Friday, 25 MARCH 2011 came and went with little fanfare, it seems the country was focused on basketball, events around the world or didn’t really know that a day was set aside to raise the awareness of the true heroes, most of whom gave the ultimate sacrifice and never saw the medal they were awarded… Continue Reading…
A very rare mission… with an even rarer ending…
The Old Guard On Parade
they’re still the best kept secret!
I spent a week on a special mission. I wanted to find out peoples’ awareness in the Washington DC area. I asked about the sports teams, and most people knew without any coaching what teams they had for baseball, football, basketball, hockey and more. I also asked who would defend Washington DC if a disaster struck. I even showed photos of …
On Saturday 10 OCT, Honor Air Louisiana will be transporting another group of “the Greatest Generation” for a day in Washington DC to see the WW II Memorial among others and pay a visit to Arlington National Cemetery. The group sponsoring this wonderful visit has been in operation for a while and this will be their 19th trip since inception.
Their escort for the day is a Sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers…
GHTime Code(s): f9a6f 3b584
Hosted by Commanding General of the Military District of Washington, Major General Richard J. Rowe Jr, the full honors included:
a complement of The US Army’s 3d Infantry -
and
After the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, General Casey and Sergeant Major Preston visited each of the 24 former Chiefs of Staff and 2 Sergeants Major of the Army’s final resting places and placed a wreath in honor of their service to the United States of America.
General of the Armies & Former Chief of Staff General John J. Pershing’s gravesite
Off in the distance, the Presidential Salute Battery began firing the 21 Gun Salute, announcing the arrival of the President. So many times I’ve watched up close and personal the precise way that they execute their mission I could see in my mind’s eye, the watchman of the Battery calling each gun at precise 3 second intervals as each salute echoed through the hills of the cemetery.
One could then hear the commanders of the multi service honor guard call their troops to attention as the President approached the Tomb of the Unknown
It’s hard to describe the feelings that run through when one considers that for each of these stones, marks a contribution that always cannot be measured, or in most cases cannot be repaid.
I’ll let the photos take you there…
I’ve been reading a book on The Old Guard’s history and reached an essay written by COL Neale Cosby US Army (Ret) and it filled me with emotions. I thought it important enough to transcribe it and share it with the world, since it provides an insight that we all can appreciate…
“Forty plus years ago, I was the platoon leader of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. One day I was standing on the plaza inspecting a guard change when a little old lady asked me the usual set of questions.
” ‘Are there guards here at night?’ Answer: yes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. And it has been so since 1936. Every second of every minute, of every, of every day – rain, shine, snow, sleet, a guard is here day and night.
“Then she asked how are the guards selected? I cited high character requirements for duty at the Tomb. In short, I told her that they must be good soldiers and good citizens.
“Following the guard change, she came back with more questions. She was persistent. I can still see her face today. She asked: ‘Do the guards like the duty here?’ I said, ‘Yes. They feel it is an honor to continuously render, in their own small soldierly way, this nation’s highest honors to the Unknown Soldier.’
“She said ‘What do you mean?’ I explained that the highest honor that this country renders to anyone is a 21-gun salute. The President gets a 21-gun salute. And then I told her that this is what this lone sentinel is doing, continuously. Then I pointed to the sentinel on the mat. In a whisper, I counted 21 seconds as he paused at each facing movement — one thousand one, one thousand two and so on. I counted the steps as he crossed the mat from one side of the Tomb to the other, always keeping an eye on the Tomb and keeping his body between the Tomb and the weapon he carries. Thus rendering the highest honors with his 21-count, continuously.
“At the end, she began to cry and she said, ‘You may wonder why I’m asking these questions, but you see, I have a personal interest here. This is the only place I have to pay my respects to my son who did not return from the war.’
With that she departed leaving me touched for life and forever answering the question of WHY WE GUARD THE TOMB”
COL Cosby was awarded Tomb Guard Badge #6 (July 58 – July 60).
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