photographs by Jim Weber
Posted on 11/15/2003 8:36:23 AM PST by Maigrey
Army Staff Sgt. Morgan D. Kennon of Memphis was given a hero's farewell Friday morning, a week after he was killed in Iraq.
"Death reminds us of the sovereignty of God, and the frailty of man," Rev. Arthur Snow, pastor of Greater New Shiloh Baptist Church, said to more than 500 mourners attending services at N. J. Ford & Sons Funeral Home.
Kennon's Bronze Star and Purple Heart were displayed next to his flag-draped coffin. Large sprays of red and white flowers surrounded the casket and the dais where dignitaries sat.
photographs by Jim Weber
As officers and dignitaries paid honor to him and a minister spoke words of faith, the tearful family of Staff Sgt. Morgan DeShawn Kennon sits near him, including sister Nicole Crawford beside mother Paulette Crawford-Webb (in blue).
After the morning services, the funeral procession traveled past honor guards of firefighters and schoolchildren with signs as it made its way from South Memphis to the West Tennessee State Veterans Cemetery in southeast Shelby County.
Photograph by AJ Wolfe
Riverview Middle School students (from left) Marvin Garner, 14, Jessica Burks, 13, and Daphne Smith, 13, pay respects.
Military honor guards gave folded flags to Kennon's mother and father. A 21-gun salute for the soldier, the first Memphian killed in the Iraqi war, broke the chilly fall air.
Photograph by AJ Wolfe
Members of the 101st Airborne, based at Fort Campbell, Ky., fold a flag from the casket of their comrade in arms. Flags were given to Sgt. Kennon’s mother and father.
Kennon, who was 23, joined the Army at 17 and left for basic training at 18. After four years at Fort Hood, Texas, he rejoined and was assigned to the 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Ky.
photographs by Jim Weber
Ghana Jackson, the girlfriend of Staff Sgt. Morgan Kennon, turns to Sgt. Calvin Cameron for comfort Friday afternoon after Kennon’s burial ceremony.
The family last saw Kennon in February before he went overseas.
He was fatally wounded during an attack on an Army convoy guarding a bank in Mosul. The Army said he died immediately of blunt force trauma to the head, while trying to protect fellow soldiers.
Kennon has been described as a smart, friendly man who loved the Army, his family and God. He often wrote letters home telling relatives not to worry, he was not afraid.
U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr. said he was moved by Kennon's letters, portions of which were printed Friday in The Commercial Appeal.
"In the midst of all that was going on over there, the clarity with which he expressed himself makes all of us proud," Ford said, as he addressed Kennon's tearful family in the front pews at the funeral home.
A top Army officer from Virginia and members of the 101st Airborne attended services.
"We are here to be with the family, to respect and honor this great soldier," Maj. Gen. Russell L. Honore of Norfolk, Va., said before services began. "He served proudly and with distinction for our nation."
Honore said he represented the Secretary of the Army and the Chiefs of Staff.
Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton thanked Kennon's family on behalf of the citizens of the county.
"We share your loss," he said.
Several of Kennon's friends spoke about his loyalty, honesty and his love for family and the military.
Snow's eulogy was so passionate the minister had to sit down for part of its delivery.
Kennon was "a good man who could have at the age of 23 been on the streets doing nothing, but he chose to do something positive and constructive with his life. It is unfortunate that he was cut down at an early age," he said.
Snow offered comfort for Kennon's mother, Paulette Crawford-Webb, his father, Morgan Kennon, and other relatives and friends.
"In spite of all that has transpired, God is still good," Snow said. "You need to know and understand today that Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal."
He said Kennon knew the risks of a military career, "but he trusted God."
Kennon was a soldier in the U.S. Army and a soldier in the army of the Lord who did not fear death, Snow said.
"He was prepared externally and he was prepared internally. He wasn't afraid of what could happen to him because he knew that with Jesus, he would be all right."
- Shirley Downing: 529-2387
He was fatally wounded during an attack on an Army convoy guarding a bank in Mosul. The Army said he died immediately of blunt force trauma to the head, while trying to protect fellow soldiers.
Kennon has been described as a smart, friendly man who loved the Army, his family and God. He often wrote letters home telling relatives not to worry, he was not afraid.
~~~~~~
He felt sorry for the families who had lost loved ones in the war.
But he said he had not worried about his son - the same way most people don't worry when they get behind the wheel of a car.
"In your mind's eye, it is not going to happen to you. No one is going to run a red light, or hit me in the rear, or car-jack my car. You have a level of comfort, and that is how I felt about him, that no matter where he goes, he will be safe.
"I must have carried that thought too far."
Kennon was pulling off his shoes when he heard a knock at the door. Two Army officers were on his front porch.
At first, he thought they were soliciting donations.
He said the officers immediately told him his son had died, but had not suffered. "That in a sense is comforting," he said.
Kennon's post-retirement plans are now gone, too. "Now that I'm two years away from retirement I have no sons to spend my time with."
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