07 Patriot Guard - David Lane

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No. 1092-07 IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 07, 2007
Media Contact: [phone]/697-5132
Public/Industry(703) 428-0711
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi
Freedom.They died Sept. 4 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered from an improvised explosive device.They were
assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division,
Fort Riley, Kan.
Killed were:
Sgt. Joel L. Murray, 26, of Kansas City.
Spc. David J. Lane, 20, of Emporia, Kan.
Pvt. Randol S. Shelton, 22, of Schiller, Park, Ill.

Not an ordinary Patriot Guard mission, but what is an ordinary one? It is a sorry thing to witness the internment of our young sons killed in a war faraway. I can not put in words the deep respect and appreciation I have for our troops who are willing to put themselves in harms way for the benefit of others. This year I joined the Patriot Guard as a way to show my respects to those that are willing to give their all. As they said today at the service, freedom isn’t free. Freedom comes at a great cost.

David was one of our sons who gave us his all. I found out today that he was a beloved member of the Emporia community. As I stood in the flag line the woman next to me was a local resident. She had attended the community service that David’s peers had hosted at the National Guard armory on Saturday evening. Members of the community had taken turns addressing the group to talk of David. The group sang songs from God Bless America to Amazing Grace. Today David is being buried in a very small cemetery called Forest Hill, located on ‘old, old highway 50”. I doubt if there are over 40 other stones in this small cemetery. Today many people who knew him and many of us that did not, are here to pay our respects to him and his sacrifice.

The phelps pathetic little group of 5 or 6 was at the funeral home so most of the PG that showed up with big flags mounted on their motorcycles were escorted to the funeral home to hide that group from the family. We had plenty of riders to break into groups, there were well over 250 riders at the Emporia American Legion (Post #5) staging area.

I had started from Kansas City with a group of 12, I was in a group of 30 by the time we reached Emporia. The funeral was a Thursday morning. Emporia is about 100 miles from KC. To met up with the group I had left the house by 5AM. Before we pulled out of the first staging area here in KC I asked if I could be toward the front, because I have a Deer Alert on the bike, others may doubt it works, but as they discussed how many deer they had seen getting there, I knew I had not seen any. To be effective the alert would need to be the first or second bike. Doc (Deems Peterson) had me lead the group. I learned a lot today about leading a big group of riders, thanks Doc. By the time we got to the AL Post parking lot in Emporia it was already full of bikes.

There was a short riders meeting and prayer at the American Legion. Among other things the crowd was introduced to ‘EBAY’. He was one of the founding members of the Patriot Guard.

As the rest of us were herded to the cemetery we passed the funeral home. One of the phelps signs said THERE ARE NO HEROS. How sad they must be to not have any heroes in their lives. I was there to pay my respects to real hero. The roads and intersections were blocked for us, so we heeded no stoplights or stop signs. As we entered the country roads heading toward the cemetery the Lyons County Sheriff had their car pulled off on a dirt road. The 2 officers stood at attention and saluted us as we went by.

The motorcycle procession was parked on the road just past the cemetery, with the bikes 4 abreast, we effectively closed the road to thru traffic. We had another quick meeting and were told the schedule and expectations for the rest of the morning.

I noticed some civil war renactors dressed in the period regalia were present, I also noticed they were keeping their distance from our leather clad group. I walked over to express my pleasure at seeing them. I was told they were there to honor David Lane, but they usually did not go to funerals like the PG. David had been a member of their group and they had known and respected him. The group was the Voluntary 8th Kansas Infantry. Named after the real regiment that had come from KS to serve in that war. This reenactment group have members from all across the state. Their website is www.8thKansas.org.

There was enough PG that the path in the cemetery was lined with flags and the fence along the front was lined. The Topeka PG had brought their 200 flags. As we waited in line an Army General came around and shook each of our hands and thanked us. He received in return just as many thank-yous.

The funeral went on, recorded songs were played, poems were read, the bag pipper played, rifles were shot then the casket flag was folded and presented. At the end of the service it was still a mother saying good-bye to her son. Maybe this was an ordinary PG mission. God bless David, God bless his family and friends. God bless our troops.

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Photos

Voluntary 8th Kansas Infantry
Four of his unit that are here to pay respects for a fallen comrade.

Our Group
This is the group that I came in with. We stopped a couple times to pick up more riders.

Riders Meeting
This is the riders meeting at the American Legion.

American Legion Parking lot
Here is some of the bikes that were there when we arrived.

8th KS Infantry
They are moving up to the service area.

8th KS Infantry
Another shot as they march by.

8th KS Infantry
This is their officer, the shot was actually taken after the service. He arrived later than the rest of his unit so I didn't get a shot of him before the service.

Our Flag Line
This is just a small portion of our flag line.

The Army General
An exchange of thank yous with the riders.