Joe Biden pays emotional tribute to late son at touching ceremony


August 18, 2016

Vice President Joe Biden's late son Beau has been memorialised with a monument in Kosovo, three months after his death. The Biden family attended a ceremony that honoured the late attorney, who died at the age of 46, and unveiled the statue on Wednesday, People has revealed.

The Vice President was joined by the Second Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, sister Valerie Biden Owens, son Hunter, his daughter-in-law, Beau's widow Hallie, and Beau's two children, Natalie and Hunter. The family visited Camp Bondstell together to pay tribute to their much-loved family member.

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Joe delivered a speech in honour of his son

Beau, who died after a long battle with brain cancer, served as Attorney General of Delaware, served in Iraq, was a member of the Army National Guard and was a major in the Judge Advocate General Corps.

It's not the first time the Biden family has faced tragedy. Joe's first wife Neilia, the mother of his first three children, was killed in 1972, along with their one-year-old daughter Naomi. He went on to marry Jill who brought up his sons Beau and Hunter as her own, as well as giving him another daughter named Ashley.

Jill opened up about the memorial for Beau, telling People magazine: "As his mother, I was grateful for the opportunity to show Beau's children, Natalie and Hunter, the impact their dad had on the lives of so many people around the world.

"Beau used his quiet-determination to give voice to those left voiceless by war and abuse. These early experiences made him the man he became; they inspired the work that became his legacy – protecting the most vulnerable among us, especially children."

© Photo: Getty Images

The Vice President vowed Biden family members would always visit the memorial

The Vice President made a speech at the ceremony in honour of his son, promising to bring every future Biden to Kosovo to pay tribute to his son. He said: "Beau, when he came here, fell in love with this country, like I have. Look at this magnificent country. We've got to focus on what Beau was about and devote our lives to making fulfilled what he fought so hard for.

"That's how Hunter and I – that's how my family views this day. That's how we view what we're about – to know that five, 10, 20, 60 years from now, my grandchildren, my great-grandchildren, my great-great-grandchildren because I assure you, every Biden born will make this trip. Every Biden born will make the trip to see that monument to their father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and great-great grandfather." 

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