Mother of Wounded Raton Soldier at State of the Union

Rep. Tom Udall will have a special guest in the House Chambers tonight during President Bush's State of the Union speech: the mother of a wounded soldier from Raton.

Matthew Parker, 22, was severely wounded on Christmas Eve in Iraq when a tank he was in ran over a roadside bomb. He now lies at Walter Reed hospital in Washington facing a difficult recovery, but his mother, Kathy Parker, will sit with Rep. Udall tonight on Capitol Hill in her son's honor.

The congressman's wife, Jill Cooper Udall, offered her seat with Rep. Udall to Mrs. Parker after hearing about the young soldier's fate from her husband, who visited him at Walter Reed. Mrs. Parker and Rep. Udall will also attend a buffet dinner for members of Congress and their families tonight before the speech, Udall's office said.