‘Regular guy’ trucker at White House ceremony for fallen son

A truck driver was among a group of families who lost a child in combat honored recently during ceremonies at the White House.

Ceejay Metcalf, whose son, Pfc. Michael Metcalf, was killed in a roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan, joined 50 other gold star families in Washington where President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump paid tribute to the fallen soldiers.

Michael Metcalf

Metcalf, who has worked at Hogan Transportation for 15 years, said, “I’m just a regular guy,” said Metcalf, who has worked for Hogan Transports Inc. for 15 years. “I don’t have any fancy connections whatsoever. So to be shaking the President’s hand and have him honor my son the way he did was a very humbling thing for me to experience.”

One particularly moving moment for Metcalf came when the President shook his hand and quietly said, “You have a good time, pops.”

“It took everything I had not to have tears in my eyes over it,” said Metcalf. ” It meant a lot to me.”  Metcalf said ‘pops’ was a nickname his son often called him.

“Michael was a good man,” Metcalf said of his son. “He had a good heart and was willing to lay it all on the line to protect us.”

Metcalf thanked Hogan for its compassionate response. “They have really gone out of their way to help me through the hardship of losing my son.”