Town Remembers loyal reserve police officer, volunteer firefighter, and EMS Responder.
The Associated Press
Neah Bay, Wash. (AP) -- Makah tribal leaders, military veterans and high school athletes joined their fellow citizens at a memorial service to honor Coast Guardsman Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathan B. Bruckenthal.
He was killed April 24 when suicide bombers in boats attacked pumping stations in the Persian Gulf. Bruckenthal became the first member of the Coast Guard to die in battle since the Vietnam war.
The Makah community remembers him well. He joined the Neah Bay station in spring 2001 and served two years in this coastal town on the northwestern tip of Washington state.
“He meant a lot to our community,” said the station’s commanding officer, Chief Warrant Officer Mike Tumulty. “That’s why this memorial service is being presented.”
More than 200 people gathered at the Neah Bay High School gym Friday to commemorate Bruckenthal, 24, as a beloved husband and father-to-be and a widely respected Coast Guard officer.
He was also honored for work as a reserve police officer, a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical services responder, and a high school assistant football coach.
Outside, a message on the school’s readerboard said, “Nathan, All Honor To You” and the Coast Guard motto, “Semper Paratus,” or Always Proud. Posters and banners inside the gym carried messages such as “Nate, American soldier, Fallen Friend, Forever Hero.”
Opening the memorial ceremony, Coast Guard officers presented an M-16 rifle, topped with a combat helmet.
Makah tribal members performed a ceremony honoring and blessing the fallen soldier.
They also draped a traditional blanket around the shoulders of Coast Guard FMNK James King. The blanket will later be ceremoniously wrapped around Bruckenthal’s widow, Patti, who lives in Opa-Locka, Fla.
Tribal Chairman Ben Johnson presented a handcarved and painted paddle to King, who will present it to Patti Bruckenthal. “I never knew the gentleman, but I feel I now do,” Johnson said.
King and Petty Officer Fred Wilson, now based in Portland, Ore., have been chosen by Patti Bruckenthal as ambassadors to represent the Coast Guard station at Bruckenthal’s funeral. He will be buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
“He willingly went into harm’s way to protect our men from terrorism,” said Coast Guard 13th District Chaplain Ed Carroll, who led the service in prayer. “Life most assuredly is mobile ... but every now and then it will drop us into a mess, just like the conflict in Iraq.”
A long line of friends and colleagues came forward to speak during a video-recorded open microphone time, sharing stories about the man they loved and appreciated.
Neah Bay Police Chief T.J. Greene said Bruckenthal “did so much for our police department” and everyone knew of him.
“Nate gave unconditionally and that is why he was so loved in this community,” Greene said.
Members of Native American Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1481 gave Bruckenthal a 21-gun salute.
The damage controlman from Smithtown, N.Y., was serving his second tour of duty in Iraq at the time of the attack aboard a U.S. Navy vessel that killed two other Navy sailors.
He was based at the Coast Guard Air Station in the Miami suburb of Opa-Locka, Fla.
Bruckenthal is survived by his wife, Patti; his father, Eric; mother, Laurie Bullock; and sister, NoaBeth.