Hall of Heroes | Documentary

Added: 2026-05-31

[00:00:00]Here we honor love. We acknowledge loss. And we hold firm to our unwavering commitment we will never forget.

[00:00:15]It stands as a testament to service, sacrifice, determination and mission accomplishment.

[00:00:21]Reminding us all that freedom is not free. Our sacred charge is to never forget those who paid its price.

[00:00:30]Today we are in the presence of true greatness. Not the kind defined by rank, position, or title, but greatness defined by service, sacrifice, and love of country. We see that greatness in the families of the heroes who are with us today. Families whose loved ones once answered our nation's call, stepped forward with courage, and carried the weight of freedom on their shoulders.

[00:00:54]And in the end, they gave their tomorrows so we can live our today.

[00:01:07]One of the big challenges is um ensuring that we have all of the names of the fallen service members that are on the wall. ensuring that they're correct, ensuring that we reach out to the family members so that they are aware and they can come and be present, you know, for the ceremony. We are extremely happy that the service members will be honored appropriately in a hall of heroes. Um, also their personal belongings will be in the mini artifact room. Um, which is awesome and amazing.

[00:01:42]And the families are just they can't be any more happier and they really feel that their loved one is being honored in a major way.

[00:02:27]Hall of Fears is important for two reasons. One, it allows us to remember those service members who have passed.

[00:02:33]Uh but the other importance is it gives us an opportunity to to have a space to reflect on their service and their lives. When you look at where we had the Hall of Heroes originally, uh it was up near our SOS offices and you know some would say it wasn't getting the the appropriate attention uh or accessibility that you would want with the Hall of Heroes. So, when we were renovating Rhymes Hall, uh it it became a apparent that this was a perfect location to put it right in the center of the installation in a historic facility. So, we had the opportunity after the renovation on the interior was complete to move the Hall of Heroes down here, make it more accessible to the public, make it more accessible to our families.

[00:03:16]Well, the biggest friction point is always money, trying to get the funds together uh in order to to do it appropriately. uh but then not necessarily a friction point but more of an opportunity in that you know it brought together a lot of different elements across the garrison and the division to work together to come and meet a common goal of getting uh the Hall of Heroes opened. So after 26 years of service and and several deployments I I have a personal connection with a lot of service members that have been lost uh not only overseas and in theater but also on the installations. So, I may not know specific names in the Hall of Heroes, but having a space to remember uh is personal to me because again, after 26 years, a lot of a lot of my peers uh soldiers that I've served with who have passed, again, it's it's a space to reflect that I can even go in there and think about them and all their memories.

[00:04:17]A soldier of the First Infantry Division uh that I knew when I was younger uh was a man by the name of Lieutenant Todd Lamub. When I first came to the First Infantry Division, it was in the spring of 2012, right before we deployed to Afghanistan. Uh it was my first duty assignment and as a young lieutenant I I didn't really know what was going on in the unit and I was working in our operations shop. Uh just kind of lost sitting at a computer not really knowing what to do dayto-day. Uh and then uh Todd just came up one day out of out of the blue. I'd only been there about a week or two. He could see that I was kind of struggling. I wasn't really sure of what to do. He just said, "Hey, it's going to be okay, man. it's going to be all right. What are you doing tomorrow for physical training? Uh, and he invited me to come work out with his platoon. Um, and then as I got to understand a little bit more about Todd and, uh, his reputation within the unit, uh, he was a high performer, beloved by soldiers, beloved by non-commissioned officers, beloved by his superiors, just uh truly a a great great guy. Um, and then when we were deployed several months later, um, he had just changed out of his platoon and had taken a heavy weapons platoon in our battalion, and I was actually slated to go replace him at at his old platoon, uh, FOB Tilman. And, uh, I'm super excited for that opportunity. Um, and he had actually because he taken his weapons platoon had come back up to, uh, the FOB where I was currently at. Um, and you know, just kind of excited for the opportunity to uh, you know, pick his brain a little bit, learn a little bit more about the soldiers, uh, that I was going to lead and just already understanding these massive shoes I was going to have to fill as a leader in combat. Um, it was it was only for a few weeks. Uh, he was there. Uh, August 1st, uh, 2012.

