Rep. Giffords serves Thanksgiving to troops
TUCSON, Ariz. - U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords helped serve a Thanksgiving meal to service members and retirees at a military base in her hometown of Tucson, Ariz.
Giffords arrived in the dining hall at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base at midday Thursday wearing a ball cap and an apron with her nickname of "Gabby" sewn on the front. She was accompanied by her retired astronaut husband, Mark Kelly, who also donned an apron.
Giffords used only her left hand as she served, a sign that physical damage remains from the injuries she suffered when she was shot in January.
Kelly supported her from her left side as she worked the turkey station on the serving line. He served ham.
Giffords has been undergoing intensive rehabilitation at TIRR Memorial Hermann in Houston as she recovers from a gunshot wound to the head. She was among 19 people shot Jan. 8 as she met with constituents outside a Tucson supermarket. Six people died.
The congresswoman arrived in Tucson on Tuesday evening from Houston for a private visit with her parents and other family members and friends.
"It's always special to have a member of Congress come and spend time with the troops and show support," said Brig Gen Jon Norman, acting commander of the Acting commander of the 12th Air Forces, Southern. "But after everything that she's been through, it's a little bit more special."
Giffords previously returned to Tucson for the Father's Day and Labor Day weekends.
Kelly said recently that Gabrielle Giffords is "still improving" and she'd like to run for another term. Kelly told ABC's "Good Morning America" his job is to "make sure she can get better so she can go back to her career."
Kelly says Giffords is working on just stringing her sentences together and says viewers didn't see that so much in a recent taped ABC interview.
Kelly says his wife hasn't made the decision yet whether to seek another term, but that she'll know when the time is right.
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