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The State - News from April 2, 1989

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Word that she would receive several hundred thousand dollars in compensation for the May, 1987, death of her son in the missile attack on the guided missile frigate Stark in the Persian Gulf made Pat Stevens of Visalia cry for sorrow and say she would “rather be a bag lady and have Jimmy back.” The money is payment from the Iraqi government for the death of her son, Petty Officer 2nd Class Jimmy Stevens. “I hate that money,” Stevens said. “It’s just that this brings up all kinds of feelings. I feel guilty, frustrated. And I feel despair. I’d rather be a bag lady and have Jimmy back.” Under the settlement between the United States and Iraq, $27.3 million will be dispersed among 37 families that lost men in the attack. Stevens said she and her husband, Bob, will set up a scholarship in their son’s name at Mt. Whitney High School, where he graduated. They will also make a donation to St. Mary’s Catholic Church, where he was an altar boy.

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