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Survivors of 14th Quartermaster missile attack keep promise to remember fallen | TribLIVE.com
Westmoreland

Survivors of 14th Quartermaster missile attack keep promise to remember fallen

Jacob Tierney
Jacob Tierney
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
A flower is placed at a memorial at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. A memorial service was held there for the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
A member of the 14th Quartermaster Detachment holds flowers to lay during a memorial service at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. It was the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
Staff Sgt. Rick Ayala of the 14th Quartermaster Detachment lays a wreath during a memorial service at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. It was the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
Chaplain Michael McNichol lays a flower during a memorial service at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. It was the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
Sisters Alexis Berry (right) and Alana Berry lay flowers at a memorial at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. A memorial service was held there for the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm. Alexis and Alana’s grandfather Sgt. John Boxler was one of those killed.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
A person lays a flower at a memorial at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. A memorial service was held there for the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
Ret. Maj. Gen. Rodney Ruddock salutes during a memorial at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. A memorial service was held there for the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
People salute during the national anthem at a memorial service at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. It was the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm.
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Kristina Serafini | Tribune-Review
Alexis Berry hugs grandmother Elaine Boxler as sister Alana Berry looks on prior to the start of a memorial service at the Greensburg U.S. Army Reserve Center on Thursday. It was the 30th anniversary of the attack that killed 13 members of the Westmoreland County-based 14th Quartermaster Detachment during Operation Desert Storm. Elaine’s husband Sgt. John Boxler was one of those killed.

Thursday’s memorial service for Hempfield’s 14th Quartermaster Detachment was both somber and joyful, a time for mourning those lost while catching up with old friends.

“It’s nice to see everyone,” said Sgt. Mary Rhoads of California, Pa. “We made a promise that we would never forget them.”

The ceremony at the Greensburg Army Reserve Center in Hempfield was in memory of the 13 members of the detachment who were killed 30 years ago when an Iraqi missile struck their barracks in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm.

Rhoads was leaving the compound when the missile hit.

“It was chaos,” she said. “Everyone was trying to rescue everybody.”

She has attended the annual memorial service nearly every year since. It’s an opportunity to see other members of the detachment and their families, many of whom she doesn’t see all year.

“It’s nice to have someone who understands what you’re going through,” she said.

Because of covid-19, attendance at Thursday’s ceremony was limited to members of the detachment and their families.

After prayers, remarks from military leaders and the singing of the national anthem, attendees lined up to place white roses on a monument to the fallen soldiers. The crowd then prayed in silence as taps was played.

“Many years have passed since the moment the nation learned of your loss, but for many of you, the memories and emotions are still very fresh,” Brig. Gen. Laurence S. Linton told the crowd. “This memorial is a time we are forced to fight through the pain of our loss, to brave the cold, and to continue to perform our sacred duty to honor their sacrifice.”

Linton is the commanding general of the 316th Sustainment Command, based in Coraopolis.

Stacey Dawson was a soldier in the detachment, and was at the barracks when the missile hit. She traveled from Florida to attend Thursday’s ceremony.

“I came today because I made a vow that I would never forget those who lost their lives,” she said. “I kept my vow.”

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Categories: Local | Westmoreland
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