Local establishments are honoring American soldiers who lost their lives in a Taliban attack in Afghanistan late last month.
On Aug. 26, 13 American soldiers were killed in the Taliban attack in Kabul, Afghanistan.
The Nashville House has a “Fallen Soldier Table,” table set for one, with the chair leaned against the table. An inverted wine glass sits on the table, with a bouquet of 13 roses and a plate with a lemon wedge sprinkled with salt.
The lemon is representative of the bitter loss of the life of the fallen soldier and the salt represents tears shed for those missed.
“It’s important to show we stand with (the soldiers) and their families,” Nashville House host Elise Slaybaugh said. Her own father is in the Army and said the military appreciates the Fallen Soldier Table tribute as a memorial.
At McDonald’s, a table is prepared with 13 place settings, each one served a cookie and milk.
The store’s general manager’s son served two tours in Afghanistan and the only thing he asked for when he came home was milk and cookies.
“We don’t realize what’s going on in the world,” employee Kassie Fuhrman said. “We appreciate their service and the families.”
The soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, along with 60 Afghans, after two suicide bombers and gunmen attacked crowds flocking to Kabul’s airport.
Their names were: Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas; Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California; Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah; Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee; Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California; Marine Corps Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri; Navy Hospital Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio; Marine Corps Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska.
The U.S. officially withdrew from Afghanistan and ended its 20-year presence there on Aug. 31.
