MAURERTOWN--The year since Thomas Wilson was killed fighting for his country in Afghanistan has turned his family into reluctant soldiers. They've had to bury and live without their "airborne country boy," soldiering on through their own grief and pain. During that same time, they've received comfort and support from the community, the military and total strangers.

The day Justin Mongold earned his first Purple Heart, his mother saw it on TV. It was November 2003 and Mongold, then 22 and already a sergeant, was on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division of the U.S. Army.

STEPHENS CITY — The 19-year-old's T-shirt says it all: "Half of my heart is deployed. Half of his heart is due in September." Newlywed Casi Scadden is busy planning for her baby shower. Ladybug likenesses are on gifts and baby items at her parents' Stephens City residence. There's a bassinet, all ready for her little girl. In another room, wedding gifts are still displayed. After eloping on Jan. 3, her new husband, Lance Cpl. Kevin Scadden, a U.S. Marine, is off in the hot sands of Iraq. Scadden's e-mails request baby wipes, his only way of cleaning up over there in the 130-degree temperatures.