By Ed Stoddard DALLAS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Cynthia Burks doesn't just talk about supporting her country's troops serving in Iraq. Almost every day, she gives some of her time to the cause by journeying to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to greet returning soldiers. "I come out here to greet the troops about five, six days a week ... I was in the military for 18 1/2 years and consider these guys as my family," said Burks, a middle-aged woman who walks with a cane. "I've been doing this since May of 2004," she added. Her personal commitment is unusual at a time when the Iraq war is growing increasingly unpopular on the home front. For many Americans, it is also a remote conflict that has little bearing on their daily lives. Not for Burks, one of about three dozen mostly elderly but enthusiastic volunteers who go to the airport almost daily to welcome the troops. On Thursday, they were out in force, waving U.S. flags and shaking the hands of about 120 soldiers from various units on their way home from tours in Iraq. "It feels great to learn that we are being appreciated," said Kareem Williams, a young man with the 20th Engineers. Pat Brown, an elderly woman from Fort Worth with the U.S. flag emblazoned on her sweater, was asked if her views on the war had changed in the almost four years since it began. "I'm still supportive of our troops. You got the people up there now in Washington saying, 'If I knew then what I know now I would have looked at it differently.' But we sent them over there ... and for the people in Washington to be squabbling about it is terrible," she said. "The enemy sees us crumbling within, when we are fighting among ourselves they play on that. If you're not supporting our troops you're against them," she said, her voice cracking. For retiree Gerry McKenzie, greeting the troops is a small token that pales when compared to their sacrifice. "It's our privilege to be here we live close enough to be able to come out here and greet our troops," he said. "They're laying their lives on the line every day, the least we can do is come out here." The Dallas/Fort airport, a major airline hub, has a daily military flight bringing U.S. soldiers from overseas, mostly those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
