Lost But not Forgotten

On June 6th, our small town lost its first soldier in Afghanistan.  I didn't know Lt. Matt Fazzari; he was only 25 years old, a son, husband and father to two very young children, but today as his body was taken from our small airport to the funeral home, hundreds of citizens lined the streets with flags and hands over hearts to honor him. 

I didn't find out about this event until last night in an e-mail, and I'm so glad I did.  It was an honor to stand there for him; I hope his family in their time of grief still knows that his death was not in vain.  I pray for them to somehow find peace and comfort; I cannot imagine how they feel.

I feel so honored to live in this great land, even with all of its problems.  God bless all of our Soldiers who are putting their lives on the line everyday in order to keep us free.  And God bless the leaders of our country; may they take their responsibilities seriously and stand by us and not over us. 

I took some photos, hoping that they reflected the mood of the time we were standing on the curb.  After we stood at the first place we drove to where my husband was with Pacific Power and Light.  A few of their employees are related to Matt, and they lined up their boom trucks with flags for the Procession to pass through. 

And I hope it's okay and not disrespectful that we were smiling in a few photos; there were certainly some tears shed and reflection taking place as well.

Waiting for the Procession to begin

The Procession begins

You can see the black limousines from the back; I felt funny taking photos of them.

I love what this flag says: Lost but not forgotten

I think Mary and Sierra's expressions tell the story of the moment

My friends, Mary, Lois, Sierra (me) and Faith

My husband standing by one of the boom trucks