The phone rang at Herb Williams’ home in Santa Rosa on Thanksgiving eve. Suddenly Williams had something more to be thankful for.

The caller was an associate of CNN host Nancy Grace. He told Williams, a well-known Sonoma County political consultant, that Grace was interested in honoring Williams’ late son, Army Staff Sgt. Jesse Williams, in one of her tributes to fallen warriors.

“Needless to say, that blew me out of the water,” Herb Williams said. He told the CNN producer he’d be proud for his son to be the subject of a nationally televised tribute. The caller asked Williams to tell him about his son.

Williams shared that his 25-year-old Jesse had been an Eagle scout and a great rugby player, and that he adored his wife, Sonya, and his daughter, Amaya. Williams mentioned also that Santa Rosa-area people have donated more than $35,000 to a trust fund for that little girl.

Jesse Williams was serving a second combat tour in Iraq when he was killed by a sniper in April of 2007.

The tribute by Nancy Grace and CNN is set for near the end of tonight’s 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. broadcasts of Headline News. You can be sure that a proud and mourning father will be watching from Santa Rosa.