Sarge's Funeral

On May 18th, my grandfather (paternal) passed away. We knew it was coming, but it was still hard to see my dad so upset.

I am writing this so that I can remember these details later.

Sarge, as he was known, was a retired Marine and Army Reserves man. He met my grandmother while on embassy duty in Ireland. Apparently, while on embassy duty,  you have to be single, so immediately following his time at the embassy, him and my grandmother (Cora) married in Dublin. She came back with him to the states, and they lived around the country. My father and some of his siblings were born in California. My aunt was born in one of the Carolina's. During the time their family was growing, my grandfather served three tours in Vietnam. At one point, my grandmother moved back to Ireland, while he was in Vietnam, so she could be with family with all of her children. My father actually started school in Ireland, which I think is really cool.

Anyway...the story isn't all butterflies and roses. As it did to many people, Vietnam changed my grandfather. He became an alcoholic, probably suffering from undiagnosed PTSD. My grandparents divorced, and there was a lot of familiar tension during that part of my father's life.

Fast forward to when I came around -- my grandfather lived about 45 minutes away from us, while we were growing up, but I didn't see him much. He spent a lot of his time at the bar. When we were with him, he did not frequently talk about his experiences in the war, but occasionally we would get a snippet of what he experienced while he was there.

One story that I vividly remember is a time that he was supposed to be flying in a plane, but for whatever reason, him and his buddy decided to switch jobs that day. His friend took his place riding in the plane, and the plane was shot down. I don't think my grandfather ever forgave himself for that. I also heard stories about him being attacked and stabbed multiple times before he was able to get away. But that's about all I know from his time there.

I do know that his last tour states he was in Oakinawa, but he states he wasn't...they were apparently doing something top secret. I also know he fought to be sent back for a 4th time, but they wouldn't send him. Due to medical issues, he was forced to retire from the active duty Marines before he wanted to, so he joined the Army Reserves. Many years later, he was forced to retired from the reserves for more health issues.

Sarge was a solider. That's all he knew, and that's all he ever wanted to do. He dedicated over 30 years of his life to our country, and his family suffered for it.

On June 16th, he was laid to rest at Camp Butler National Cemetery in Springfield, IL.

We had a funeral mass in Peoria, where he lived, and then the Patriot Guard, along with my daddy (a bunch of motorcycles) escorted us to Camp Butler. While there, they lined the area with flags. The ceremony was fairly short, but they honored my grandfather as he deserved to be honored. The gun salute was amazing, and they allowed us to each keep a brass from the shot. Then they folded up the flag and gave it to my father.

Though I was not close with my grandfather, I know he did the best he could given his life experiences. He deserved all the honor he received on that day. I pray he is finally at peace.