Last week I told you about PFC Nathaniel “Nathan” Given, the young US Army soldier from Dickenson, Texas that my brother helped recruit into the Army.

On Saturday, he was finally laid to rest near his home in this small south Texas town.

“He was a young man searching for his niche in life. That is why he went into the Army,” [Rev.] Broyles said. “Nathan had honor and he had integrity. He was a man who wanted to make a difference in the world around him.

PFC Given did find his niche in life, and with his ultimate sacrifice, he has made the biggest difference that one man can make: John 15:13: “Greater love has no one but this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

Despite the rainy weather, over 231 Patriot Guard Riders showed up to pay their respects to PFC Given and his family. All along the route from the funeral home to the cemetery on I-45, hundreds of cars pulled over to the side of the road to pay their respects — all of the overpasses were lined with people holding flags, most with their hands over their hearts, and many more with their heads bowed in prayer.

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Here are some more pictures from his services (courtesy of mustanger7up), and the words of some of the Patriot Guard Riders who rode in his honor:

From RideTheWind

For a year now I have tried to put to words what I see and feel at a mission. I always come up short on words — there are none that can really describe it. As I directed new arrivals into the proper row at the staging, I was fighting back the emotion as one more arrived, followed by a group of 6, then 3, then 10, then 5, then 8, and you keep coming. At the start of the mission breifing we had 155, which broke the record for a mission in the greater Houston area. There were at least another 30 that arrived during the briefing. Then more arrived while we where starting up. I am not sure when each final person arrived after that to get us to the 231 count for bikes and 10 for cages. Later one of the police officer told me that we were 2 miles long on the way to the funeral home.

When we told the family that we are coming, we didn’t want to over estimate our numbers, so we told them between 20 and 70. Your hearts are as big as Texas. This show of support touched the Given family very deeply.

I was escorting the hearse to the cemetery on its left flank and in front of the family limo. All of the people that stopped on the freeway, service road, over passes, go-cart track, and other buisness to show their respect and honor for this hero was overwhelming to me.

From Warbird:

This was my first PGR ride. I joined up quite a while back, but I have not been able to make myself do that first ride. I wanted to, but my head and heart were filled with so much emotion each time, that I backed out and stayed home. I think it has to do with the fact that one of my own sons is in the Army right now serving in Iraq, and it is very hard to come to grips with all that these rides represent to me. Also, I have another son who lives here and is also a rider and PGR member. We have always tried to do our first PGR ride together, but cound never coordinate our own time together. So finally, I just felt I had to do this. Nathaniel had given everything he had. I could certainly give this much to honor his service.

As I stood there at the cemetery, holding the American flag gently wafting in the light swirling breeze, I found myself literally bathed in red white and blue as my own flag and the flags on my right and on my left alternately draped across my face. It was a baptism of glory, honor, and service. I have never felt more thankful for those who gave their all, than I did at that single moment in my life.

Later that evening, after riding home in the cold dark rain, I stripped off my wet leathers and joined the family in the living room to watch the end of the football game. The phone rang. It was a call from Iraq. My heart sank, and I was filled with dread. To my surprise, it was my son. He was OK. He just felt a need to call home. That was the first time he had called home since he deployed last August, but for some reason, on that day, at 4:30 in the morning (Iraq time), he got the urge to call home. We all chatted with him for almost an hour. I told him I appreciated his service. I couldn’t bring myself to tell him how I had spent my day.

From FastForward356:

Hoo Yaa!! says it all from a Marines perspective OUTSTANDING! comes to mind first. I know now why we do this, its simple we like to cry…I am so very proud to be a part of this group. Words cannot descripe the way we feel. I read a patch yesterday that summed it up and it read “Never again will one generation of Vets forget the next generation of vets”. I will forever live by these words. I am a vet and my son is serving today; he will never forget the turnout of proud vets and outstanding civilans as we burried one his friends last week (Spc. Ford).

It doesnt matter if the final count of bikes yesterday was 1 or 300, the support of others standing on the side of the roadway — young and old — showing respect was unbelievable. It makes your chest swell up. After the services as we were leaving I waved at Scott Given and he proudly gave me back a fist pump. Now that made it all worth while he obviously was as proud of us as we were of him.

Posted by Robbie Cooper on Monday, January 8th, 2007 | Trackback |