Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54Hendricks County: A Speech Remembers Seth Soulsby Editor’s Note: This is the text of a speech given on Veterans Remem- brance Day by Hendricks County (IN) Young Marines Unit Commander Keith Gurley. Good evening, my name is Keith Gurley, Unit Commander of Hen- dricks County Young Marines. A little over 5 years ago, I first heard his name. It was a brief snippet of news, so brief, in fact, I could have easily missed it, as I was in between errands sitting in a hotel room in Ashland, Ohio. But He wasn’t having any of that, somehow He made sure I heard that snippet of news, some- how He made sure I heard the name Seth Soulsby loud and clear. It seems in this day and age, ce- lebrities dying from drug overdos- es, or reality stars’ lives somehow overshadow the passing of our true American heroes. They receive hours of media coverage, they dominate the news cycles, while our fallen service men and women, barely get their names mentioned. The news, as I said, was brief. Only a mention of his passing, and that he was on his way home to his family. Nothing of who Seth was. Nothing about his atypical up- bringing, nothing about him playing sports at Mogadore High School, nothing about him being an exemplary sol- dier and an exemplary young man. Nothing about his plans for the future, or his dreams for a family. Seth Soulsby passed away in an apartment fire at Ft. Hood, training for a deployment to Afghanistan. That could have been the end of the story. I could have left that hotel,and went about my own busy life... But as I told you, Seth had plans... On our 4 hour ride home, my wife, Trac- ey and I talked about Seth, about how our little unit of Young Marines might process the snippet of news I heard that day. That 4 hour ride home passed like minutes, as we discussed how to honor him and all of the others, whose names you will hear tonight. You see, in my heart, I know, Seth Soulsby wasn’t done, not by a long shot. He touched me and my wife, and he is the inspiration for the Ceremony today. I can only imagine him smiling as I stand here today talking about him, and I hope he and his family, are proud, that his name is on this ceremony. So tonight, we honor those whom have served and since passed, those that since that fateful day of 9/11, put everything on the line for us. We care not, whether they passed on the battlefield, or here at home. They are all heroes to us, and we need to honor their memory, and express our grati- tude for their service and sacrifice. Thank you. -- Submitted by Tracey Gurley, Hendricks County (IN) Young Marines YM/MGySgt B. Hulett Hendricks County (IN) The Hendricks County Young Marines as well as Central In- diana, and Columbus Indiana Young Marines have partici- pated in this Veterans Remem- brance Day event. Keith Gurley (CO for HCYM), and his wife, Tracey Gurley began our par- ticipation (with the Young Ma- rines of Indiana) in this amazing event for 5 years. We just recently had our 5th annual Veterans Remembrance Day at the end of September 2016. This event is meant to bring together family and friends of Fallen Hoosier heroes. This event is amazing to me because I get to see how many people come together to honor these amazing men and women who fought so hard to keep danger away from Amer- ica. I love being a part of this event because I love seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces as we honor their loved ones. Veterans Remembrance Day is amazing because as we do one last roll call, and release a balloon for each of those heroes, you feel your heart drop. It is truly an amazing feeling and whoever doesn’t show up to the event is missing out be- cause it is an honor to be a part of this great tribute. We select Young Marines from the 1st Indiana Bat- talion to participate in our Color Guard which consists of six flags and two rifles. The Young Marines on the Color Guard post the Colors, render a salute, remain there for the National An- them, and a prayer. Then the event starts to get emotional as roll call is being read, and guest speakers also get emo- tional talking about how great this event is. The meaning of this event brings one word to mind “Heroes”because without these “Heroes” we would just be a bunch of people too afraid of finding out what we are capable of doing or becoming. As Balloons Are Released,“You Feel Your Heart Drop” 22 YOUNG MARINES ESPRIT ONLINE