Monday a local hero returned home from Afghanistan, not with his unit, to happy families, but to be placed at final rest.

Cpl Jonathon Porto, USMC

Cpl Porto Arrives 3/22/2010. Photo credit: 10 Connects

Today was perfect weather for such a fitting ceremony – high 60s and mostly clear, bright skies.

At the Bay Pines National Cemetery, St Petersburg, FL, his family, friends, the Patriot Guard, othrs who came a show of community support, an Air Force Chaplain, and a reasonable number of Marines in Full Dress Blues, CPL Porto’s life was eulogized.

The Patriot Guard surrounded the area with flags.  The St Petersburg Police guided traffic.  Marines from LCol to PFC were there, some to the side, 8 in a rifle squad, 6 as pall bearers and two of them the CACOs (Casualty Assistance Call Officer) to the Porto Family since the death on 3/14/2010.

The hearse arrived in the motorcade, with large Marine Corps emblems on it’s side.  After the family had gathered near the rear of the hearse, the 6 Marines carried their fallen brother to the center of a small gazebo in the portion of the grave site for the ceremony.  It was the same place my friend, Jim Sr, had his final good byes from those of us who knew him.

The Chaplain delivered a strong message about a man, who, like Christ, had lived and died and had risen, a man who served his fellow mankind.

The eulogies began with one of Jonathon’s older sisters.  She told of a man in diapers, who was one to stand up to the system, to be himself, in a humorous way.  She described a man who grew and was loved, and loved and had a love of cars, rock music and girls.  One who, when he met his wife, told his sister that she was “the one.”

The family and friends came forward to speak.  The Best Man at Jonathon and Rachel’s Wedding talked of a great friend, an inseparable buddy, who loved his blue Porsche.  Younger and older sisters spoke of a “protector,” long before he was a Marine.  One sister read a poem she had written about her brother and his service and his death.  His mother said she always said “I love you” at the end of each phone call, but lamented she had not talked to him more.  Brothers spoke of a brother who had found his passion in the Marine Corps, and how they admired how he had served a greater purpose than himself.

Jonathon’s wife, came to speak.  She allowed us to know of a short romance before the wedding, but a wonderful relationship, and how proud she was of her husband.  Standing strong in the circumstances, she ended saying she would not say “Goodbye” as that was forever, but she would one day, be with him again.

Jonathon’s father spoke.  He marveled at how his son grew into a man, and into a Marine.  How proud he was of someone, and he being admittedly biased, that he thought of as the best man he had ever met.  A man who loved and sacrificed for the justice of others.  In addition to speaking of his fine son, he also talked of an in credible outpouring of support and love from an entire community, and how he vowed to do something with that show of support, settling, as prompted by one of his sons to turn it into service.  He invited us all, even those who he had no clue who we were, just that we were there, to come to a reception after the funeral.

The wife of a Marine Sargent, who knew CPL Porto, talked of how Marines are all brothers, and how Jonathon’s wife is now and will be part of the “family.”  The Marine Sargent is stationed in Okinawa, and his wife said for the next 30 days, morning formation in Jonathon’s honor would be held.

The rifle squad was commanded to attention by the Staff Sargent and 21 volleys filled the air, and “Taps” played as the last 7 rounds echoed in our ears.  The flag from Jonathon’s coffin was folded with dignity and honor, and three flags were presented to the family by kneeling Marines.

We were excused.  I asked the LCOL to point out the two CACOs, which had been mentioned by several of the speakers as preforming their duties in a superior manner, and I went and thanked them.  I received the training many years ago, but never was called upon for that difficult and extremely important duty.  Off to the car and the rest of my day, considering my privledge to have heard of a fine man, who served the country well.

One very sad note:  Jonathon, who was not only a friend, son, brother, and husband before departing life, was also a father, yet he had never held his daughter, since she was born after he deployed.  A trust fund has been set up in her name and the details are listed at the end of the post here.

50 miles off the coast of Japan on 19 March, 1945, the crew of the USS FRANKLIN (CV-13) got a close up look of hell.  A Japanese bomber made it through the defenses and sent two bombs into the flight deck full of armed and fueled aircraft.  The resulting death and devastation, and heroism were beyond belief.

I have written on the subject before, in more detail.  SteelJaw Scribe did an excellent job with his post in 2008:  “The Crucible.”

Today, in Branson, MO, the crew members and family and friends are gathered for a reunion and holding a memorial ceremony.

I also had the privilege of posting a memorial to Omer Dee Simms, thanks to the trust of his son, Richard.  Omer died saving his shipmates on this day 65 years ago.

Update 3/23/2010:  It was CPL Powers who saved HM3 Pell, not the other way around, as I first wrote in the post below.  In any case, please help get these two reconnected!

