A military roll call went out and several soldiers in the crowd answered.
Then the call came to “Sgt. Stiles!”
There was no answer. The call was repeated.
“Sgt. Jon Stiles!”
All that could be heard was the weeping of Stiles’ loved ones who had come to honor the fallen soldier.
More than 100 family members, friends and military comrades gathered at Fort Logan National Cemetery on Friday to offer a final salute to Stiles, who was killed serving with the National Guard in Afghanistan.
“It’s a difficult time,” said Maj. Gen. H. Michael Edwards, adjutant general of the Colorado National Guard. “Sgt. Stiles is truly an American hero.”
Stiles, 38, of Highlands Ranch, died in Jalalabad on Nov. 13 when a bomb exploded near his vehicle.
In a similar attack in October, Stiles injured his vocal cords and lungs, but managed to help rescue three others who were more severely injured.
During his recovery, he was granted 30 days of leave but returned to duty early. He had about 100 days left in his current tour of duty.
On Friday, his wife, Launa Stiles, and his father, Lynn Stiles, together held the reins of a horse-drawn wagon that carried Stiles’ flag-draped coffin.
At the beginning of the service, uniformed soldiers stood at attention and saluted as the casket was lifted from the wagon. A bagpiper played “Amazing Grace.”
Prayer was offered and the roll call ceremony was performed. Seven soldiers fired three volleys each into the air.
Members of the honor guard folded the flag that had covered Stiles’ casket and a soldier presented it to Launa Stiles. Flags were also presented to Lynn Stiles and to the soldier’s mother, Linda Barnett.
Stiles had a long record of service.
He joined the U.S. Marine Corps at age 19 and later the U.S. Army, serving three years at Fort Carson.
On his latest tour, Stiles was assigned to the Louisiana Army National Guard and served in the 927th Engineer Company in the 769th Engineer Battalion. He was deployed to Afghanistan in March.
Kyle Murphy met Stiles at Metropolitan State College of Denver, where they both were students.
“He was the guy who always said: ‘It’s all good, it’s all good,’ ” Murphy recalled, shaking his head.
He said Stiles liked organizing study groups that would meet at his home, where they pored over textbooks and munched popcorn.
Ryan Vergara-Mangan, a member of the Air National Guard, was among the Metro students who studied with Stiles.
“He was just a great friend,” Vergara-Mangan said. “He died doing what he loved.”
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
