21st TSC remembers fallen heroes during Memorial Day ceremony

Photo By Marisa Alia-Novobilski | Soldiers from the 21st Theater Sustainment Command fire a salute cannon during a Memorial Day ceremony on Panzer Kaserne May 21. (Photo by Marisa Alia-Novobilski, 21st TSC Public Affairs)  

KAISERSLAUTERN, RP, GERMANY

05.22.2015

Story by Brandon Beach 

21st Theater Sustainment Command

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – Soldiers from the 21st Theater Sustainment Command paid tribute to America’s fallen heroes during multiple Memorial Day events throughout Kaiserslautern, May 21.

Maj. Gen. John R. O’Connor, 21st TSC commanding general, and Command Sgt. Maj. Rodney J. Rhoades, 21st TSC senior enlisted advisor, laid a wreath of red and white flowers before of a memorial site dedicated to 34 fallen 21st TSC Soldiers during an afternoon Memorial Day ceremony on Panzer Kaserne.

At the start of the ceremony, the American flag flying over Panzer Parade Field was raised from half-staff to full-staff precisely at the 12 o’clock hour, a military custom signifying the uplifting of memory by those paying tribute to the more than one million men and women who have given their lives in service to this country.

“On Memorial Day, we pause to honor the brave men and women who gave their lives in defense of something greater than self,” said O’Connor, during his remarks to the Soldiers, civilians and local national employees in attendance. “Words cannot fully discharge our solemn obligation to them, so we gather to pay tribute and offer our humble blessings.”

Standing quietly before the memorial site, O’Connor and Rhoades rendered a salute while a narrator read the names of the 34 fallen “Team 21” heroes who lost their lives while defending the nation. A three-round canon salute, followed by the playing of “Taps,” concluded the ceremony.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of Soldiers from various 21st TSC subordinate brigades gathered on Rhine Ordnance Barracks for a Memorial Day-inspired sunrise run.

“American Soldiers have a sacred bond with brothers and sisters in arms who served before them, who build a great institution with courage, their sacrifice, their devotion and something greater than themselves,” said Rhoades. “They defended the values we live by with all they have.”

• Date Taken: 05.22.2015
• Date Posted: 05.22.2015 09:45
• Story ID: 164242
• Location: KAISERSLAUTERN, RP, DE