In Loving Memory Of

Sergeant Alfred Barton Siler

Unfortunately, we find ourselves announcing the loss of yet another brother, Sergeant Alfred Barton Siler. Sergeant Siler was killed when the Humvee he was riding in swerved to avoid a civilian and struck another vehicle. As the turret gunner on the Humvee, Siler's life was compromised as the Humvee flipped over during the accident near Tuz, Iraq. Sgt. Siler leaves behind a precious 3 year old little girl, Mikkah.

Sgt. Barton Siler was an eight year veteran of the Army National Guard from Eagan, a small community just east of Jellico, on the Kentucky-Tennessee state line. He graduated from Jellico High School in 1989. He was the only serviceman from his community of Eagan fighting in Iraq and is the first to give his life for our freedom from his unit in Jacksboro. Siler, who was thirty three years of age, was due to come home on his leave any day

. Sgt. Siler will now be coming home for sure, but certainly not the way we all had hoped. He will be missed terribly, not only by his family, but by his fellow soldiers and military family. Our hearts go out to his sweet, innocent daughter Mikkah, as well as the rest of his family members. We will continue to carry them in our thoughts and prayers and ask God to wrap His arms around them during this tragic time. We are so very proud of Sgt. Siler, and owe him our undying gratitude for his ultimate sacrifice. Freedom isn't free, and comes at such an unfair cost. It is the brave men and women, such as Sgt. Siler, that have given us the even the smallest of pleasures we enjoy on a daily basis. Thanks will never be enough. To the family of Sgt. Siler, we send our deepest sympathies and regrets.

We leave you with this verse....

God hath not promised Skies always blue, Flower-strewn pathways All our lives through; God hath not promised Sun without rain, Joy without sorrow, Peace without pain. But God hath promised Strength for the day, Rest for the labor, Light for the way Grace for the trials, Help from above. Unfailing sympathy, Undying love... And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes
Revelation 21:4

278th HHT Family Readiness Group

MG Taluto, CH (COL) Robinson, LTC Honeycutt, CSM Pippin, fellow Squadron Commanders and CSM's, and Thunderbolt Soldiers, we come today to honor our fallen Brother, SGT Bart Siler.  We just passed the halfway point of our deployment, and I had begun to think that perhaps all of you great soldiers of the Regimental Support Squadron would make it back home safe and sound.  However, those thoughts ended this past Wednesday afternoon when I received word that SGT Siler had been killed in a vehicle accident near Tuz.

I knew SGT Siler for his ready smile, for his hard work, and for his big heart.  He never complained.  He always performed his duties to the best of his ability.  He always maintained the standards as a good junior NCO should.  As a matter of fact, his whole M1114 crew maintained the standards…they always wore their protective equipment properly, they always kept their helmets on and securely fastened, and they always wore their seatbelts.  That is why we are here today in remembrance of one soldier instead of mourning the loss of three soldiers.

SGT Siler also exemplified the Regimental Motto of “I Volunteer, Sir.”  He volunteered when he joined the Army, he volunteered when we deployed to Iraq , and he volunteered to join the Convoy Security Team.

SGT Siler volunteered because he understood that Freedom has a price.  It is not free.  But he came here willing to pay that price so that his daughter and the next generation of Americans could continue to enjoy the blessings of Liberty .

SGT Bart Siler would have agreed wholeheartedly with Revolutionary War hero Samuel Adams, who said, "Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say, 'What should be the reward of such sacrifices?' Bid us and our posterity bow the knee, supplicate the friendship, and plough, and sow, and reap, to glut the avarice of the men who have let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth? If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude more than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!"   We will not forget that SGT Siler was one of our countrymen.

SGT Siler would have stood at Patrick Henry's side when he said, "Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"   He wanted his daughter and her children to enjoy the same freedoms that he had.  He knew that Freedom is worth fighting for!

I think that Bart would have told us today to always remember him as our friend and our Brother in Arms, but to keep up the good fight and continue the mission.

Thank you, Bart, for your sacrifice, and Godspeed on your journey home, my Friend.