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In Memoriam |
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In Memoriam |
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LCpl. Jeramy Ailes, U.S.M.C. (KIA)
The body of Marine Lance Cpl. Jeramy Ailes received a hero's welcome in Gilroy on Sunday afternoon, where hundreds of somber, flag-waving residents lined the road to the downtown cemetery to pay tribute and say goodbye to the 22-year-old soldier, killed in Iraq on Nov. 15.
``We're here to show his family that we care,'' said Karen Jenkins of Gilroy. ``We want to tell them that we're thankful for what he's done.''
``He fought to keep our country safe,'' said her son, Jackson Jenkins, 6. ``We came here to bless him,'' said his sister Joanna, 8.
After a memorial service at Presbyterian Church of Gilroy, Ailes was carried by a white hearse to Gavilan Hills Memorial Park. His beloved yellow Volkswagen bug followed behind.
Six Marines carried his flag-draped casket to the grave site. Under an aging oak tree, a yellow ribbon wrapped around its truck, Ailes was laid to rest with full military honors. A Marine bugler followed with taps.
Ailes' family was presented with a Purple Heart and the American flag that draped his casket. He is survived by his father, Joel; his mother, Lana; and his sisters, Janay, 23, Jenny, 14, and Leah, 12. Ailes was awarded the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the National Defense Service Medal.
Friends adorned his casket with red, white and blue bouquets of flowers.
Many wore shirts featuring a photo of Ailes with a black cowboy hat, a white T-shirt and strong, confident pose, and the tribute: ``The Greatest Friend Ever.''
Hunted, fished
``He lived every day to the fullest,'' said friend Josh Miller, 22. Before Ailes enlisted, he spent his free time bass fishing, deer hunting and four-wheeling with friends. They camped together in the cottonwoods near San Luis Reservoir and up in the Sierra. And they shared a lot of laughs.
``He was living the all-American dream,'' said Brandon Ross, 19.
Ailes graduated from high school in Gilroy in 2001 and attended Gavilan Community College. After the Sept. 11 attacks, Ailes and several friends enlisted in the Marine Corps two years ago.
He was a rifleman and medic with the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Camp Pendleton. Al-Fallujah was his second tour. He had returned from An-Nasiriyah in April after several months, then was sent back in June to Al-Fallujah. He was due to come home early next year.
Soccer ball gifts
On his first tour of duty, he gave away almost $300 to Iraqi families to help them buy food. On this second tour, his platoon distributed to Iraqi children an estimated 300 soccer balls, mailed by Ailes' family.
Ailes was killed by small-arms fire in Al-Fallujah during a battle with insurgents. Five other Marines died in that fight. He was the 20th soldier from the greater Bay Area to die in Iraq.
As soon as he got home, Ailes had told his father, he wanted to go snowboarding.
Instead, he was greeted by throngs of Gilroy residents, most of whom never knew him.
``I have great respect for someone who put his life on the line for freedom,'' said Mig Jernigan of Gilroy Boy Scout Troop 708, who was holding a large American flag at the entrance of the cemetery Sunday.
``He deserved this,'' said Ailes' friend Miller, surveying the crowd.