美国国家公共电台 NPR A Utah Town Remembers Its Mayor, Killed In Action In Afghanistan

 

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

A U.S. soldier was killed Saturday morning in Kabul, Afghanistan, in what authorities are calling an insider attack. The soldier's name was Major Brent Taylor. He was a member of the Utah National Guard and the mayor of North Ogden, Utah. And, as NPR's Laurel Wamsley reports, he made a big impact on those who knew him.

LAUREL WAMSLEY, BYLINE¹: North Ogden is a town of about 19,000 people, a bedroom community for Salt Lake City just 40 miles to the south. And, since 2013, Brent Taylor was the town's mayor. The 39-year-old was also a longtime member of the Utah National Guard, and, in January, he was deployed² to Afghanistan. He had served an earlier tour there as a combat adviser³ to the Afghan border police. Since Taylor's deployment⁴, Brent Chugg has been North Ogden's temporary mayor.

BRENT CHUGG: I heard yesterday afternoon that he'd been killed. And, of course, it was very devastating⁵ to me. I've been trying to fill in for him while he's been gone as mayor, and he has big shoes to fill.

WAMSLEY: When Taylor left Utah for Afghanistan, schoolchildren in the town lined the streets and cheered for him as he waved from a motorcade. The U.S. Army says that Taylor was shot by a member of the Afghan military who was then immediately killed by other Afghan forces. Taylor had been supporting special operations forces in the region. Chugg said that today the town is reeling from the mayor's death.

CHUGG: They loved the man. He's well liked by everyone in North Ogden, and everybody loves his family. He has a very sweet wife and seven wonderful children.

MARTIN: Chugg described Taylor as dynamic and forward-thinking, a man devoted⁶ to his family, his church and his country. In a speech last year for Veterans Day, Taylor listed a number of contributions the U.S. has made to the world - chief among them, democracy. On that day, he thanked the veterans of North Ogden, who are gathered there.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRENT TAYLOR: The sacrifices of you and so many of your comrades have made it possible for America to be a source of light, scientific growth and human progress throughout its entire history. I thank you and pray always that God will bless America. Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

WAMSLEY: Taylor was supposed to return home in January.

Laurel Wamsley, NPR News.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

3 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

4 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

5 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

6 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。