Posted on 08/02/2006 8:28:02 PM PDT by hispanarepublicana
Body of Lubbock Soldier Returns Home
The body of fallen soldier Andrew Velez has returned to Lubbock.
The military transport plane carrying Velez` body arrived in Lubbock just after 4 p.m. Wednesday. Family members were there to meet the plane, while a hearse transported the body to Resthaven.
Meanwhile, members of a radical religious group from Kansas plan to picket Thursday night`s memorial service for Velez. But another group has been invited to help silence the protesters` anti-war message.
The Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas claims the soldiers are dying because God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuality. As a result, the group travels to military funerals to protest, carrying signs that are meant to shock.
"It`s a curse when one child comes home dead. There`s no point in standing out at a funeral. It`s a patriotic pep rally," church spokesperson Shirley Phelps Roper said on Tuesday. Roper says she will be one of the protesters here in Lubbock on Thursday.
But a group of bikers hope to drown out the protest. The Patriot Guard Riders are just that, guardians. In the words of J.D. McNamara, a member of the local Patriot Guard, this motorcycle group travels the country for one very important purpose" "Our mission is to honor the fallen to shield the family from any uninvited guests, and that is about as far as we go with it."
Using their bikes, bodies and the Stars and Stripes, the group forms a barrier between the grieving family and the protesters.
"We are not there to create any confrontation," points out McNamara. "We are there strictly to pay our respects."
That`s exactly what the Patriot Guard plans on doing Thursday night at the memorial service for Velez. Andrew`s father, Roy, invited the Guards to attend the service "so that there will be sufficient privacy at the memorial."
Velez says the Westboro group has a right to voice their opinion, but says, to him, their opinion doesn`t matter.
"I want to let them know that they`re at the wrong place, because no matter what they say or what they hold up, they can`t bring my boys back," he says.
State Senator Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, assures that there won`t be a disruption at the memorial service. A law recently passed in Texas, which was written by Duncan, states that protestors must remain at least 500-feet away from the service.
"The best approach to take is to ignore them," he says. "It`s just a handful of people who have an insane idea and all they want is attention."
Roy says he`s not worried about the protesters or what they might say, he`s just glad he now has a shield of silence and support.
"These guys are going to line up their motorcycles end-to-end. They`re going to set up at the 500-foot perimeter. Actually today, they became part of my family," he says.
A memorial service for Andrew Velez will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at the First Church of the Nazarene at South Loop 289 and Chicago. The service is open to the public.
If you would like to ride, or stand with the Patriot Guard riders, you`re more than welcome. They just ask for you to bring your American flag.
If you would like more information on the Patriot Guard riders and what they`re all about, you can visit their website at www.patriotguard.org
The Patriot guard has almost 50,000 members nationwide.
Oh, thank you so much for telling us about your experience there. It sounds so moving. I'm weeping. This is an incredible family. Looking forward to the article and hearing more.
Bless you and all who stood for us, here at home and on foreign soil.
Thank you for info. When it comes to being far from Lubbock: I've never felt so far away physically and yet so close in spirit.
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