It is a simple monument.
A bronze pair of boots, an M-16 rifle, a combat helmet. Beside it, a plaque of names.
On Saturday the eighth such monument was dedicated at Forrest High School. Each of the Florida Fallen Heroes monuments are erected by the Timothy James Seamans Memorial Foundation. The others are at other area high schools. They all honor former students from the schools who have died while serving their country in the military.
?It?s a way of paying back,? said Dave Seamans, president of the foundation. ?Placing them at the high schools is a way of educating the students here that their education was not free. It came with a price and some of the men and women who walked these corridors ? they paid the ultimate price for freedom.?
Seamans started the foundation in honor of his son, Army Pfc. Timothy Seamans, a 20-year-old Terry Parker High School alumnus who was killed in 2005 by an improvised explosive device in Iraq.
About 100 people attended the ceremony Saturday. Many of them were family and friends of the 14 former students whose names are on the plaque.
They are Capt. Michael Scott Speicher, whose F/A-18 was shot down over Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, and Cpl. William Joshua Rechenmacher, who was killed while patrolling Iraqi streets in 2007. Also on the plaque are the names of 12 Vietnam veterans: Jerry Knight, Robert Maddock, Robert Sewell, William Alford, Walter Anslow, Gerald Campono, Kevin Frye, Michael Hughey, Billy Lawrence, Fred Paddleford, Alan Dick and Robert Rohweller.
Following the dedication ceremony, Seamans said he hopes students of the high school learn about the men who sacrificed for their freedom and become inspired.
He said even though eight such monuments have now been erected ? with more being planned ? he always experiences the same emotions at the dedications.
?My emotions run very strong,? Seamans said. ?I try to maintain myself, but most times I shed a tear. It?s OK. It?s just a reflection. I reflect on Tim, but I also reflect on the stories I hear about the names on that plaque.?
?
William Browning: (904) 359-4619
Olympics Schedule 2012 Olympic Medal Count 2012 Olympics 2012 Olympic Schedule 2012 NBC Olympics NBC Olympics schedule 2012 Olympics
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.