Fallen soldier laid to rest

Marc Gauthier, chaplin for the 5th Special Forces Group, delivers the eulogy during a military service held Sunday afternoon 21 September at Fredonia Cemetery near Bald Knob for Master Sgt. Kevin Morehead, who was killed Sept. 12 while in Operation Iraq freedom. (Photo by Janet Wilson)

BY JANET WILSON               
Staff Writer                                The Daily Citizen

The thick damp air and low gray skies reflected the somber mood at Fredonia Cemetery near Bald Knob Sunday afternoon, the burial site of Master Sgt, Kevin Morehead, the 33-year-old grandson of Zelda Guthrie of Bald Knob who was killed Sept, 12 while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
   Just as the hearse carrying the flag-draped casket of the highly decorated soldier arrived, a light rain began to fall that seemed to symbolize the tears of those who fought to hold them back. As the door opened, Morehead's casket was slowly passed into the waiting arms of seven of his comrades from the 5th Special Forces Group from Ft. Campbell, Ky., who served as pallbearers.
   As the soldiers began to slowly and quietly march the casket between an aisle of colorful and patriotic funeral wreaths, hundreds of mourners took shelter from the drizzle under a drapery of dogwood, cedar and oak trees.
   As the soldiers, clad in dark green dress uniforms and green berets, marched toward Morehead's grave resting next to that of his grandfather, the only sound that could be heard was a lone bagpiper playing "Going Home:'
   Some of those who gathered around the grave site for the service said they did not know Morehead, but came simply to show their respect for a brave soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice for his country.
   Some were retired military personnel who also wanted to pay tribute to their fallen comrade, while others represented friends of the family.
   "We take care of our own this way," said Merritt Powell, a retired green beret from Daytona Beach, Ha. "It's always a tragedy, but I've been a soldier all my life so you expect that it can happen:'
    "We went and talked to the family to let them know if there was anything we could do we would," said Larry Robinson, White County Veterans Services Coordinator. 'This really brings it home."
    As the rain continued to fall, Chaplain for the 5th Special Forces, Marc Gauthier, delivered the eulogy and told about how Morehead loved visiting his grandparents and how he especially loved to hunt and fish with his grandfather, Clenis "Buster" Guthrie.
    The sound of bagpipes once again filled the air as "Amazing Grace" and "Ballad of the Green Beret;' were performed.
    The haunting sound of Taps could be heard from a bugle on a hilltop off in the distance near a canopy of cedar trees. Though Morehead's wife, Theresa, and other family members had managed to sit bravely through the service, the mournful tune followed by three simultaneous rifle shots in salute to Morehead, seemed to bring the overwhelming reality of the setting to the surface.
    Emotions flowed when pallbearers meticulously fold the American flag that had enveloped Morehead's coffin and presented it to his widow. A second flag was presented to his mother, Jeanette (Guthrie) Morehead of Benton.
   Morehead was stationed in Afghanistan shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks where he helped to round up suspected terrorists. He was among Forces soldiers who placed a piece of debris from the World Trade Center in an Afghanistan battlefield.
   Before his deployment to Iraq, Morehead took President George W. Bush on a field demonstration at Ft. Bragg and afterward had lunch with him.
   Morehead was killed two days before his 34th birthday while conducting a raid in the vicinity of Ar Ramadi about 70 miles from Baghdad. A second soldier, Sgt. 1st Class William Bennett, 35, of Tennessee was also killed and seven others wounded during the operation. Morehead's unit had already returned from the Middle East, but he chose to remain to help with orientation of their replacements. He was scheduled to return from Iraq in two weeks.
   A career soldier since 1989, Morehead had earned numerous awards and decorations, including the Bronze Star Medal with valor device, the purple Heart, and the Army Commendation Medal.