Former Secretary of State Colin Powell took to Facebook on Thursday to share an encounter he had with an Afghanistan veteran who helped him replace a blown-out tire.
Powell, 81, wrote that he had been driving to a doctor's appointment Wednesday at Walter Reed Military Hospital when his left front tire blew out. A self-described "car guy," Powell wrote that he got out and started fixing the tire. Powell said he had removed several of the lug bolts when a car pulled over near him.
“As the man got out of his car I could see that he had an artificial leg,” Powell wrote in the post. “He said he recognized me and wanted to help me.”
The man finished fixing Powell's tire as the two chatted. Powell said the man told him he had lost his leg in Afghanistan when he worked there as a civilian employee.
Powell wrote that, once the tire was fixed, both he and the good Samaritan had to hurry off to Walter Reed for appointments. He didn’t get the man’s name, but the man asked for a selfie.
Powell wrote that he was pleased that the man contacted him via an online message that night.
"Gen. Powell, I hope I never forget today because I’ll never forget reading your books,” the message said. “You were always an inspiration, a leader and statesman. After 33 years in the military you were the giant whose shoulders we stood upon to carry the torch to light the way and now it is tomorrow’s generation that must do the same. Anthony Maggert"
Powell replied to Maggert in his Facebook post.
“Thanks, Anthony. You touched my soul and reminded me about what this country is all about and why it is so great. Let's stop screaming at each other. Let's just take care of each other. You made my day.”
Powell is a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He served as secretary of state in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2005.
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