Funeral of Lance Cpl. James R. Davenport - An American Hero

On Friday December 8th 2006 I saw an awesome display of American pride, patriotism and love. I saw this awesome display in my own home town at the funeral of a fallen Marine. Normally I would not have attended a funeral of someone I did not know personally. However, the evening before the funeral I had received a tip that the radical mean-spirited hate group from Waterboro Baptist Church out of Topeka Kansas was planning to protest this Marine’s funeral. For those of you that don’t know about this group I will spare you the temper rising details and just give you the PG version of who they are. They are the nuts that travel around the United States protesting at the funerals of our fighting men and women calling them names and saying that God hates them. When I learned that these radicals may be on our door steps disrupting a hero’s funeral and bothering a mourning family I could not sit by and do nothing. I immediately went to my office and got on the phone and the internet. I verified that this information was true and then I started calling friends, family, preachers and the news media. I was asking for prayer, support and bodies to show up at the funeral the next day. Some of the media already knew about some did not. Most of the people I called had no idea and were totally shocked by the information I was giving them. During my calling and research I found a group that follows these nuts around the country for the sake of protecting the families. The group of motorcyclist called The Patriot Guard Riders is an awesome asset and wonderful ally to have in this type of situation.
The day of the funeral I arrived at Dunkin Donuts shortly after noon and met with the Patriot Guard and others prior to the funeral. During the family’s private time at the funeral home well over a hundred people stood guard outside on the side walk to form a human shield of protection around this family and this fallen American Hero. This community came together for a brief moment and a noble cause. The various types of people you saw on Main St. that day should have made everyone proud. Flags were flying, people were crying and men and women stood guard for a cause they believed in. The radical hate group did not show up as planned.
I was honored to be able to ride along in the funeral procession and see the enormous outpouring of love and patriotism displayed by the citizens of the city of Anderson. Firemen and police officers stood at attention as we passed by. Men and women and children held their hands over their hearts. For a few brief minutes which must have seemed like an eternity to the family our town stood still in honor of a hero. I would like to thank each and every person that took part in honoring this Marine. I would like to say how proud I am of my home town. I would like to thank the Davenport family for their sacrifice. May God Bless the Davenports and may God continue to watch over all our men and women in uniform!

Matthew Hilley