Utahns honor fallen soldiers

Rep. Jim Matheson's equation for the cost of freedom is a simple one based on the number of names on headstones in the national cemeteries and on war monuments.

"It's easy to take freedom for granted, until you find yourself in a land ruled by tyrants and terrorism," he said Monday to a crowd of more than 300.

Matheson and other state leaders spoke on freedom and related topics at Memorial Day services Monday throughout the Salt Lake Valley.

Matheson joined about 100 military personnel and civilians who marched a mile to the Fort Douglas Cemetery in honor of the estimated 1.1 million Americans who sacrificed their lives in wars. At the service, Matheson said he felt gratitude for "those who gave their lives to protect the helpless, to let democracy flower around the world and to defend the freedoms we enjoy as Americans."

"We treasure the memory of soldiers who died too young," Matheson said, "as well as the living history of the gray-haired veterans here among us."

KUTV 2 News anchor Mark Koelbel also spoke at Fort Douglas. He said that aside from the traditional moment of silence, the crowd should spend Memorial Day sharing stories about friends and relatives who served in combat.

"My father served in Korea," he said. "I appreciate his service, and I appreciated what he instilled in me."

As a journalist, Koelbel said he dreaded calling family members of soldiers who died in combat, but those calls became some of the most rewarding moments in his career.

"I'm always amazed by what I learn about everyday people who don the uniform for our country," he said.

After Koelbel spoke, Maj. Gen. Peter Cooke listed the names of 14 soldiers from the 96th Regional Readiness Command who have died since the start of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. After he called each name, a bell rang in the distance to signify, he said, "they are no longer with us, but their spirit will always be with us."

Sen. Orrin Hatch spoke Monday at the Larkin Memorial Day Service in Sandy. Fortunately, Americans are bound together by an idea — freedom — rather than a dictator, he said during his speech, and Americans enjoy their liberties because of the fallen heros and war veterans who willingly paid the price.

"Securing freedom is never easy," Hatch said. "It requires the determination and unwavering resolve that, in the end, freedom will triumph."

Since Sept. 11, 2001, more than two dozen soldiers with Utah ties have died. In a statement released Monday, Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. said he and his wife extend their condolences to the families of those fallen soldiers.

"Mary Kaye and I have pondered seriously the tragic losses our state and our country have endured since waging this war on terrorism," Huntsman wrote. "The loss has been great, but it has not been in vain."

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