World problems, so often over-looked because they happen “somewhere else,” became real again to Poplarville and Pearl River County with the loss of Sgt. Lerando Brown on Feb. 15 in Balad, Iraq. Sgt. Brown was a member of the 288th Sapper Company based in Houston, Miss., and was on his first tour of duty.
Brown is the second Pearl River County soldier to be lost while on deployment in the Iraq conflict. His death placed the number of killed close to the 4,000 mark for the five years since the start of hostilities with the invasion of Iraq in 2002.
It is not our purpose here to debate the pros and cons of the strife or to question matters of policy. This is neither the time nor the place because people are hurting from the pain of loss and such weighty issues should be put aside for the moment.
Put aside, yes — but not forgotten. Not forgotten because Sgt. Brown and the other fallen soldiers he joins are a sacred group of individuals who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. As we quoted Sgt. Brown’s father-in-law, the Rev. Jimmy Richardson, last week, “All of the fallen soldiers are heroes to put their lives on the line for their country.”
Sgt. Brown’s body will return to Mississippi on Tuesday with arrival in Gulfport and from there to the Owens-Ramsey Funeral Home in Wiggins. On Wednesday, there will be a time of visitation from 10 a.m. until 12 noon at the Harts Chapel Baptist Church near Derby, Miss., followed by formal services to remember and honor Sgt. Brown.
For residents not able to attend the church services but desiring to honor Sgt. Brown, the funeral procession will travel from the Harts Chapel Church near Derby and move north on Hwy. 11 to Poplarville at approximately 2 p.m. The procession will then turn east on Hwy. 26 to Wiggins. From there it will follow Mississippi Hwy. 49 south toward its final stop at the Biloxi National Cemetery.
We join with friends and residents of the area in extending our deepest sympathies and offers of support to his wife and children and his entire family at this sad time.
May God bless you.
Editorials
Poplarville, county saddened by loss
- Editorials
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Escalating cost of higher ed a problem
By The Greenwood Commonwealth:
Here are some distressing figures for people paying for a college education at one of Mississippi’s public universities: Inflation has increased by 28 percent over the last decade. But the average full-time tuition at Mississippi’s universities is up by a whopping 65 percent over the same time period. -
Seat belt laws should be enforceable
By The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune:
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Danger from disrespectful remarks depends on their source
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By The (McComb) Enterprise-Journal:
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Bill limiting AG’s power court bound
By The (Tupelo) Northeast Miss Daily Journal
Gov. Phil Bryant is almost certain to sign a bill intended to crimp the attorney general’s power to hire outside counsel — private-sector lawyers — to handle litigation on the state’s behalf on a fee contingency basis (a share of any money damages awarded the state). -
Youth too fat, too uneducated to serve nation
By The (Pascagoula) Mississippi Press: Most young people in Mississippi are too uneducated and/or too fat to serve their country in the armed forces, according to Mission: Readiness, a group of more than 300 retired generals and admirals.
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By The (Baton Rouge) Advocate: Although his lawyers are considering a long-shot appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, one of Louisiana’s most prominent former public officials is heading for prison. Former U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, D-New Orleans, was ordered to begin serving a 13-year bribery sentence by a judge in Alexandria, Va.
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