Lima Company knows the cost of fighting for freedom
Wednesday, September 12, 2007 3:38 AM
By Jeb Phillips
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



KIRK IRWIN | DISPATCH

The Lima Company monument represents the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The names of the Lima Company Marines who served in Iraq are etched on one side. On the other are the names of the 22 Marines and one Navy Corpsman who died in 2005.

Among the four speakers at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base yesterday, only one spoke so that everyone could hear every word.

It's true that a new road had just opened, so the trucks helped drown out the other three. And the outdoor amplifier was broken, so an indoor system was carried outside for the ceremony remembering Sept. 11, 2001.

But it's also true that Gunnery Sgt. Shawn Delgado is used to being heard. He led some of the Marines of Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines. Shrapnel hit him in Iraq.

Back home, he helped design the Marine memorial behind the Navy Operational Support Center, where the ceremony was held.

"There's a lot of Marines who didn't make it back, that won't be able to tell you how much they believed in the freedoms they enjoyed," he said, standing near the memorial. "Knowing the consequences, knowing the threats, they still went forward and accomplished their missions."

The Lima Company monument is meant to recall the terrorist attack and the fallen troops. Two obelisks represent the World Trade Center. The five-sided base represents the Pentagon. The names of every Lima Company Marine who served in Iraq are etched on one side. On the other are the names of the 22 Marines and one Navy Corpsman who died with the company in 2005, and the battles they fought in.

"It was an attack on America that brought us into the war on terror," Delgado said. It made sense to talk about the memorial in remembering 9/11, he said.

Members of the Ohio Army National Guard, Ohio Air National Guard, Navy Reserves and Marine Reserves stood in formation behind the memorial. About 25 invited guests watched the ceremony. Among them were Jim and Cathy Bernholtz of Grove City. Their son, Lance Cpl. Eric Bernholtz, was killed on Aug. 3, 2005.

Cathy Bernholtz wiped her eyes as Delgado spoke.

"This is why he joined," Jim Bernholtz said after the ceremony. "He felt it was his duty."

Navy Cmdr. Pete Greenwald spoke before Delgado. He talked about the four airplanes, and the people killed six years ago. After he named each flight and the time it crashed, a bell rang.

This was a ceremony for the local boys who died in 2005, though, as much as for those who died in 2001.

Sgt. Tellis Hall and Lance Cpl. Seth Judy helped with the color-guard duties. They were in Iraq with Delgado. Sgt. Chad Watkins and Cpl. Mark Camp stood in formation. They were with Delgado, too.

"They come from your hometowns, your schools, your families, and they went forward because they are Americans," he said.

Jeb.phillips@dispatch.com

Ellie