Final Salute

When 2nd Lt. James Cathey's body arrived at the Reno Airport, Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac. During the arrival of another Marine's casket last year at Denver International Airport, Major Steve Beck described the scene as one of the most powerful in the process: "See the people in the windows? They'll sit right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what's going through their minds, knowing that they're on the plane that brought him home," he said. "They're going to remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They're going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should."

Major Steve Beck and another Marine approach the family home of 2nd Lt. James Cathey, preparing to escort the Catheys to the airport to receive their son's body. Five days earlier, the shadows of Casualty Assistance Call Officers followed the same path, carrying the news no military family ever wants to hear. The gold star flag in the window signifies the death of a loved one overseas.

Jo Burns cries as she and her husband Bob opened the boxes containing their son's uniforms from Iraq - boxes delivered by Maj. Steve Beck. "For me, having all this back is a good thing," she said a few minutes later. "I want to remember. I don't ever want to forget, or to stop feeling." Bob Burns then took her hand. "I don't want to forget either," he said. "I just don't want to hurt."

Marine Sgt. Jeremy Kocher stands watch near the body of Lance Cpl. Evenor Herrera in Eagle, Colo., as children and adults from the area poured in to pay their respects. Like many of the Marines stationed at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora, Kocher says the funeral detail is the most difficult mission he's ever done. "I actually start thinking about it the moment I wake up. It's such an important job that I just don't want to mess it up," he said. "I just want it to be perfect."

Gilma Miranda, the aunt of fallen Marine Lance Corporal Evenor Herrera, and close friend Kelly Matias stroke his hand during a last visitation at Community United Methodist Church in Eagle, Colo.,Herrera, who was killed in Iraq, was buried at Sunset View Cemetery in Eagle.

Members of the Marine Air Control Squadron 23 stationed at Buckley Air Force Base escort the casket of Marine Lance Corporal Evenor Herrera to a gravesite in Eagle, Colo. Since the beginning of the war, Marines from Buckley have overseen funerals for 16 active duty Marines; 12 died in Iraq, four died in traffic accidents.

Blanca Stibbs, center, rests her head on her husband David Stibbs' shoulder as a Marine honor guard folds the flag that draped their son Lance Corporal Evenor Herrera's casket during a burial service at Sunset View Cemetery in Eagle, Colo.

Lori DeMille of Oceanside, Calif., touches the headstone of fallen Marine Lance Corporal Kyle Burns at Fort Logan National Cemetery. DeMille had befriended Burns, a Laramie, Colo., native, while he was stationed at Camp Pendleton, and was in Denver to attend a ceremony honoring the Marine's actions in Iraq.

Jo Burns, center, of Laramie, Wyo., comforts Corporal Dustin Barker, 22, during a ceremony honoring the actions of fallen Marines. Jo Burns' son, Lance Corporal Kyle Burns, was killed in action in Iraq. Corporal Barker served with Lance Corporal Burns in Iraq, and was with him when he was killed.

During a formal ceremony called "Remembering the Brave," families of fallen Marines were presented with posthumous medals. Major Steve Beck prepares to present a medal.

On the tarmac at the Reno Airport, 23-year-old Katherine Cathey waits in a limousine next to an empty hearse, preparing to watch the arrival of her husband's casket. Five days earlier, she learned of her husband's death in Iraq. Two days later, she learned that her baby would be a boy.

Marine Major Steve Beck prepares for the final inspection of 2nd Lt. James J. Cathey's body, only days after notifying Cathey's wife of the Marine's death in Iraq. The knock at the door begins a ritual steeped in tradition more than two centuries old; a tradition based on the same tenet: "Never leave a Marine behind."

At the first sight of her husband's flag-draped casket, Katherine Cathey broke into uncontrollable sobs, finding support in the arms of Major Steve Beck. When Beck first knocked on her door to notify her of her husband's death, she glared at him, cursed him, and refused to speak to him for more than an hour. Over the next several days, he helped guide her through the grief. By the time they reached the tarmac, she wouldn't let go.

Minutes after her husband's casket arrived at the Reno airport, Katherine Cathey fell onto the flag. When 2nd Lt. James Cathey left for Iraq, he wrote a letter to Katherine that read, in part, "there are no words to describe how much I love you, and will miss you. I will also promise you one thing: I will be home. I have a wife and a new baby to take care of, and you guys are my world."