Warriors Walk

Families, friends and fellow soldiers gathered this morning to remember and honor their fallen heroes.

“Private First Class Dwane A. Covert Junior, Transportation Company, 13 CSSB, “ reads the announcer at the ceremony.

Eight trees were added to Warriors Walk today, each one representing a Third Infantry Division Soldier who has paid the ultimate sacrifice.

The trees are said to serve as living monuments to those who will always be remembered for their service.  

Lisa Lewis whose son Sergeant Mason Lewis was honored today came from Virginia for the ceremony.

 “For him, for Mason no matter where it was we would have been here for him. It is one of the last things I can do for my son,” cries Lewis.

Warriors Walk was started in March of 2003.

Since then three hundred and eighty one trees have been planted.

Families and fellow soldiers were not the only ones who attended the dedication.

As WSAV’s Military Reporter Alice Massimi discovered Warriors Walk holds a place in many peoples' hearts.

It's impossible to describe the pain.

Mothers, wives, brothers and dads, forced to soldier on despite their great loss.

They come from around the country to remember, honor and pay their respects.

For Dana Hubbell this is the fourth time she's been to a dedication at Warriors Walk.

The first time was for her husband, Staff Sgt Darren Hubbell Senior.

“These are my husband’s brothers and I might not know them. I might not know the family but it is supporting them and honoring them, “explains Hubbell.

Patrick Schado, a retired Lieutenant Colonel says it's a sense of duty that brings him here each time.

“These young soldiers are going out there willingly putting their live on the line and in the case of the eight today they are making the ultimate sacrifice. So it’s befitting that we come and give our respect back to them,” says Schado.

He and other area veterans come with a purpose.

They call themselves the Patriot Guard Riders, their motto, “Standing for those who stood for us.”

“At that time we stood up for them even those that weren't alive yet and as they came into the military and those of us that retired they were standing for us and now again it is our chance to stand up for them,” explains Schado.

But as many times as he comes to Warriors Walk it still chokes up this soldier, “going by each tree. Seeing the names,” Schado says fighting back tears.

“It gives me and his friends, his comrades a place to go when they can’t go to the resting place and it puts to mind that these guys died for us,” says Hubbell.

As much as Dana still hurts, she's says the trees are a living reminder that out of death comes life.