‘Walk of Gratitude’ gives thanks to wounded warriors in Las Vegas

They walked with canes, on crutches and artificial legs. Some made the "Walk of Gratitude" on Tuesday night by rolling down the halls of The Mirage in wheelchairs.

Although they were handicapped and coping with the physical and invisible wounds of war, the 60 wounded warriors smiled when hundreds of MGM Resorts International employees lining the aisles cheered and flashed cardboard signs with words of thanks and "Welcome Home."

"I can't tell you how much it means to me to see these wounded warriors coming down these aisles. It gives me great pride," said Suni Erlanger, mother of fallen Nevada soldier Douglas J. Green.

An Army specialist, Green was killed in Afghanistan last year when he stepped on a homemade bomb after his patrol had been ambushed by insurgents.

When Erlanger saw retired Marine Lance Cpl. Matias Ferreira walk toward her on his two prosthetic legs, she ran to hug him and give him one of her special Whoa! toffee bars, one of the fundraising items for the nonprofit Douglas J. Green Memorial Foundation.

Ferreira was impressed, and he had more in common with this military mom he had never met.

"She's very happy to see we're alive and still smiling," said Ferreira, a strapping 23-year-old from Atlanta who has 13 tattoos: one for each of the Marines in his platoon who were killed in combat.

Like Green, Ferreira landed on a 30-pound improvised explosive device when he jumped off the roof of a building his unit had secured in Afghanistan's volatile Helmand province on Jan. 21, 2011.

Unlike Green, Ferreira lived to tell about it. He joined the Marines after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks "to maintain freedom of the country."

"I live my life to represent those who can't be here today," he said before the welcome ceremony that launched five days of "Salute to the Troops" events, dining and entertainment centered around Veterans Day and sponsored by MGM Resorts, American Airlines and the USO.

"I'm so moved by this experience; I'm honored to be an American because of men and women like you. So thank you very much," MGM Resorts International Chairman Jim Murren said.

"At a time of great conflict around the world, we want you to know we stand by you," he said.

After Valley High School's band, choir and Army Junior ROTC performed and posted the U.S. flag, Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipient James A. Taylor addressed the wounded warriors, saying he knows that "freedom came with a terrible price," but they must maintain a positive attitude.

"I wear this medal in your honor. Thank you for your service to our country," said Taylor, who saved the lives of fellow soldiers when his 1st Cavalry Americal Division troop was attacked near Que Son, Vietnam, on Nov. 9, 1967.

Contact reporter Keith Rogers at krogers@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0308.