Veteran Pentacle Rights Initiative

My husband is a Wiccan veteran and he served in the United States Army from 1979 through 1986. His name is Gerwin Dee Combs. Gerwin has been in a VA hospital for two years. He is in a coma. He is in a persistent vegetative state so there is not much hope that he will recover.

On the way to visit my husband in the hospital this week I noticed a sign that advertised "Veterans Awareness Week." The sign said, “Show your thanks to those who have protected and fortified our nation. Remember, freedom isn’t free.

I feel angry and betrayed by the US Department of Veterans Affairs. I don’t understand why the VA refuses to honor Wiccan soldiers and veterans in the same way they honor soldiers and veterans of other religions. My husband served his country; he protected and fortified his nation. I know that at any point my husband could die. I know that if he died he would want a Pentacle on his headstone and as of now he would not be able to have one. The VA posts signs on highways telling Americans to show their thanks to veterans and yet they refuse to show their thanks to my husband and to other Wiccan soldiers and veterans by upholding their moral, legal and constitutional obligation to provide headstones that reflect the beliefs of the soldiers and veterans who have so honorably served their country.

Broadcaster Edward R. Murrow once said, "We cannot expect our soldiers to defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home." I could not agree more. It must be noted that there are Wiccan soldiers being deployed to Iraq in the latest surge ordered by President George W. Bush. Those soldiers are being expected to defend freedoms that are being deserted at home, in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

I am here today to speak out, for my husband, and for all Wiccan soldiers and veterans whose families have waited in some cases for as long as a decade to have the religious emblem of the Wiccan faith approved for use on their headstones, markers and plaques. I am here today to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Freedom is not free. It comes at a cost and it is time for the VA to stop their discrimination and keep their end of the bargain.

Back to Veteran Pentacle page