Like hundreds of communities, Hornell, New York will celebrate Memorial Day with a parade and veteran ceremonies. The event in this Southern Tier village is a bit more personal for the town’s people. It is the first Memorial Day since Zach Smith died in Afghanistan.
It is now a little over four months since his wife, parents, brother, sister, the town were informed of his passing. Since then, more information was released about Zach’s death. His Marine unit walked into a Taliban ambush with over thirty insurgents firing from three sides. Caught in the open, the Marines hit the dirt. Zach, an expert marksman, scrambled forward and provided cover fire for his comrades. While seeking a better position, he tripped on a remote controlled bomb and was killed instantly. The additional information simply reinforced friends and family. They already believed their native son was a hero.
A bill is before the U.S. Senate to change the name of a Hornell federal facility to the Zachary Smith Post Office Building. The town is doing its best to honor the first local casualty since Viet Nam. Despite the flags and brass bands, his family and friends struggle each day. Blazing rhododendrons remind them, Zach would have been home on leave, celebrating this holiday, had the dogs of war not taken him. It is difficult to imagine how many holidays will pass before their pain is softened.
The parade begins near the East Street Bridge at 9:30 AM and ends at the Veterans Monument on Broadway. An orator will remember Lincoln, “. . . that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.” Veterans from Bastogne, Iwo Jima, Inchon, and the Mekong Delta will remember fallen buddies. The Town of Hornell will think about an outgoing All-American kid that sacrificed himself in a foreign desert to assure our bands will always march and flags will always fly.
