thedrifter
05-20-09, 09:00 AM
Ceremony room dedicated to fallen Marine
By Joseph Cress, Sentinel Reporter, May 20, 2009
Last updated: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 9:47 AM EDT
Seeing his kid brother up on the wall was reassuring to Adam Frye.
He knew the easy smile, inquisitive heart and ready soul of the fallen Marine lance corporal could only inspire others to follow the glory path.
“Jason would open their eyes to the future,” the Shermansdale man said. “They will know they are doing something good for a cause ... that they are one of the few standing up to protect freedom, and freedom isn’t free.”
So many people lie awake at night and wonder if they would do anything important with their lives, Frye said. “In the Marines, we can go to the grave knowing there is no greater glory, no better death than dying for a cause.”
Knowing this has helped Adam Frye cope with the loss of Jason, who was killed in a roadside bomb explosion near Fallujah, Iraq, on Oct. 6, 2005.
A former Marine, Adam Frye joined friends and family Tuesday in a special salute of his brother at the Harrisburg Military Entrance Processing Station.
The enlistment ceremony room at the Lower Allen Township facility will be permanently named in honor of Jason L. Frye. Photos of the young Marine hang on the wall in clear view of fresh recruits as they recite the oath of allegiance.
The processing station is where everyone entering the military in all five branches go for testing, physicals and to take their oath to be sworn in. The facility covers the eastern half of Pennsylvania along with portions of Maryland.
A mom’s fears
It was in that very room where both Adam and Jason Frye took their oath as Marine recruits. Their mother, Connie Frye, said Tuesday she had two fears when her son Jason died. One was how she was going to continue without him. The other was whether he would end up forgotten as so many other soldiers who have died in war.
“You have proven me wrong,” she told the audience gathered in the room. “I thank you all for remembering our Jason. It has meant so very much. Not enough words can describe how grateful our family is.”
In an interview earlier in the day, Connie Frye spoke of her pain in coping with the loss.
“We have good days and bad days,” she said. “Christmas, Thanksgiving and his birthday are very hard. Memorial Day is so overwhelming. We’re going to so many different events.
“You just wake up and hope today is a good day,” she added. “But something could come along and remind you of him. That makes the day horrible. There is no normal to our life anymore.”
One way she copes is to stay involved in the Marine Corps, especially the annual Toys for Tots campaign, which is held around Christmas.
Connie Frye is convinced her son would be surprised to learn an enlistment ceremony room is dedicated to him.
“He would be saying ‘Why me? Why me? I was just a Perry County boy.’ He would say ‘Do not forget my fallen brothers and myself, but honor my God.’”
Brother Marines called Jason Frye “the preacher” because of his strong Christian faith, Connie Frye said. Until they learned to accept him, they used to pick on Jason for praying over his Meal-Ready-to-Eat combat ration.
Connie Frye added her son had an inquisitive nature and always asked questions. Once he asked so many questions, fellow Marines reminded him rather briskly that a combat mission was no field trip.
Marine Major Chris Lovell commands the Harrisburg MEPS, where about 7,000 recruits pass through every year on their way to military duty. He explained how Jason Frye was chosen for the honor from over 200 names of those who served in past and present wars.
“What a gift Jason was to everybody,” Lovell said. “There is a picture of him holding up a little Iraqi girl saying to his family how his work would help give her a brighter future.”
Having a room named after Jason reminds fresh recruits about the impact they could have in the world and reminds recruiters about how special these men and women are, Lovell said.
‘Jason’s room’
Gunnery Sergeant Rodger Hoke Jr. considered it among the highest honors to bestow upon a fellow Marine.
“Jason’s spirit and everything he stood for will be with the recruits when they swear their oath of allegiance,” said Hoke, who served on the honor guard at the funeral.
“This is Jason’s room,” said the guest speaker Col. Barrye Price, who is commander of the Eastern Sector of the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command.
Price called the tribute to Jason Frye “an outer symbol of inner grace” and an example of how the renewal of a single special individual could leave behind such a mark in history and a legacy of faith.
Close friend Mike Hahn, 23, of Landisburg put it in more basic terms. “Right there is a prime example of a true soldier ... that is the real deal.”
Lovell explained how the military settled on dedicating the ceremony room to a Pennsylvanian because many from the Keystone State have been called on to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In January, Lovell contacted the Inspection and Instructor staff for the Marine Reserve unit in Harrisburg. He wanted a recommendation from this group — tasked with notifying next of kin of combat deaths.
Right away, the I and I staff suggested Jason Frye because of the continued involvement of his parents, Connie and Gary Frye of Landisburg, in such Marine outreach programs as Toys for Tots.
