US Army First Lieutenant Todd W. Weaver wrote a letter to his wife and his baby daughter to be read in event of his death. His wife Emma found the documents on his computer when he was killed in September 2010 by an IED during his second tour of duty in Afghanistan. The letters are achingly sad and poignant reminders of the great sacrifice being born by our military and the need to cherish the ones we love in our lives, whether you’re a solider or civilian.
Weaver's widow had the letters superimposed on pictures of she and their baby.
Dear Emma
Dear Emma:
Well if you are reading this, I guess I did not make it home and therefore, I was not able to remind you again of how much I love you. I love you so much baby and I will always love you. Although I may not be here right now, take comfort in the fact that I am watching over you right now. I am not gone and I will always be with you in spirit. I know this time must be hard for you but I also know how strong you are. Never forget that God knew what was best for us before we were even born. Take comfort in that. This happened for a reason. Although you may not believe it now, you will one day.
I want you to know just how important you are to me. I could not ask for a more caring, beautiful and loving wife. The memories that we have shared over the last few years have been the best of my life. Although it may seem like my life was cut short, I lived a life that most can only dream of. I married the perfect woman. I have a beautiful daughter that amazed me every day. I even had two great dogs – at least most of the time. I couldn’t ask for anything more. If you feel sad, just think back to the memories that we shared. Look at our daughter and how beautiful she is.
Be strong for her. Remind her about her Daddy and tell her that I loved her more than anything else in the world. Her birth was the best day of my life and she was the best thing that ever happened to me. Her smile and laughter represent all that is good and beautiful in this world.
Tell her that Daddy is in heaven now and will watch over her and protect her every minute of every day. I love you Emma. But never be afraid to do what you need to do to be happy. It is so important that you continue to find happiness in your life. Although you may think this is impossible right now, have faith.
Much better times are coming. You and Kiley have a wonderful life ahead of you and I am so happy to have shared some of it with you.
I love you.
Your loving Husband,
Todd
________________
Dear Kiley, My Sweetie:
Although you may not remember me, I want you to know how very much your Daddy loves you. I left for Afghanistan when you were 9 months old. Leaving you was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. You are so very special to me sweetie – you are truly a gift from God. The best day of my life was the day you were born. Every time I saw you smile my heart would just melt. You were my sweetie – my life was not complete until you were born.
I am so sorry I will not be able to see you grow up. But remember, your Daddy is not gone. I am in heaven now smiling down on you every day. You are so very lucky to have such a wonderful Mom to take care of you. Make sure you are good for her and help her out whenever you can. Always remember to say your prayers at night and be thankful for all your many blessings. Never forget how important and special you are to so many people. We love you so very much. When you get older and start school, do your best and try to learn as much as you can about the world you live in. Always be nice and caring to others and you will discover that the world will be nice to you. But when things aren’t going your way, never forget that God knows what is best for you and everything will work out in the end.
You have such a bright and beautiful future ahead of you. Have fun. Enjoy it. And remember, your Daddy will always be proud of you and will always love you. You are and will always be my sweetie.
With very much love,
Your Daddy
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{ 48 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for sharing these letters. My father was a career Army officer with many combat deployments. Upon his retirement 2 years ago he gave each of us kids a letter he had written shortly after each of us were born, to be given to us in the event of his death.
The theme of my dad’s letter was very similar to Todd’s: full of commitment, love, gratitude, and a calm, quiet assurance that while he has died, it was a sacrifice he gave willingly, for a cause he believed in.
Unadulterated manliness.
I cried a little, and I feel no shame.
manly tears
I’m a Soldier with a little girl myself, so this really hits home. Guess I’ve got some writing to do before my next deployment. And yeah, I cried a little, too.
Man-Tears are ok tears.
This really pulled on my heart strings. A tear made an appearance. Todd was a TRUE MAN!
Emma and Kiley,
I have no real strong connections in the military and I appreciate you for sharing your lovely letters with everyone. May his letters bring you comfort now and in the times to come. How sweet that he wrote those to you both …God Bless!
Thank you to Emma for sharing this and thank you to Todd for the sacrifices he made. Never forget.
Not crying even a bit when you read such a letter is the real sign of weakness, mates.
Many Thanks Todd, but special Thanks and thoughts to Emma and Kiley…
Thank you for your sacrifice, Lt. Weaver. I will keep you and your family in my prayers.
All gave some, some gave all. Rest in peace.
Wow. Thank you for sharing these letters. I have great respect for all of our military families, but for the ones who have sacrificed so much, there are no words to describe the gratitude that I feel. This country owes such a debt to these families, even though having been a Marine, I know that every one of the men and women in the military serve without thought of being owed anything. Our thanks and our prayers go out to all of the families dealing with separation and loss.
Thank you so much for sharing your letting. This really touched my hear cause my husband is also in the military and I know he will be deploying again soon and will be his 3rd tour. Your a very strong woman and I will pray that you and your daughter stay strong and remember Todd cause he’s a great man and I thank him to for everything he has done.
Just wow. A great reminder that, contrary to what the news often reports, there are good, no check that, great people out there still.
My thoughts are with his wife and daughter, and I am eternally in debt to 1st Lt. Weaver.
I couldn’t imagine losing my husband but if he had to die fighting for us and our country and left us this letter to reassure us that he would be watching over us although it might be hard at least he got to say goodbye and I would know that he was watching over us… I will keep you and ur family in my prayers…. Thank you for sharing this letter with all of us… God bless you and your family…
Wow, that’s all I can say. This really touched me, many tears.
I don’t visit this site often but when I do I have the honor of reading something like this…As a retired U.S.C.G. Flight Mech. I can really appreciate this… I always worried about how my family when I was out in nasty weather we flew in.
