SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -The mother of a Bay Area man who died in Iraq in 2004 was one of the “Gold Star” moms invited to the White House Monday to mark Memorial Day and pay tribute to the soldiers who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Gold Star mothers like Karen Meredith of Mountain View come to Washington each Memorial Day to honor their children who died while serving their country. Meredith came for her son Ken, an Army Lieutenant killed in Iraq in 2004.

”It’s very hard to see Ken’s name on a headstone because it just doesn’t belong there,” said Meredith.

Meredith was one of 60 Gold Star mothers who attended a breakfast at the White House with the President and First Lady and later was stunned when Obama visited Section 60 at Arlington Cemetery where vets who died in Iraq and Afghanistan are buried.

”For him to come out, and I believe honor us with his presence, and to take the time to meet with some of the families, to me showed an understanding that this is a huge sacrifice that we’ve all paid,” said Meredith.

Earlier at the amphitheater of the cemetery, the President said the nation owes a debt to its fallen heroes that we can never fully repay. It was the first time a president has visited Section 60 on Memorial Day.