[00:06:14]Um, his platoon went out on a patrol. Uh his vehicle had an IED uh killing him, the driver and a local national. Um for me, when you understanding the the the price we have to pay soldiers, as leaders uh for this country, it's something we all raise our hand and um say we say the oath to protect and serve the Constitution of United States. But when you when you're face to face with it and you actually see it and have to live around it and uh see the impact of that sacrifice in real time, it it wears a lot on you and uh there's a prover proverbial term of the the price of a salute.

[00:07:02]And after losing Todd and seeing his impact uh that that he had on on his soldiers and entire organization, I I truly felt the weight of that. Um, it's something I've been carrying with me now for over a decade. We're always trying to live up to that ideal. And, uh, it's hard. It It's really hard. Um, and when I'm able to stand in in a place like the Hall of Heroes or any of the other monuments we have we have here at Fort Riley or in DC or even overseas in OMD and you see the names of those we've lost it, the the weight of that of that sacrifice, it it truly it truly hits you. Um, and I I am just so honored to even have just such a small piece of this entire uh project.

[00:08:09]I am so honored and humbled to be here today. All week long, I've looked forward to this. I serve the Big Red One and I've always my whole life I've tried to to follow their motto.

[00:08:24]This hall of heroes provides a place for families to gather and honor the life and the service and the sacrifices of their military member as well as to acknowledge the family's loss and also the sacrifices that they paid.

[00:08:43]Today we will be cutting this ribbon and it will symbolize a world of possibilities, dreams, and hopefully so many stories will be forever shared.

[00:08:59]Thank you for everything that you've done and I just I'm I'm thankful that the Big Red One is went through all of to do to make this possible for the Gold Star families.

[00:09:12]Thank you much. And Don, thank you for having us, Sheriff.

[00:09:37]Living God, may you breathe your life and presence upon us at this dedication of the First Infantry Division Hall of Heroes. As we commemorate the service and sacrifice of the big red one troopers who laid down their lives for one another and for our shared values, we thank you for the gold star family's present represent these heroes. May this building of stone, though silent, now speak. May it forever bear testimony not just to the cost of war, but to the cost of freedom. May this hall of heroes preserve the heroic legacy of our troopers who have paid the ultimate price and may it provide comfort to our gold star families. May this monument stand before you to inspire the young, console the grieving and challenge the passer by. This course of names before us calls us to remember. Grant us the grace to never forget and to lead lives worthy of the price paid on our behalf by these brave men and women. In your most holy name we pray. Amen.

[00:10:47]You always wanted to be in the army.

[00:10:49]Even when he was young, he would have these little plastic soldiers and he'd dig little foxholes and he'd throw firecrackers in there and bury the firecrackers and blow them up. He was never boring and was always full of sarcasm and laughter. Um, his sister Amanda said he was a protector long before he was in uniform.

[00:11:25]Hallelujah.

[00:11:40]Heat. Heat.

[00:12:20]What I would tell you what what it means is uh as a leader, as a soldier, as a father, as a brother, as a friend of my 27 years of service, Luis You see you see the faces in there and they're they're more than faces. They're Americans that have given their life for our country and served with the utmost honor. And to be able to be in their presence, it just it makes me want to continue to serve each and every day.

[00:12:47]It's it's a highlight to be here. It's an honor to have the ceremony today and I'm so glad that we could do this for for Riley.

[00:12:57]My uh soldier I would always point to is Captain Mike Meadows. He was my platoon leader in Iraq and he passed on September 21st, 2008.

[00:13:06]Um Mike was was the utmost friend, leader. Um up until the end, he was always making sure that everyone else was taken care of. He he understood sacrifice. He understood duty. He understood loyalty. His his family in Ohio, you know, still to this day, they are just his His father's a police chief. his mother was a teacher.

[00:13:32]>> They are great Americans, great family, and and Mike's something every day that I look at, and I'm grateful that I'm continue to able to give back >> um because Mike gave gave it all. And I'm just happy that I can continue to serve serve our country, but give back to what Mike gave gave me.

[00:13:59]to be honest with you, it's made me kind of bring back a lot of memories and stuff. It's been hard. Um, as like I said earlier, I lost a cousin in Vietnam and I lost some really good friends of mine.

