 |
In Memoriam |
 |
|
In Memoriam |
|
LCpl. Brad Faircloth, U.S.M.C. (KIA)
Fallen Mobile Marine buried with honors
MARINE BURIED WITH HONORS MOBILIAN KILLED IN IRAQ
'I'm glad he was a Marine.
He always thought he should fight for his country.'
GEORGE WERNETH Staff Reporter
Fallen Mobile Marine buried with honors MARINE BURIED WITH HONORS MOBILIAN KILLED IN IRAQ 'I'm glad he was a Marine. He always thought he should fight for his country.' By GEORGE WERNETH Staff Reporter
Several hundred mourners at the funeral of 20-year-old Marine Lance Cpl. Brad Faircloth - many of them about his age - filled every pew in the chapel of Radney Funeral Home on Friday, while dozens more stood in the back throughout the service.
"God saw fit for him to go out with honor," his mother, Kathleen Faircloth-Smith of Mobile, told the audience.
The young Marine, a 2002 graduate of Murphy High School who played on the football team, was killed in fighting with insurgents in Fallujah, Iraq, on Thanksgiving Day. He was the seventh member of the armed forces from the Mobile area to die in Iraq since the war began March 19, 2003.
"I want y'all to pray for the guys over there now," his mother said. "I pray that God will sustain those guys over there who were with him."
Among others speaking at the funeral was a friend from high school, Gabriel Hargett, who said of Brad Faircloth, "He did what he thought was right. ... He had the biggest heart."
A fellow 2002 graduate of Murphy, Jimmy Mount, 22, of Mobile, told a reporter before the service, "He was pretty much a friend to the whole senior class and to the teachers, too." Mount said Faircloth wasn't prejudiced in making friends. "He hung out with everybody."
Mount was one of many of Faircloth's friends from Murphy at the funeral.
Faircloth was wounded twice within a week just shortly before he was killed in action. At the service, 1st Sgt. John Halpin of the Mobile-based Marine Reserve's 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company, presented Faircloth's mother with her son's three Purple Hearts.
She also was presented with the Distinguished Service Medal for her son from Lt. Col. David Brady of the Alabama National Guard. Brady made the presentation on behalf of Gov. Bob Riley and Maj. Gen. Mark Bowen, adjutant general of the Alabama Guard. Brady also presented the Marine's mother with a commendation from the governor for her son's service and sacrifice.
Faircloth was a member of the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, and was stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Before the funeral service, the slain Marine's grandfather, Dewey Faircloth, 68, of Mobile said, "I'm glad he was a Marine. He always thought he should fight for his country."
Dewey Faircloth wore a lapel pin that said, "My Grandson is a Marine." His grandson's body lay nearby dressed in his Marine Corps dress blue uniform in an open coffin.
Among the dignitaries attending the funeral was U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile. "I hate to say goodbye at a time like this," he said, before returning to Washington, D.C., "but I draw a lot of strength from the way the family is handling this tragedy."
Dewey Faircloth said U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, attended the wake Thursday night, before returning to Washington. Mobile Mayor Mike Dow attended the funeral.