room to room.
This particular poem highlights Florence Nightingale during the Crimean War. Because of her medical efforts and compassion, she changed how hospitals operate and influenced how medical procedures are done in the modern era. Incredibly, she reduced the death rates among the wounded by improving the living conditions around them. Today’s nurses in the United States and elsewhere still study the lessons learned from this dedicated nurse and how she provided hope to patients when it did not come from other sources.
Alex Pretti was a nurse in the intensive care unit (ICU) at the Veterans Administration, and, like Florence Nightingale, he was a hero to the wounded warriors of Minnesota. Working in the ICU requires a special type of person. Medical personnel in ICUs work 48-hour shifts. Not everyone can live with broken and dying spirits. Some of the veterans he took care of never left his ICU alive. But he always gave them the grace and dignity that they all deserved.
As a Veteran, he took care of my Brothers and Sisters and that makes him Family. This patriotic American didn’t have to die. He died in cold blood at the hands of the Trump Administration, and it is only a matter of time before someone is held accountable. If you want to know what an example of an American hero is, make no mistake, that was Alex Pretti.
U.S. citizens living abroad, both civilian and military, are highly encouraged to check your voter registration status and request your ballot for any upcoming elections in your home voting state that you are eligible to vote in.
The Global VMF Caucus has over 1,400 members in dozens of countries and proudly consists of veterans, military family members, Department of Defense civilians, other national security professionals, and strong allies of veterans and military family causes.
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