Petty Officer 3rd Class Shane Schmidt and her father share a unique, yet tragic bond – both survived their war experiences in the Navy only to be killed in car accidents back home. The 32-year-old soldier also was buried on the 32nd anniversary of her father's death.
Her father, Dan Vote, missed the birth of his daughter while serving a yearlong tour of duty in the Vietnam War. He returned to the United States when she was about 6 months old but died a few weeks later.
Vote was killed in a car accident on April 12, 1973, near Kalamazoo.
Schmidt joined the Navy as a [medical] corpsman because she felt it was the best way for her to become a nurse.
Assigned to the Marines' 2nd Transportation Support Battalion at Camp Lejeune, N.C., Schmidt served with distinction for seven months in Iraq. She received several commendations and awards, including the Navy Achievement Medal.
Like her father, Schmidt walked away from the war unscathed, returning in mid-March. She died within weeks of being home.
On April 1, Schmidt was struck by a driver alongside a Florida highway as she talked to her husband on her cell phone. She had pulled off the road during a downpour, perhaps to wait until the rain eased up.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Shane Schmidt and her father share a unique, yet tragic bond – both survived their war experiences in the Navy only to be killed in car accidents back home. The 32-year-old soldier also was buried on the 32nd anniversary of her father's death.
Her father, Dan Vote, missed the birth of his daughter while serving a yearlong tour of duty in the Vietnam War. He returned to the United States when she was about 6 months old but died a few weeks later.
Vote was killed in a car accident on April 12, 1973, near Kalamazoo.
Schmidt joined the Navy as a [medical] corpsman because she felt it was the best way for her to become a nurse.
Assigned to the Marines' 2nd Transportation Support Battalion at Camp Lejeune, N.C., Schmidt served with distinction for seven months in Iraq. She received several commendations and awards, including the Navy Achievement Medal.
Like her father, Schmidt walked away from the war unscathed, returning in mid-March. She died within weeks of being home.
On April 1, Schmidt was struck by a driver alongside a Florida highway as she talked to her husband on her cell phone. She had pulled off the road during a downpour, perhaps to wait until the rain eased up.
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