Update 3/25/2010:  Chasing referenced links, I found out CPL Powers, having taken the Combat Lifesavers Course, saved HM3 James Pell from certain death on the battle fiend, after being shot 11 times and falling off a roof from an article in Leatherneck Magazine.

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This post was originally done on my Blogspot blog as “How to Bury a Hero,” and while many of the older posts were moved over in 2006, I hadn’t gotten to moving them all to this blog.  Back then, it was a manual moving process, and now…well…”import” in WP is much more advanced.

I need help:  I got an email request to act on the comment (all contained below) to reconnect HM2 Pell with one of the men he saved, LCPL James Powers, USMC.  I did email with James Pell back in the 2005/2006 time frame, then his email apparently changed.  Could everyone get the word out and try to track down HM2 Pell?

The info is below.  Use this as a “connector piece” or send James straight to James Powers.

Let’s put the power of the MilBlog community to work in getting these men back together.

Original post replicated here:

How to Bury a Hero

posted by chaoticsynapticactivity | 6/14/2005 04:35:00 PM

9 Comments [ed:  some spam deleted]:

Anonymous said…

I knew all of the guys mentioned here. You hit the nail right on the head when you talked about how we “get it”. I sure miss all of em.

3/27/2006 03:04:00 AM

james powers said…

I am James Powers, the Lcp that was there with James Pell and Shane Keelion when they were both shot, I personally watched Shane get shot in the forehead, and James Pell’s legs shake violently as the bullets impacted. I went to boot camp with Shane, he was a great man. I havn’t spoken to James since I exited the USMC but if he is still a corpsman I believe he is one of the best if not the best the navy has to offer, an example for all of us. I’m mainly posting this in hopes to reconnect with him, but I feel I must contribute to this blog in order to be taken seriously by a reader. If anyone knows him personally or if you are reading this yourself James, try to contact me, facebook would be best since some of the same people, (snipers) that we worked with are my friends still. IE Moon, Ramsey. I don’t mind answering or replying if anyone has anything to say after this is posting.

That day is a day I coulnd’t forget even if I tried, I hope that this reaches you James.

3/16/2010 04:41:00 PM

Via backchannel, a request to highlight the “signature” wound of the current war: Traumatic Brain Injury.

March is Brain Injury Awareness Month for the Brain Injury Association of America.  Pass the Word, please, as you can and know this is a very probable issue with our injured Vets.

For those who have long supported the Soldier’s Angels Voice Activated Laptops for Our Injured Troops (VALOur-IT), this is one of the things the program has been addressing, along with the coputer contact with the world, by providing GPS Units for those wounded service members who are getting out and about. The reason: TBI has an associated symptom of loss of short term memory, and the GPS Units help remind the driver where they were headed.  (Note:  You don’t have to wait until this November to donate to VALOur-IT…SA will be happy to accept donations all year long…even today to help this great cause)

Below is the article Chelsea asked if I could post to help get attention to the cause:

Traumatic Brain Injuries in the Military

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is becoming a common wound of modern warfare. It has even been coined the “signature wound” of the War on Terror. While TBI is becoming more prevalent in wartime activity, many service men and women continue to go undiagnosed. Institutions, like the US Department of Veterans Affairs, are working to make quick and accurate diagnoses in order to prescribe appropriate and effective treatment.

TBI is caused by forced trauma to the head, either by being shaken or hit. The severity of a TBI varies from case to case, but symptoms range from mild concussions to a debilitating state. The majority of TBI’s acquired by military personnel are classified as mild traumatic brain injuries (MTBI). Initial symptoms of MTBI consist of loss of consciousness, disorientation, loss of memory, headache, and temporary loss of hearing and vision. They are often partnered with anxiety, irritability, difficulties processing information, limited concentration amongst other problems experienced down the road. While MTBI is most common amongst the men and women of the armed forces, more severe cases of TBI are happening much more frequently and often require the victim to attended specialty rehabilitative nursing centers, like CareMeridian.

The most common cause of a TBI in the military is due to blasts. There are three degrees of blast injuries where a TBI is common; Primary (due to blast itself), Secondary (due to objects being propelled by a blast) and Tertiary (due to a collision with a third party object). According to the Veterans Health Initiative, active male members of the military from the ages 18-24 are hospitalized with a TBI at a rate of 231 per 100,000 and females 150 per 100,000. Based on military force projections this would mean that 4,141 military personnel are hospitalized on average each year with a TBI, and these numbers often rise during wartimes.

The best prevention for veterans to avert the long-term effects of a brain injury is to recognize the symptoms of a TBI. Once the symptoms are identified an individual should take basic precautionary measures in order to begin the healing and recovery process until a more specific diagnosis can be made.

Service men and women give so much to protect this country and they deserve to come home to a happy and healthy life. Creating awareness about TBI will help ensure their long term health. By helping our veterans, their friends and their families recognize the early warning signs of a TBI, treatment can be sought as early as possible.

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