Still Fighting

"I could write a book," says Pamela Palmer about the many things she's seen as a former military wife and a current supporter of the armed forces.

But the book would contain a lot of pain. It would talk about sacrifices, badly injured soldiers and would likely contain a few chapters on post-traumatic stress disorder, too.

Diana Eike met Palmer about three years ago. Affected herself by the loss of a friend in combat operations, Eike and Palmer started a friendship that continues today. Jointly, they've assembled a series of military-related events in Northwest Arkansas, starting with a rally in support of the troops on Saturday morning at the Walmart Supercenter on Walton Boulevard in Bentonville. Palmer, Eike and other co-organizers will also screen the documentary "The Hornet's Nest" on Monday evening at The Jones Center in Springdale.

Palmer, who says she suffers from PTSD, recalls information in fragments. Three years after their friendship started, Eike is still learning bits of her background.

"This event is bringing more of that out," Eike says.

Palmer says she's worked to bring the film to Arkansas for several months, and the screening coincides with the Tuesday release of the film in Walmart stores and several other outlets. Palmer provides the passion for the local events, and Eike has helped with some of the logistics.

Palmer's brother is among the soldiers documented on film in "The Hornet's Nest," which has been screened at several film festivals. Footage in "The Hornet's Nest" comes from real-life situations that played out while television journalist Mike Boettcher and his son Carlos Boettcher were embedded with U.S. soldiers fighting on the border of Afghanistan. The resulting film captures an intense firefight in 2011 that claimed the lives of several soldiers, including Staff Sgt. Bryan A. Burgess. His father, Terry Burgess, will be at Monday night's screening.

Eike says Palmer heard news of the casualties in her brother's unit before knowing if he'd made it out alive. She presses on in her support for the troops, and anything that increases awareness or support levels for the soldiers abroad or at home is something that must be done, Palmer says.

"I feel like they are forgotten, just like Vietnam, and we have to do more," Palmer says.

-- Kevin Kinder

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