Wichita Falls, TX. August 30, 2010, members of the Patriot Guard Riders from Oklahoma and North Texas began to arrive at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, to the somber tolling of the Texas Liberty Bell. Hundreds of mourners came to pay their final respects of An American Hero, US Army Spc. Alexis V. Maldonado.

Family members, friends, fellow veterans, and even strangers were unified in honoring this young warrior. The family chose to conduct his funeral services at a church surrounded by members of the Patriot Guard Riders with their flags snapping in the morning breeze.

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After the church services the procession made it way to the Sacred Heart Cemetery. The procession was greeted by two long flag line down the driveway to the Staging area for the public ceremony. The family later held a private graveside service.

Once the mourners gathered around the 10’x20’ tented area the Patriot Guard Riders then took up position shielding the family and in a show of support.

Brig. Gen. Bryan Watson presented the family with medals awarded posthumously including the Purple Heart and Bronze Medal for valor.

The honor guards were members of 20th Engineer Battalion, Ft. Hood TX. Engineers from this unit were among the victims of the Ft. Hood tragedy last November. Spc. Maldonado’s friends and fellow soldiers were among them.

The honor guard fired a 3-round volley with 7 rifles. Shortly thereafter, the bugler played Taps.
Finally, the honor guards folded the American flag, which had been draped over the casket. Clouds began to let go of a light drizzle. The first flag was presented to the mother. The father received the 2nd flag and his son, Isaiah, received the final flag. At two-years-old he will have to get a little older to understand the significance of this historic event.

Then the light drizzle turned into a full fledged downpour of rain. Most got wet, but know one seem to mind all that much since, it shielded everyone’s tears.

May God bless this young warrior and the family he leaves behind.

Wichita Falls, TX Aug. 28,2010. On a warm clear summer day several dozen family members gathered at the Wichita Falls Municipal Airport to welcome home their loved one, SPC Alexis V. Maldonado.

Also gathered were 50-75 North Texas Patriot Guard Riders who stood by while the family watched the dignified transfer on the tarmac, and later escorted the procession through town on the way to the Owens & Brumley Funeral Home.

Originally, the family had requested no media, but once I explained how my videos are watched by family members who are unable to attend and the troops who served with him.  The family invited me out on the tarmac with them and allowed me to document this solemn ceremony.

This was especially poignant for me as I am preparing for the Patriot Guard Riders National Gathering of the Guard 2010 scheduled for Sept. 9-12 in Killeen/Ft. Hood, where Spc Maldonado was based. His unit was one of the units attacked during readiness processing at Fort Hood last November, and engineers Alexis had trained with were killed or wounded before the unit ever left American soil.

Alexis Maldonado enlisted in the Army a year after he became a father. His son, Isaiah, just turned two.

Alexis became a combat engineer, one of the soldiers who travel dangerous roads, seeking to protect the lives of others while risking their own. Once deployed to Afghanistan, his service was remarkable.  Alexis’s unit was stationed at Forward Operating Base Ramrod, and they cleared roads of IEDs to protect soldiers and civilians alike.  Alexis completed more than one hundred missions of this extremely dangerous duty, usually driving or manning the machine gun position which serves as the eyes of the vehicle.

After his service in the Army, Alexis Maldonado hoped to study auto mechanics at Universal Technical Institute, near home in Dallas, Texas.  He wanted to be a mechanic.  He loved music, and was a dedicated weight-lifter.

Alexis died of wounds he suffered when his convoy was ambushed in Zhari Province, Afghanistan.

Alexis is mourned, remembered, and loved by many, including his parents and step-parents, Jesse, Alicia, Linda, and Keith, his fiancée, Baronica, his son, Isaiah, his brothers, Brad and Sergio, and his sister, Aleksi.

In the town of Ventura, California a lush, well-manicured hillside patch of green on Main Street just a few blocks east of downtown Ventura has pine, thickets of overgrown junipers and a magnificent view of the Pacific Ocean and Ventura Pier.

The small patch of land is the grave site of a 1860s Army hero awarded the Medal of Honor. Today it is now a popular dog park with dog poop soiling the sacred ground.

Pvt. James Sumner, who was awarded the nation’s highest military honor for gallant actions after a band of Apache Indians kidnapped a settler’s child, died in 1912 and he was buried in what was then St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Most of the flat grave markers have been hauled away, but a few dozen markers still pepper the 7-acre Cemetery Memorial Park that was home to about 3,000 permanent residents.

Retired Marine Sgt. Craig “Gunny” Donor, who served two tours in Vietnam and is a state captain for the Patriot Guard Riders is bent on getting the soldier’s remains moved.

Army records show Sumner was a 28-year-old immigrant from London who led the 1869 chase after the kidnapped child into a remote canyon in the Chiricahua Mountains in southeastern Arizona. There was an ambush and a fierce firefight, but Sumner held off attackers until reinforcements arrived.

President Ulysses S. Grant awarded Sumner the Medal of Honor in 1870. Donor believes the medal is buried with him.

Sumner died in 1912 at age 72. He never married and there are no heirs, Donor said. “I’m trying to get him moved to Bakersfield National Cemetery. He needs to be moved to a place of respect. Cemeteries are solemn places,” said Donor.

