There are families who know the grief of a loved one never coming home. What those families have are lasting memories. Some have something tangible — something they can hold in their hands. The letters from overseas that made it home, even if the author didn't.
Robbie and Steve McKee are Gold Star parents. Their son, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kyle McKee, was everything a soldier could be.
"That's all he wanted to be was a soldier," Robbie McKee said.
"He was a student of military history," Steve McKee said.
Kyle had multiple deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. He grew up in the Army.
The last conversation Robbie and Steve had with their son was on Veterans Day 2020. The very next day, Kyle was killed a half a world away in a Black Hawk helicopter crash.
"We knew ... we just knew," Robbie said.
The letters Kyle sent home are what his parents hold on to. They read them when they can.
"I don't often, I did for this," Robbie said.
Some letters leave a smile.
"He says, 'Hope to hear from y'all soon, love and miss you, Ky'... and then he has, 'Send pictures and some type of sweets' and he has it circled with arrows, and says, 'Hey, look here, pay attention, thank you for your time.' Ha!" Robbie said.
Kyle was a husband, a father, a brother and a son. Steve had figured out how to use WhatsApp to stay in touch in real time.
"It's just normal conversation, it's normal conversation and it's happening in real time. And then it stops," Robbie said.
It stopped when the helicopter went down.
"Trying to make contact with you to see if you're ok... and there was never a response because he was dead," Robbie said.
There are no more chances to say what should have been said. But Robbie has one last message for her son.
"I love you, Kyle ... and I will see you again," Robbie said.
The letters from Kyle are what carry his parents through.
"It makes me remember him living. Not the dying part, the dying part is the sad part. The living part, that was awesome," Robbie said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
