Body of Fallen Soldier Returns To MacDill Air Force Base On A Day The Military Changed

Posted Sep 20, 2011 by Howard Altman

Updated Sep 20, 2011 at 10:42 PM

On a day that would see the military change forever, the flag-draped casket being taken off the Falcon 10 jet at MacDill Air Force Base this morning was a stark reminder that the mission is the same and the price remains high.

Under a hot sun, after an honor guard shouted “present arms” Brittany Marquis slowly walked up to the casket containing her husband, Pfc. Christophe Marquis, a Frenchman who came to this country and wound up dying to defend it. A short while later, other family members approached the casket, before it was loaded onto a hearse and escorted off the base by a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office honor escort.

Marquis, 40, died in Germany on Sept. 4 of injuries he received in Afghanistan Aug. 27.

To his comrades, “was a good soldier, knowledgeable, helpful and willing to carry the heaviest loads, and it’s clear his platoon-mates liked and admired him,” Lt. Col. David Hardy, the commander of 2nd Bn., 8th Inf. Reg. was quoted on the 2nd Brigade “Warhorse” Facebook page. “He came from a different background and he was a little older than the rest and he had a different accent but he was right at home among his fellow soldiers.”

Marquis joined the French Foreign Legion as an infantryman in 1990. He deployed to Bosnia and French Guiana in South America. Marquis earned the rank of staff sergeant while in the Legion.
Marquis moved to the United States in 2007 and enlisted in the U.S. Army in April 2010. He joined as an infantryman and was stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

    “Specialist Marquis was a warrior in the truest sense of the word,” said Capt. Christopher Gardiner, the commander of Troop A, 5th Sqdn., 1st Cav. Reg. “There is no one who exemplifies the warrior lifestyle more. (His) attention to detail and dedication to mission was phenomenal and an example to junior troopers around him.”

Air Force MSgt Bryan Gatewood, one of the base PAOs, said he comes out to every dignified transfer. They are a chance, he said, to show his appreciation to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

He is not alone on MacDill.

The three-quarter-mile stretch of Florida Keys Avenue is lined up shoulder to shoulder with base personnel who also want to pay their respects.

“It is a somber time,” he said.

And it was a busy time for Gatewood.

Aside from escorting the gathered media to the dignified transfer, he was finishing up gathering info and approvals on my request to find out what the base was doing to accommodate the repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy.

When Marquis died, gays and lesbians were not allowed to serve openly in the military.

Coincidentally, on the day he came home, the repeal of that policy went into effect.

The 6th Air Mobility Wing, like all units of the U.S. military, was ordered to train its personnel in what the new policy means and what to do moving forward.

So far, 99 percent of MacDill’s personnel have been trained, Gatewood told me via an email Tuesday evening. The rest, he said, are deployed and will be trained when they get back.

The department and services have transitioned to “sustainment training,” wrote Gatewood, “which incorporates sexual orientation-neutral policies into regular training programs (i.e., Initial Military Training and Professional Military Education; Command Leadership School, Leadership Development courses) for leaders, commanders, basic trainees and staffs, with emphasis on the four tenets of Leadership, Professionalism, Discipline and Respect.”

The wing’s partner units at the base are under the same orders, Gatewood said.

Tuesday evening, about 100 people came out to the Queens Head Restaurant and Eurobar as the Stonewall Democratic Club of Pinellas County celebrated the end of a policy that saw thousands of servicemembers booted from the military over their sexual preference.

Brian Arsenault served 14.5 years in the Air Force and supported Operation Desert Storm.

He is “totally glad” about the appeal.

“It’s about time,” he told my colleague, photo journalist Chris Urso, who covered the event.