By Terri Hackett
C-H editor
The towns along Highway 63 from Kirksville to the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Jacksonville fell silent Wednesday night as the funeral procession for Sgt. Brandon Maggart traveled south.
A sea of red, white, and blue was witnessed along the highway as people of all ages, race and religions gathered to pay their respects for Sgt. Maggart and his family.
Stores in Macon, were selling out of small flags on Wednesday, as word spread about the cavalcade that would travel south to the Jacksonville cemetery.
Rain was threatening earlier in the evening. Clouds seemed to stand at attention in the west, causing the sun’s rays to spread across the sky, as if they were lighting the way for the travelers.
Around three hundred Patriot Guard motorcycles accompanied the procession.
As emergency lights were spotted as the procession approached, the crowds fell silent.
Mike Miller of Bevier, who joined the Patriot Guard in Kirksville, said, “It was unbelievable. Miles and miles of people holding their flags. It is hard to express the feelings I felt.”
“We were the only traffic heading south on 63 when the procession began in Kirksville around 7 p.m.,” Miller said. “I saw a semi pull over in the north bound lane and the driver got out and saluted during the entire time we traveled past him. That got me. It was like that all the way to the cemetery. Large groups of people holding their flags. It was the actions of the people.”
The funeral procession traveled around 47 miles going 25-miles per hour. Miller said it took 2 hours to get to the cemetery from Kirksville. At least two dozen motorcyclists from Macon County joined the procession.
Sgt. Brandon Edward Maggart, died while serving a a C-Ram specialist in Operation Iraqi Freedom in Basrah, Iraq. He died Aug. 22 when insurgents attacked his unit using indirect fire, the U. S.. Department of Defense said. He had been assigned to the 5th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
He left behind his wife, a 3-year-old son, as well as many family members and friends.
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By Terri Hackett
C-H editor
The towns along Highway 63 from Kirksville to the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Jacksonville fell silent Wednesday night as the funeral procession for Sgt. Brandon Maggart traveled south.
A sea of red, white, and blue was witnessed along the highway as people of all ages, race and religions gathered to pay their respects for Sgt. Maggart and his family.
Stores in Macon, were selling out of small flags on Wednesday, as word spread about the cavalcade that would travel south to the Jacksonville cemetery.
Rain was threatening earlier in the evening. Clouds seemed to stand at attention in the west, causing the sun’s rays to spread across the sky, as if they were lighting the way for the travelers.
Around three hundred Patriot Guard motorcycles accompanied the procession.
As emergency lights were spotted as the procession approached, the crowds fell silent.
Mike Miller of Bevier, who joined the Patriot Guard in Kirksville, said, “It was unbelievable. Miles and miles of people holding their flags. It is hard to express the feelings I felt.”
“We were the only traffic heading south on 63 when the procession began in Kirksville around 7 p.m.,” Miller said. “I saw a semi pull over in the north bound lane and the driver got out and saluted during the entire time we traveled past him. That got me. It was like that all the way to the cemetery. Large groups of people holding their flags. It was the actions of the people.”
The funeral procession traveled around 47 miles going 25-miles per hour. Miller said it took 2 hours to get to the cemetery from Kirksville. At least two dozen motorcyclists from Macon County joined the procession.
Sgt. Brandon Edward Maggart, died while serving a a C-Ram specialist in Operation Iraqi Freedom in Basrah, Iraq. He died Aug. 22 when insurgents attacked his unit using indirect fire, the U. S.. Department of Defense said. He had been assigned to the 5th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
He left behind his wife, a 3-year-old son, as well as many family members and friends.
