I agree, Roughrider.  During my very long military career, I wrote many letters of condolence to the families of members of my command who died from illnesses or accidents in peace time and in combat in Vietnam.  Army protocol was that the letters had to be written at the lowest command level and be signed by commanders who were most familiar with the soldier and the incident or action surrounding his death.  Letters had a standard format, but had to be personalized, say nice things about the soldier even if not quite true, and contain information about the incident or combat action in which he was killed. Letters were signed, but not dated, and forwarded through casualty reporting channels to Department of Army.  They were dated and sent to the family members after the family was officially notified of the death.  These are the letters that truly matter and not form letters signed by presidents or high-ranking DOD officials who know nothing about the soldiers.