Lewis Alexander wore his pride right on his sleeve – or rather, on his car bumper. To honor his son proudly serving in the U.S. Marines, Lewis and his wife, Tami, adorned their vehicles with stickers that read, “Proud parent of a U.S. Marine.” Who would have thought these innocent stickers could ruffle any feathers? Yet, when Lewis returned to his car from a quick store run, he found a note on his windshield that left him utterly speechless and in tears.
As Lewis prepared to back out, the note caught his eye. What he read next was something nobody should ever have to see. The note, penned by a complete stranger, was nothing short of vile. “F**k you and your son. I hope he dies,” it read. Shocking, right? Lewis, distraught, contacted the police, but since the note didn’t hold any direct threats, no crime had been committed. The sheriff’s office did, however, take a stand by sharing this disturbing message on their Facebook page.
The sheriff’s office, in their Facebook post, acknowledged the painful message but also seized the opportunity to express their gratitude. The post read, “We can’t undo the message, and we almost hate to share it, but we decided we could use it as an opportunity to say thank you. Please join us. To this man in Deltona, to anyone who’s served or is serving our country, and to all the families who sacrifice precious months and years with a loved one: THANK YOU and your son, daughter, husband, wife, relative or friend for what you’ve given us. We hope each and every man and woman comes home safe, although we know our world is not a safe place, and not everyone gets that homecoming. Our families are veteran families, too. We can’t put a note on every windshield, but we can say it here: We respect you, we support you and we’re here for you at home.”
Feeling a whirlwind of emotions, Lewis responded to the hateful note with shocking grace. “Wow, this person’s evil,” he said. “My son’s serving to protect that person’s right to do that and it really hit me, so I called the sheriff’s department…I was crying.” As for the sheriff’s department’s decision to post the note on Facebook with a heartfelt message of thanks, Lewis said, “I feel comforted, very much comforted.”
Tami chimed in during an interview with FOX35, sharing that their son chose to serve because “he wanted to make a difference in the world.” Lewis, ever the gentleman, had a message for the anonymous note-writer: “If I could leave a note on their car, I’d probably say God bless you.”
The sheriff’s office received overwhelming response to their post, one individual expressing that the person behind the note should be publicly shamed. “Whoever left this note should be found and publicly shamed. I don’t support the unnecessary wars the US has engaged in during the last 25 years or so, but I do support our troops. They put their lives on the line for us and deserve our respect and thanks,” they wrote.
Another person commented, “I am grateful for people like your son, that he/they are willing and ready to protect and defend this country. Many thanks to the families who give up their loved ones so we can have the freedoms that our forefathers wanted for us. God Bless America!”
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