Marine Sacrifice Honored Cross-Country with Lima Company Memorial
On a summer evening in May 2005, Jody Davids received the news that a mother of a Marine never wants to hear.
Her son, Lance Cpl. Wesley Davids, died the day after his 20th birthday. Between May and August of 2005, 22 Marines and a Navy corpsman were killed. They were all part of a seven-month mission known as Operation Iraqi Freedom III, which was helping to provide stability to Western Iraq.
Many of those casualties came from the Columbus, Ohio-based Lima Company, including Wesley.
Wesley’s loss was devastating, but Davids takes some solace in a letter he wrote to his family that was only to be delivered as part of a military death notification.
“Wesley told us that he lived a life full of purpose,” said Davids, who explained her son was committed to doing whatever he could to protect the United States from future terrorist attacks after he watched the planes hit the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001. “He expressed to us in this letter that he was happy and proud of what he was doing no matter the cost involved.”
The lives of Lima Company and so many other veterans are not forgotten. Their story is told over and over throughout the country by the Eyes of Freedom Lima Company Memorial. Paintings of Lima Company soldiers, including Wesley, travel the country in a memorial event trailer hauled by R+L Carriers. The trailer, along with several others, is wrapped with images of the memorial paintings and the Eyes of Freedom Logo. Wesley’s letter to his family is also on display at the memorial.
Since 2011, the memorial trailer and the life-sized paintings of the fallen marines have been displayed at more than 225 events across North America. Veterans and citizens flock to see the exhibit and pay their respects. Many of the events kick off with large motorcycle rallies and people line up to salute the Lima Company Memorial trailer when it arrives.
Davids, now the Chief Information Officer of PepsiCo, was pleasantly surprised to discover that her employer supports company veterans in a big way with PepsiCo Valor, a group founded in 2010 to recognize, appreciate and support PepsiCo’s veterans, active military members, their families and the communities where they live and work.
PepsiCo Valor drivers raise money annually by driving an American flag brought back from the war in Afghanistan in 2010 along their routes, passing the flag onto other drivers in cities from coast to coast in a truck route relay. This year’s Rolling Remembrance Relay was a 7,000-mile journey that began in Seattle on April 24 and ended at PepsiCo North American Headquarters in White Plains, N.Y. on May 25. All the money raised for the annual event goes to support the Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation.
PepsiCo is also now a proud sponsor of The Lima Company Memorial.
View the Lima Company Memorial Schedule
The Lima Company Memorial is rolling into Yankee Stadium in New York City 6 p.m. Friday, May 26 for a memorial stop before a baseball game that will also include a speech by Davids. At the same time, another Lima Company Memorial trailer will be on display at Arlington Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio for all to see during the Memorial Day weekend.
“It’s such a moving experience for anyone that sees the Lima Company Memorial,” said Davids, who appreciates the memorial and R+L Carriers commitment to the continued transportation of the memorial.
“What R+L Carriers does to help move this memorial around the country is so unique,” Davids said. “It shows the company has the utmost respect for this country’s military, the fallen and the values and beliefs that my son and my family stand for.”
R+L Carriers’ employees are proud to support the Lima Company Memorial and its dedication to honor our veterans. Donate to the Lima Company Memorial today and view the upcoming schedule to see when they will be in your area.
