Trump invites families of national guard members who were shot to White House | Donald Trump
Donald Trump said Sunday that he had invited the family of a National Guard member who was fatally shot last week to the White House and that he had spoken to the family and they were “devastated.”
US army specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, was killed in a shooting in Washington DC on Wednesday. His fellow soldier, US air force Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains hospitalized in critical condition. Vigils in West Virginia took place in their memory.
The president said he discussed a White House visit for the parents of both members of the West Virginia National Guard.
“I said, ‘When you’re ready, because this is a tough thing, come to the White House. We’re going to honor Sarah,'” Trump told reporters. “And the same for Andrew, whether you get better or not.”
Mourners gathered over the weekend to honor Beckstrom at a Webster County high school in West Virginia. Both he and Wolfe were serving in the West Virginia national guard as part of Trump’s federal initiative to bolster policing efforts in D.C.
“Sarah was the kind of student teachers hoped for. She carried herself with quiet strength, an infectious smile and a positive energy that moved the people around her,” Jarrod Hankins, principal of Beckstrom’s former high school, told the Associated Press. “She was sweet, caring and always willing to help others.”
Details regarding Beckstrom’s funeral are still being arranged.
Authorities charged a 29-year-old Afghan national with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed. The incident led the Trump administration to suspend asylum processing and temporarily stop issuing visas to Afghan passport holders.
Wolfe, a Martinsburg native, began his service in February 2019 and is a 2019 graduate of Musselman High School, according to the AP. He continues to receive treatment and is “fighting for his life,” West Virginia governor Patrick Morrisey said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Briefing.
Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News on Sunday that she also plans to meet with Wolfe’s family.
Beckstrom, of Summersville, graduated from Webster County high school in June 2023 and soon served as a distinguished military police officer, according to the West Virginia national guard.
“He was so gracious and he definitely had courage,” Morrisey told the crowd at the memorial. “Although his life was very short, he left a mark that will last forever.”
