"I could have asked him to stay, knowing he would do it," she said tearfully. "I could have told him I didn't feel right about it … But I would have been lying. The Lord has prepared me for this day. He prepared us both. And knowing what was coming, he accustomed me to this life."

"Micheal was quiet, hard-working, hilarious, loving and tough," she said. "He was fiercely protective of his family, and he made me strong."

Hyrum's Main Street was flanked on either side by members of the Utah National Guard and elementary school students waving flags.

Alleman's funeral procession passed beneath the drape of an enormous American Flag, with the rumble of the Patriot Guard's motorcycles escorting the fallen solider to his final resting place.

"I have not lost him," Amy Alleman said in a bittersweet farewell. "I am with him for eternity."

A fund has been established on behalf of the Alleman family with contributions being accepted at any Wells Fargo Bank.

e-mail: hellojenniferc@msn.com