Thank you to Emma and Kiley, for sharing a very private part of your life with us. May God Bless you.
Freedom Don’t Come Free. Many thanks to your family. We appreciate your sacrifice.
These are powerful and important words. He was a wise man to put his thoughts on paper for his family. I can only hope it gives them the comfort they need in this sad time.
Soldiers writing last letters is as old a tradition as war itself. In a bittersweet way, I imagine Sullivan Ballou greeting 1st Lt. Weaver on the Other Side as a brother as much as a brother-in-arms. (If you aren’t familiar with it, search for Major Ballou and read the letter he wrote to his wife before he, too, fell in service to his country… in 1861.)
Now, thats the art of manliness at its best.A real man who made the ultimate sycrifise for his country & his beloved family, simply by doing his job.Respect!
Emma & Killey should be proud of him!
My wife is pregnant now with our first child, a little girl. I can’t imagine what it must have taken for this man to leave his family with the specter of never seeing them again looming. My heart goes out to his wife and daughter, and my thanks go out to his wife for sharing his letters. They are devastatingly beautiful. I am feeling intense sadness and I must say, anger. My love goes out to his family as they recover from their loss.
thank you for my freedom, for watching over it and for giving your life for it.
Wanted to say the letter touched my heart. i cried the whole way while reading it…Thank you for posting. i cant imagine how hard it would have been to write a letter to your girls knowing you were probably not comeing home…you are a Hero in my book
Todd, I miss you bro… you were a better man and a greater leader than I could ever hope to be. I know that Kiley is going to grow up to be an amazing women, and that’s because she had an amazing father. Watch over the rest of us, and some day we’ll have a beer together again in heaven
Definitely difficult to read. As a wounded soldier myself, I have seen first hand the hard times and struggles that the family members of our service men and women go through on a daily basis. Thank you Emma for all that you’ve done and gone through with Todd, and for the sacrifices that you have made in addition to his ultimate sacrifice! Continue to stay strong, and know that Todd is not forgotten, God Bless!
The full import of 1LT Weaver’s sacrifice, and those made by so many of his comrades, may not be known for many years. But if these men and women had not been willing to answer the call, our nation and perhaps the world would now be embarking upon a long dark night from which we may never have been able to emerge. Thanks to them, we will remain free.
God bless this noble man and his family.
I just want to say thank you Mr Weaver and every other man and woman in the armed forces for my freedom!
Sincerely,
Bonita Newton
This man was truly a man’s man. A hero. I wept as well.
I would say he perfected the art of manliness.
Thank you all for your kind comments regarding the letters to us from Todd
. I had no idea it would reach so far…glad that this audience sees what I see 
Thank you so much for sharing. What an amazing man you married.
I just went through my first deployment and I worried every day until he came home. It might be easier to love someone with a safer job, but “I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special.”
MANLY TEARS.
They have been shed.
Thank you so much for sharing this deeply touching and moving story with us. I am currently a military training instructor in the U.S. Air Force. I have shared this story with each of the 8 flights of new recruits I have instructed and will continue to do so as long as I have the ability to affect change. I read it to my current flight today for my 8th time and I still cannot make it completely through the letters without getting choked up and having to pause. I use your story when the flights begin to get comfortable or perhaps complacent in their duties. Each group, as they begin to perform, gets to a stage where they need to be reminded what exactly has been asked of them by taking the oath of enlistment. Each signature commits a life to ensure our future is safe, safe for my child/children that are not born yet, safe for my neighbor, safe for my country, and safe for Kiley. After I have read the letters aloud, I ask each of them if they are ready to write that letter. This story I am confident will remain with them forever. Thank you again, and know that Todd will not be forgotten and his death was not for nothing. There are people out there that still believe in love of country, never lose faith. Godspeed.
God bless u… this is the story that ever heart touching stoyr i red ever
Stand Easy, son. Stand yourself easy. You earned it.
From here on in, your brothers and sisters will take up the burden.
“God knew what was best for us before we were even born”
Any potential for tears immediately evaporated with that sentence. Anyone who genuinely believes in an afterlife doesn’t fully value this one. Plus he was a soldier, and he was paid to risk death. Show me a man who dies to protect other FOR FREE, and I’ll show you a true hero.
When I read this letter tears roll from my eyes…….Todd was brave courages and strong man.
As a historian it is difficult to sometimes remember the personal endeavors of history through the statistics. This is one of those stories that help me remember the humanity of it all, and yes I cried a little after reading this. True strength…
Emma and kiley
thank you so very much for sharing that.. i have the biggest respect for todd as i always wanted to be a marine. im also so very sorry. be strong and know that my heart goes to u 2 and also to many other wifes and kids whos daddy didnt come back home, but it takes great men to do what he and the others have done.
to whatever
im sure that todd didnt join the corps to be a hero.. we are all placed in this planet to do something, some people must be laywers and some cleaners and some marine corps cuz someare stronger than others bt all are heroes in ther own way or to them famalies.. but it still take a brave man to be a marine.. have some respect.
Todd is a man i look up to
im a true proud south african and but feel my own personal need to be a marine like im sure is what todd felt.
Manly tears were shed. Not having a sentimentality profound enough to shed a tear at this denotes weakness and emptiness of soul, not stoic masculinity.
I am so thankful for all you soliders giving it your all and I very much appreciate every thing you have did for this contry, God Bless you family without and with! Thanks!!
todays my bday and thanx for everything yall do yall r great godbless yall and yalls family
It would seem almost less manly to read these and not shed tears most manly.
deeply saddening to read .. x
John Halloran~ Thank you! All I wanted was for my friends and family to understand how I knew I was going to be okay….and to share the wise words that gave me that peace. Thank you for spreading the perspective to your students so that they may take that forward in life!