I first met Terry McCray on October 7^th of last year – so it is almost a full year. I know the exact date because, like many of my PGR acquaintances, funerals provide the benchmarks. The Aaron Seal mission fell on that October 7^th.

This time the soldier’s name was Nick Patterson. He served with the 82^nd Division. I have a step-son in Iraq currently serving with that same 82^nd Division. Terry had a step-son die in Kuwait on February 6, 2003.

So when I arrived from my 150-mile trip at the parking lot where we were staging, the first thing I did was to re-introduce myself. A short time later, Terry was addressing our group.

We opened with the Pledge. He was the only Gold Star parent among us today. He told us that the Patriot Guard has been a blessing for him personally. He also told us everything that was expected to unfold in some detail. We ended with a prayer.

From pledge to prayer, his briefing was brisk and purposeful. Ride Captains reveal their priorities in what they emphasize. It would not be about us. Today would be all about Nick Patterson.

We moved as a unit to the high school and picked-up our flags.

We were in position before the hearse delivered our fallen hero. The honor guard was too. The 82^nd Division wears a distinctive beret. And jump boots, not shoes, are part of their dress uniform.

And then there was ever-diligent Terry again, going down our flagline to remind us of next task. We would move to the other side of the high school as soon as the casket was carried inside and the family followed. The door on the other side is the one the guests would use as they arrived over the next hour.

This was the brief opportunity for me to capture the portraits I try to get at every mission. I asked Dennis, standing next to me, to hold my flag, I then adjusted the camera for the sun and I started.

One of the first was this gentleman. He was facing an enemy the year I was born. I regret not having found time to talk to him.

I continued down the sidewalk where we were standing, alternately focusing the camera and watching for the procession.

I finished the flagline on one side and rushed across the drive for the other side while looking for the procession that would end my photography and send me back to my flag…when I stepped off the curb.

I fell. To avoid twisting my ankle or hurting the camera, I went straight down. Then I came quickly back up and got back to work. Sadly, I inadvertently pushed a button on the camera during my tumble resetting the aperture and most of the following portraits were overexposed beyond salvage. Sorry.

Specialist Bumgardner belongs to the 73^rd Cavalry Regiment – the same as Nick. He told me that a part of him wished that he had been in that vehicle with him.

About three years ago, Nick was part of the 505^th Parachute Infantry Regiment, another part of the 82^nd and the unit that my step-son Jim belongs to. Jim has been working out of FOB Summerall for fourteen months now.

The one common theme throughout the division is their readiness. Ever since WWII, the Commander-in-Chief has had a 911 force available from his army. The 82^nd has been constantly ready to send a full brigade anywhere in the world on 18 hours notice, and the rest of the division a week later. So they are special soldiers, constantly at peak readiness.

“Give it to Top. He will know what to do.”

The top sergeant of an army infantry company is a Master Sergeant with a special designation. He gets a small diamond between his three rockers and his three chevrons. He gets a special rank: First Sergeant. It is not a different paygrade from Master Sergeant and if he is reassigned to a billet that has no First Sergeant, he reverts to Master Sergeant. It is a simply formal recognition of his special competence and an informal recognition that he outranks Lieutenants.

John Glass retired from our army after 22 years. He was a Top in the 82^nd and he stood among us for Sergeant Nick Patterson this day.

A few of us fell out from the heat of the day. No one collapsed but going to the brink of collapse makes a statement. One of us had to retreat because his “sugar didn’t feel right” meaning that he was risking diabetic coma. We were not here for a good time. We were brought here by a sense of patriotic duty, brotherhood and gratitude.

And we are not coming back because of the convenience of the restroom or because we were offered iced tea. We just want to be told where to stand and how long to stand there. So I held a flag at the front of the school and then I held a flag at this door, in the rear of the school, near the parking lot.

It was the second time I had stood at this door. I was here for Jeffrey McLochlin in mid-summer last year. He is buried in the Rochester cemetery.

And then it was 1400. We furled our flags and had some time for quiet reflection and to recover ourselves.

IF you are a Ride Captain reading this, here are three mandates for you:

ONE: the safety and comfort of individual Patriot Guard members

TWO: honoring the fallen hero

THREE: protecting the hero’s family

I am not a Ride Captain but I am a regular participant and I know what is important to me. If you are a Ride Captain, this is what I have to say to you: Be careful about wasting much time on number ONE. That is not why I am there.

I don’t think any of us are there for number ONE. Clearly, Terry knows that. I appreciated his unapologetic instruction on flagline discipline. I could not imagine him going down the flagline offering doughnuts.

While the service was going on inside, he gathered us again. We all want to do a good job, but it is the Ride Captain’s job to tell us what a good job is. We all know how to follow orders. It is up to him alone to tell us what to do. And to set the standard high.

I have experienced poor leadership in the past, so I appreciated Terry.

Then, suddenly, the honor guard emerged from the high school building. Short of running, we moved with all deliberate haste from the briefing to the flags to the front of the school.

…where we would stand in the direct sun for a half-hour. Oh, well. Better to be 30 minutes early than to be 30 seconds late.

The casket and family passed our flags and entered their cars. We furled and mounted. The graveside service would be more private than the service here had been, but the Patriot Guard was invited. We would mark the end of the procession that would travel the ten miles from Rochester to Akron.

We parked, found our flags and were walking toward the gravesite when the first rifle volley was fired. We stopped where we were.

A short time later the graveside service was over and we were the first to leave. The mourners had their backs to us but they knew we were there. Our job was done and it was time to go home.

As they did for Jeffrey McLochlin in mid-summer last year, the VFW Post 1343 opened their doors to us, this time with a lunch buffet waiting. Four of their number were waiting at their door, happy to see that many of us were going to take their free food. “Welcome to the one-three-four-three!”

I didn’t stay. I took this picture in the 1343 parking lot of a couple of the 1343 children inspecting our bikes and left.

Often the town shops display signs that speak to the big event of the day. I didn’t try to make a full survey but I did like this one enough to stop for it.

But directly across Indiana Route 25 from the VFW were two LED signs that displayed waving American flags along with bold messages. The DQ and the hospital both paid tribute to “SGT Patterson”.

So I had some things to think about. I decided to take the long way home. Since I live north of Chicago, I headed for Louisiana.

I only got as far as Logansport before another sign stopped me. When I got home I looked it up and was reassured to find that it was another Terry McCray mission.

pictures

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