Gold Star widow opens up on ultimate sacrifice her husband made ahead of Memorial Day
FDNY firefighter and Marine Staff Sgt. Christopher Slutman was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan, leaving behind his wife and three daughters. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation is stepping up and asking for support to help the family.
The wife of a Marine and veteran firefighter who died following a suicide bombing in Afghanistan said Friday her husband "just did the right thing."
Shannon Slutman, the widow of Staff Sgt. Christopher Slutman, told "Fox & Friends" her husband was the "most humble man you ever wanted to meet" and always "did what was right."
"He just did the right thing," Slutman said. "He didn't expect anybody to put him up on a pedestal, [or] to put it on Facebook."
She said Sgt. Slutman was once given an award by the FDNY but didn't tell anyone about it.
"One of his best friends was so angry with him because he didn't tell him," she said.
She recalled telling her children in the wake of their father's death he "would want us to be strong and live every day to the fullest because that's exactly what he did."
Sgt. Slutman died April 8 near Bagram Airfield, a U.S. military base. Two other members of Slutman's Massachusetts-based Marine Reserve unit also were killed.
Shannon Slutman said she was overcome with gratitude for the amount of people who came out to express their condolences after her husband's casket was returned to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
She said firetrucks and people with American flags lined roadways and overpasses along their journey back to New York City.
"Private citizens, firemen, police, all the first responders, I mean, it was an extremely emotional experience," she said.
Frank Siller, of the Tunnels to Towers Foundation, joined Slutman on "Fox & Friends" to show his support for the Gold Star widow and her family.
Siller said his foundation is hoping to help the Slutman family pay off its mortgage.
"What a sacrifice by a husband, a superhero," he said. "Someone who not only serves his country, also a New York City firefighter who serves his community."
Fox News' Greg Norman contributed to this report.
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