HUNTSVILLE — “Let’s say a prayer for everyone that’s over there, until they come back home.”

So went the lyrics to a moving song sung in tribute to the nation’s armed forces during the second annual Wounded Warrior Banquet Thursday night at the Walker County Fairgrounds.

The event was a resounding success, said Jimmy Wood, one of the event’s organizers, with guests filling the fairgrounds pavilion in support of the nation’s injured soldiers. All the tickets offered for sale were sold, and attendance at the event surpassed attendance at last year’s inaugural event.

The night’s fund raising goal was $75,000 in contrast to last year’s $37,000. Proceeds benefit the Warrior Family Support Center at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.

The evening was full of touching displays of patriotism.

Wounded soldiers from Brooke entered for the evening’s festivities under sabers raised by the prestigious Ross Volunteers from Texas A&M University in crisp uniforms. The Ross Volunteers are the official honor guard for the governor of Texas and one of the oldest student organizations in Texas.

After the evening’s meal of rib-eye steaks, mashed potatoes and green beans, catered by Colt Christian, the audience was shown a Red Skelton video in which Skelton describes what each word of the Pledge of Allegiance means to him. The evening’s first of many standing ovations occurred when Skelton discussed the addition of the words “Under God,” with many holding their hands over their hearts as the final words of the pledge were spoken.  

Perhaps the most poignant moment of the evening was the singing of the “Star Spangled Banner,” by Jon Sheptok, a disabled man with a golden voice that brought many in the audience to tears.

Sgt. First Class Craig Coker, representing the Brooke Army Medical Center, thanked Huntsville for its support of the medical center and said the money raised during last year’s event has been put to good use.

“For the past year, you’ve had a critical part in thousands of lives,” he said. “Y’all didn’t know it, but you did. Inevitably, there were needs — sometimes it was a baby seat, sometimes it was an extra plane ticket. So many people don’t ask what they can do, but you guys did — Tom (Fordyce) and Jimmy (Wood) and the judge (Richard Duncan) came in and said what can we do? One hundred percent of everything you raised last year and 100 percent of everything you raise this year goes to take care of wounded service members and their families.”

Coker said things like forgotten diapers may not sound like an important purchase, but when a wife is grieving, being able to provide these things for her is an enormous comfort to a family.

“She’s hurting and she needs that kind of support,” he said. “Huntsville has meant a lot. You all gave a very large portion of what was used last year in our family support center. I invite you to San Antonio, Texas. You can call me, and I’d take any of you through there. It’s beautiful. It’s a place where they can go. I just wanted to tell you thanks.”

Coker called for employers to step up and hire wounded soldiers because you’ll, “feel better than you’ve ever felt in your life.”

“Consider these guys, because they’re something special,” he said. “They’ve done a lot.”

Before the veteran’s affairs representative was introduced, one of the event’s organizers, Tom Fordyce, spoke about his time in a Veterans Administration hospital after losing his left arm.

“I was in the same place 44 years ago as these guys here,” he said. “You’re sitting there in a hospital and you look down and you’re missing a leg or an arm and you wonder if you’re ever going to amount to anything. You wrestle with those things for a while.”

Fordyce said these medical centers put soldiers back together again and he thanked them for their hard work and the programs they offer soldiers during their recovery.

A live auction was held to close the night featuring patriotic items such as afghans crocheted to look like flags, paintings of war scenes and books about soldiers and various battles, among other items.