STORM2K

"Everyone had lost either one limb or two limbs. A couple of the boys told me it was because their vehicles - the rockets pierce their vehicles so much - it's like being in a kind of tin can.

"These boys had the most unbelievable courage, they felt it was their duty. And it took everything I have as a person to not, you know, break down."

Lynch said she tries to avoid news coverage of the fighting in Iraq because her memories are too painful. She said the almost-daily reports of U.S. troop deaths deeply sadden her.

"It's horrible," she said. "It seems like it's getting worse every day. It's just something that, you know, doesn't seem to get any better." She said all the slain Americans are heroes to her.