Tomb of the Unknown Soldier opening to public for first time in decades
CBSN
For the first time in decades, members of the public will be allowed to walk on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Plaza —.an honor typically reserved for presidents.
"When we've seen the president in the past place the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, that's the same location where the public will be able to place flowers at the tomb," Gerald Lowe, who coordinates major events at the cemetery, told CBS News' Catherine Herridge.
The area will be open to the public for the two-day event happening on November 9 and 10 at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. This Veteran's Day, November 11, marks the sacred site's 100th anniversary.
Ashley White received her earliest combat action badge from the United States Army soon after the first lieutenant arrived in Afghanistan. The silver military award, recognizing soldiers who've been personally engaged by an attacker during conflict, was considered an achievement in and of itself as well as an affirming rite of passage for the newly deployed. White had earned it for using her own body to shield a group of civilian women and children from gunfire that broke out in the midst of her third mission in Kandahar province. All of them survived. She never mentioned the badge to anyone in her battalion.
The knock at the door came at nighttime on Mother's Day 2008 in Oregon, where Jessica Ellis' parents lived. It was around 9:20 p.m. and his wife, Linda, was already in bed; her father Steve Ellis told CBS News, that he thought someone let their animals out — but two soldiers in Class A uniforms were standing at the door.