American Legion Riders Post 104
and
the
Patriot Guard Riders
Patriot
Guard Ride for STG3 Demetrius McKinney|
The mettle of Florida’s patriots was tested, yet again, on Friday
October 20, 2006. An extremely short notice Mission had been
called for that day. U.S. Navy Veteran Stg3 Demetrius McKinney had passed away suddenly and this man, a Desert Storm veteran, needed to be buried with honors. |
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Riders started arriving before the 10:00 staging time. Soon, in spite of it being a work day, there was a good representation of riders from all over west central Florida. The riders assembled in the shade of mature trees on the north side of the funeral home. As there would no ride to the service a brief safety meeting was held. |
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Because of the shortness of notice for this mission no Law Enforcement
escort was available to shepherd the riders to the Burial Service at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. Therefore, in the interests of safety, no formation ride was planned. Instead, the Ride Captain asked for volunteers to ride, independently, to the cemetery. |
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A flag line was set up after the Briefing in front
of the funeral home. Family and friends soon began to arrive. In
spite
of the sorrow they were enduring they stopped to thank all of the riders, one by one, for their presence. Once all the family and friends were inside the funeral home, and the service had begun, those going to the cemetery gathered for another safety briefing and they then departed. Those remaining reset the flag line when the service was concluding. |
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