SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A gathering of more than 2,000 at U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento helped honor the legacies of seven Coast Guardsmen and two Marines who are still missing after a Coast Guard C-130 and Marine Corps AH-1W helicopter collided off the coast of San Clemente Island, Calif., Oct. 30.
The service featured remarks by Air Station Sacramento’s commanding officer, Capt. J.J. O’Connor, the commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Thad Allen, and the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard, Master Chief Petty Officer Charles “Skip” Bowen.
The service also included a memorial meditation and prayer, a rifle salute, the playing of taps, and a flyover by a Coast Guard HH-65 and a Coast Guard C-130.
The service brought together U.S. Coast Guardsmen from around the country and the families of Lt. Cmdr. Che Barnes, Lt. Adam Bryant, Chief Petty Officer John Seidman, Petty Officer 2nd Class Carl Grigonis, Petty Officer 2nd Class Jason Moletzsky, Petty Officer 2nd Class Monica Beacham and Petty Officer 3rd Class Danny Kreder II.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Coast Guard Honor Guard Rifle Squad performs a 21-gun salute at the memorial service at Air Station Sacramento Friday, Nov. 6, 2009. The service was for the Coast Guard and Marine Corps aircrew who lost their lives in a midair collision the evening of Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009. U. S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. j. g. Todd Vorenkamp.