Ellie
By Joseph Cress, Sentinel Reporter, May 20, 2009
Last updated: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 9:47 AM EDT
Seeing his kid brother up on the wall was reassuring to Adam Frye.
He knew the easy smile, inquisitive heart and ready soul of the fallen Marine lance corporal could only inspire others to follow the glory path.
“Jason would open their eyes to the future,” the Shermansdale man said. “They will know they are doing something good for a cause ... that they are one of the few standing up to protect freedom, and freedom isn’t free.”
So many people lie awake at night and wonder if they would do anything important with their lives, Frye said. “In the Marines, we can go to the grave knowing there is no greater glory, no better death than dying for a cause.”
Knowing this has helped Adam Frye cope with the loss of Jason, who was killed in a roadside bomb explosion near Fallujah, Iraq, on Oct. 6, 2005.
A former Marine, Adam Frye joined friends and family Tuesday in a special salute of his brother at the Harrisburg Military Entrance Processing Station.
The enlistment ceremony room at the Lower Allen Township facility will be permanently named in honor of Jason L. Frye. Photos of the young Marine hang on the wall in clear view of fresh recruits as they recite the oath of allegiance.
The processing station is where everyone entering the military in all five branches go for testing, physicals and to take their oath to be sworn in. The facility covers the eastern half of Pennsylvania along with portions of Maryland.
A mom’s fears
It was in that very room where both Adam and Jason Frye took their oath as Marine recruits. Their mother, Connie Frye, said Tuesday she had two fears when her son Jason died. One was how she was going to continue without him. The other was whether he would end up forgotten as so many other soldiers who have died in war.
“You have proven me wrong,” she told the audience gathered in the room. “I thank you all for remembering our Jason. It has meant so very much. Not enough words can describe how grateful our family is.”
In an interview earlier in the day, Connie Frye spoke of her pain in coping with the loss.
“We have good days and bad days,” she said. “Christmas, Thanksgiving and his birthday are very hard. Memorial Day is so overwhelming. We’re going to so many different events.
“You just wake up and hope today is a good day,” she added. “But something could come along and remind you of him. That makes the day horrible. There is no normal to our life anymore.”
One way she copes is to stay involved in the Marine Corps, especially the annual Toys for Tots campaign, which is held around Christmas.
Connie Frye is convinced her son would be surprised to learn an enlistment ceremony room is dedicated to him.
“He would be saying ‘Why me? Why me? I was just a Perry County boy.’ He would say ‘Do not forget my fallen brothers and myself, but honor my God.’”
Brother Marines called Jason Frye “the preacher” because of his strong Christian faith, Connie Frye said. Until they learned to accept him, they used to pick on Jason for praying over his Meal-Ready-to-Eat combat ration.
Connie Frye added her son had an inquisitive nature and always asked questions. Once he asked so many questions, fellow Marines reminded him rather briskly that a combat mission was no field trip.
Marine Major Chris Lovell commands the Harrisburg MEPS, where about 7,000 recruits pass through every year on their way to military duty. He explained how Jason Frye was chosen for the honor from over 200 names of those who served in past and present wars.
“What a gift Jason was to everybody,” Lovell said. “There is a picture of him holding up a little Iraqi girl saying to his family how his work would help give her a brighter future.”
Having a room named after Jason reminds fresh recruits about the impact they could have in the world and reminds recruiters about how special these men and women are, Lovell said.
‘Jason’s room’
Gunnery Sergeant Rodger Hoke Jr. considered it among the highest honors to bestow upon a fellow Marine.
“Jason’s spirit and everything he stood for will be with the recruits when they swear their oath of allegiance,” said Hoke, who served on the honor guard at the funeral.
“This is Jason’s room,” said the guest speaker Col. Barrye Price, who is commander of the Eastern Sector of the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command.
Price called the tribute to Jason Frye “an outer symbol of inner grace” and an example of how the renewal of a single special individual could leave behind such a mark in history and a legacy of faith.
Close friend Mike Hahn, 23, of Landisburg put it in more basic terms. “Right there is a prime example of a true soldier ... that is the real deal.”
Lovell explained how the military settled on dedicating the ceremony room to a Pennsylvanian because many from the Keystone State have been called on to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In January, Lovell contacted the Inspection and Instructor staff for the Marine Reserve unit in Harrisburg. He wanted a recommendation from this group — tasked with notifying next of kin of combat deaths.
Right away, the I and I staff suggested Jason Frye because of the continued involvement of his parents, Connie and Gary Frye of Landisburg, in such Marine outreach programs as Toys for Tots.
Ellie