[00:14:15]Um, Philip Baker was one of my best friends. He died the same the same same day as General Wear and Sar Major Venibal the big gun commander and >> in the division s major >> that day we lost nine guys that were on they weren't in my platoon they were in the second platoon >> but Phil Baker was a staff sergeant me and him worked together for my first four months in country and we're both from Michigan and we became very close friends and he had just got moved as a platoon sergeant into second platoon before we went on the operation up to lock in >> and he got killed on it was on the morning of September 14th when he passed. He got shot on the 13th and it was in the middle of the night when he finally passed.

[00:15:11]>> And I've never forgot that. I mean it's been hard on me for a lot of years. Um, every time I go to the wall, I always make a point.

[00:15:21]>> I go and I have a little talk with with him and my cousin and uh Ted Calhoun and JC Williams and Mike Baldwin and a whole bunch of other soldiers that I knew.

[00:15:36]And I' and I've always I've always made a point of looking General Wear's name up on the wall and also Sergeant Major Venable and this they're right close to right where the same sold my the soldiers I served with cuz they all passed right within a day or two of each other. So but it's it's been an honor to be here.

[00:15:59]Um, this is my first trip to Fort Riley, but the Big Red One has always taken care of soldiers and they've always put soldiers first. So, I'm just honored to be part of this and I know that they'll do whatever it takes to take care of soldiers and the and the soldiers families if they do happen to pass.

[00:16:22]When you have something like this, I would hope that schools would get back to teaching history like they like they did when I grew up and show people how proud they should be of their country and all the stuff we've been through.

[00:16:37]And it's the it's the military that has made everything in our country, >> you know, to be free and to be available to everybody, you know, that's what I hope happens in the future.

[00:16:52]The First Infantry Division's motto has always been no mission too difficult, no sacrifice too great, duty first. And it just proves that they take care of their soldiers, but they also take care of the families of those soldiers if for some reason something happens to them. U just and I've always said, if you want to be one, be a big red one cuz that's the way to go.

[00:17:20]as we've rededicated the uh Hall of Heroes down on uh main post at Grimes Hall. Um and the families being aware that their their loved ones were were being moved from one location to another. And the fact that more have have kind of come out uh and 16 additional families over the past couple months have said that they wanted their their loved ones added, I I think it goes to show that they are not forgotten. Um and e even though days, weeks, months, years, decades have passed, uh the the cost, the sacrifice made made by these heroes is still being felt and still being honored by families. And it I think it's really really nice to see the families coming back to Fort Riley and wanting to interact with the current generation of soldiers and then be able to tell the stories of their loved ones to the current generation.

[00:18:13]I think it's essential for all soldiers to be aware of the sacrifice that's come before them. Um, it truly helps you understand the proverbial why why am I wearing the uniform and when you can see a face and see the name associated with with that sacrifice it it really drives it home. So I would ask all the soldiers and future leaders in the first infantry division, take take some time, go down there, read the biographies of some of some of these soldiers cuz they're probably not too dissimilar from yourself. And the same way that this is the year of legacy for the first infantry division, you can find a piece of yourself going back in time and learn learn about a soldier who's very very much like you. And you can truly feel that sense of history and how it relates to you today. And uh I would again I would just implore all all soldier and leaders just go go down there and take a moment of reverence to see see what that cost is.

[00:19:16]While there were challenges in this project, I would say the biggest thing though was teamwork across the board where you had a public affairs section working with survivor outreach services, working with our garrison command, working with department of public works to the contract companies actually building it. It was a lot of teamwork along the way. Um, a lot of hard work uh to be able to kind of push it to the finish and uh I I'm just so incredibly proud standing in front of looking at that building before and after photos and you can see a lot of hard work that went in and it's not just for the sake of doing a good job. It's it's for the families of those loved ones inside.

[00:19:58]So, I'm Marshall Ray and my son Trenton Ray served as a military police for 12 years and his three deployments. His last deployment was to Afghanistan uh when he was killed in action May 15th of 2013. So, he is on the wall all of heroes. He always wanted to be in the army and he grew up and he fulfilled that dream and he was a great Christian leader. There's a picture in there taken of when he was with his group. They were in a circle praying before mission and they got that picture of him in there.

[00:20:41]So that's that describes him right there.

[00:20:45]Great husband and father of three wonderful girls.

[00:20:50]There are still soldiers, you know, dying in They should be recognized by places like this, made aware to the public that sacrifices are still being made for our freedoms.