But Ventura leaders have so far balked at moving Sumner. “We are treating him pretty darn well, except for the poop,” parks and recreation commissioner Sharon Troll told the Ventura County Star.

The commission voted July 21 to postpone for two months Donor’s request to unearth Sumner. Park commissioners have told Donor they’re committed to a long-delayed effort to commemorate the area pioneers and military dead in the park.

“He has no family, no one else to stand up for him, except for his brothers and sister in arms,” Donor said.

Editor’s note:

Thank God for people like “Gunny” Donor for doing the right thing.

If you wish to express your views to the City Manager of Ventura here is their contact information.

City Hall
501 Poli Street, PO Box 99
Ventura, California 93002-0099
(805) 654-7740
email: citymanager@cityofventura.net

Resource: excerpts from AP

Proud Participant of Patriot Guard Riders, National Gathering of the Guard 2010.

Week ending Jul 17, 2010 the US Department of Defense released the names of 21 military personnel who died, while serving in the United States armed forces. This past week also marked the passing of two notable veterans; a baseball legend & a WWII Medal of Honor Recipient
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Welcome viewers. These weekly episodes pay tribute to brave men and women who answered the call of our country and died while supporting our nation’s wars. We focus on the warrior as a human whose lives have impacted families, friends, and our neighbors around the world. Your respectful comments are welcomed and serve as memorial tributes to our fallen soldiers. Political opinions and debates are best suited elsewhere.

We are pleased to participate in the Patriot Guard Riders National Gathering of the Guard 2010 for more details visit http://www.usfallen.org/national-gotg-2010/

Details below.

Fallen Description:

Staff Sgt. Jesse W. Ainsworth, 24, of Dayton, Texas, 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.
Staff Sgt. Christopher J. Antonik, 29, of Crystal Lake, Ill., 1st Marine Special Operations Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, Camp Pendleton, Calif.
Lt. Vernon J. Baker, 90, of St. Maries, Idaho, and Medal of Honor Recipient, Company C, 370 Regiment, 92nd Infantry Division, WWII
Sgt. Robert W. Crow, 42, of Kansas City, Mo., Missouri National Guard, 203rd Engineer Battalion, Joplin, Mo.
Spc. Joseph W. Dimock II, 21, of Wildwood, Ill, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.
Sgt. Donald R. Edgerton, 33, of Murphy, N.C., 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.
Sgt. Zachary M. Fisher, 24, of Ballwin, Mo. 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat Airborne), 20th Engineer Brigade (Combat), Fort Bragg, N.C.
Spc. Nathaniel D. Garvin, 20, of Radcliff, Ky., 96th Aviation Support Battalion, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.
1st Lt. Christopher S. Goeke, 23, of Apple Valley, Minn. 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Spc. Matthew J. Johnson, 21, of Maplewood, Minn. 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat Airborne), 20th Engineer Brigade (Combat), Fort Bragg, N.C.

Pvt. Brandon M. King, 23, of Tallahassee, Fla.; 1st Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

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Staff Sgt. Shaun M. Mittler, 32, of Austin, Texas, 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division , Fort Campbell, Ky.
Spc. Christopher J. Moon, 20, of Tucson, Ariz. 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Spc. Carlos J. Negron, 40, of Fort Meyers, Fla., 426th Forward Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
Lance Cpl. Daniel G. Raney, 21, of Pleasant View, Tenn., 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Spc. Jesse D. Reed, 26, of Orefield, Penn. 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat Airborne), 20th Engineer Brigade (Combat), Fort Bragg, N.C.
Lance Cpl. Tyler A. Roads, 20, of Burney, CA. 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.;

Pfc. Anthony W. Simmons, 25, of Tallahassee, Fla., 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

Spc. Chase Stanley, 21, of Napa, Calif. 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat Airborne), 20th Engineer Brigade (Combat), Fort Bragg, N.C.George

Michael Steinbrenner III, 80, Tampa, Florida, Owner and CEO of the New York Yankees, USAF veteran.
Staff Sgt. Christopher T. Stout, 34, of Worthville, Ky. 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.

July  16, 2010 (Dallas, TX) Spc. Jerod Heath Osborne, 20, of Royse City, TX, was laid to rest in Rockwall, TX.  After church services concluded the procession made its way to Rest Heaven Cemetery led by local and state police.  Members of the Patriot Guard Riders were on hand to ensure the services were not disrupted.

The interment ceremonies began with a bagpiper leading the hearse to the gravesite.  Once, the majority of the participants gathered around the gravesite, members of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, from Fort Bragg, N.C. performed the military final interment ceremonies.

At the conclusion of the ceremonies, participants offered the family condolences and made their way out of Texas’ scorching summer sun.

Afterward the family stayed behind to witness the casket lowered into the grave. We were blessed to share the moment with the eldest brother SSGT Wau-tash Grillett, who was also serving in Afghanistan. He also was tasked with escorting the remains of his younger brother home.  He shared his thoughts about his brother after the funeral.

On behalf of USFallen.org and its viewers, we wish to extend our sincere gratitude to the Grillett and Osborne families, for allowing us to share in the loss of Our American Hero. We are forever indebted to your dearest Jerod, and the sacrifice he made on our behalf. We pray you find comfort in knowing he will rest in peace, for eternity, among America’s finest who answered her call to duty and did so with valor.