For the last leg of his trip home today, U.S. Army 1st Lt. Bobby Woods will have a little extra company.
Local members of the “Rolling Thunder” motorcycle group will escort the lieutenant and his family from the Tennessee-Georgia welcome center on Interstate 75 through downtown Trenton, Ga., and to his family home in Rising Fawn, Ga.
Afterward, the family will hold an open house at the General Woods Inn, a family-owned bed and breakfast in Rising Fawn.
Woods is returning home for the first time since being shot in the head while on foot patrol in Afghanistan. Despite the potential severity of the wound, he has had what some have called a “miraculous recovery.”
IF YOU GO:* What: Welcome home reception for U.S. Army 1st Lt. Bobby Woods* When: 1-5 p.m. today; the Rolling Thunder motorcycle group will escort Woods from the Interstate 75 welcome center through downtown Trenton, Ga., to the inn beginning at 11 a.m.* Where: General Woods Inn, 1346 Deer Head Cover Road, Rising Fawn, Ga.
Larry Hester, a service officer with the motorcycle escort group, said he learned that the soldier was coming home ahead of Thanksgiving and thought the escort was appropriate.
“I’m sick and tired of escorting funerals. That’s depressing and terrible,” he said. “I just thought it would be a fitting tribute to him and his service.”
American Legion Post 106 Cmdr. Bill Lockhart learned about the homecoming from a family friend of the Woodses.
“I thought it would be a good thing to give the community the opportunity to get outside and show respect and support for this war hero,” he said. “There’ll be cheering going on, some ‘rah, rahs’ instead of tears.”
The lieutenant was first treated at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., where surgeons relieved brain swelling from his wound. He was later transported to a treatment center in Tampa, Fla.
He has been granted a short-term leave through the Thanksgiving holiday.
Nadine Woods, the lieutenant’s mother, said doctors are determining his next phase of treatment.
As for the public support, she’s not surprised.
“We’ve lived everywhere, and this is one of the most God-fearing and patriotic places,” she said. “I’m really just overwhelmed.”
She said the open house was something Woods wanted to do, an opportunity to “thank everybody who prayed for him.”
Contact staff writer Todd South at tsouth@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6347.