Posted on November 14th, 2022.

“Nelson was born wearing combat boots. He knew that this was his calling. He knew he wanted to be in the military, and he knew that he would die in combat,” said April Coutsos, widow of Nelson Trent.

The community, veterans and officials gathered in front of the Whitehouse ISD Education Support Center to honor veterans for their service near a monument created by the Youth Community Council.

The monument was created to honor fallen soldier Nelson Trent. Today, his widow, April Coutsos, was in attendance with his son and daughter.

“Nelson was born wearing combat boots. He knew that this was his calling. He knew he wanted to be in the military, and he knew that he would die in combat,” Coutsos said.

Trent was an army staff sergeant and Whitehouse ISD alumnus. He died in combat in Afghanistan on December 13, 2012, from injuries during a roadside bomb attack. He met Coutsos while serving in the military, preparing for an early morning run.

The Youth Community Council partnered up with Mayor James Wansley and city council members to create a monument in his honor.

“It’s a place for the community to come out and reflect on their time in the service, or those that they love that spent time in the service or sacrificed everything in the service,” Wansley said.

Nelson’s family traveled to Whitehouse from South Carolina to attend the event.

“Everybody that sees his name on those dog tags will say, ‘I wonder who this guy is?’ And, they are going to go home, and they are going to pull out their phone, and they are going to Google Nelson Trent, and they are going to see pictures of me and our children, and they’re going to read our story, and they are going to see who he was,” said Coutsos.

“There are some organizations that have provided us some fabulous opportunities to spend time with gold star children just like them,” said Coutsos.

Coutsos said that’s when she sees Nelson’s traits in her children: when they are socializing amongst peers they feel comfortable with.

“That’s when you see their daddy show up. That’s when he comes out in them, the fun, the adventurous and the big smile they were talking about. My kids got that 100%,” said Coutsos.

She said even though they have moved on, they still miss him every day.

“It’s a loss that affects you every day. You may look like you have it all together most days, but most days you don’t,” said Coutsos.

Source: KLTV.