The Most Honorable Mission

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan - Service members who make the ultimate sacrifice while serving in a combat zone are known as 'Fallen Angels.' Marines with the Personnel Retrieval and Processing detachment, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward), process the remains of the Angels and inventory their personal effects before sending them on their journey home. Lance Cpl. Khoa Pelczar.

"I always thought that if it was my child over here that had died, I would want somebody like me to take care of him and send him home to me."

- Chief Warrant Officer Kim T. Adamson, OIC, Mortuary Affairs Collection Point Bastion and Dwyer, PRP, 1st MLG (FWD).

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan — Service members who make the ultimate sacrifice while serving in a combat zone are known as Angels. Those troops who lose their lives on the battlefield are brought home so they may be honored and laid to rest.

It is the job of the Marines with the Personnel Retrieval and Processing Detachment, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward) to take care of the Angels and return them to their families.

"Our primary job is to recover the remains of fallen troops, bring them back, inventory their gear and send them home," said Cpl. Matthew A. Sarkis, mortuary affairs specialist with PRP, 1st MLG (FWD).

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan - Cpl. Matthew A. Sarkis, mortuary affairs specialist with the Personnel Retrieval and Processing detachment, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward), 26, from Crofton, Md., prepares a national flag to be placed on top of an Angel’s transfer case, April 19. The mortuary affairs specialists’ job is to process the Angel’s remains and inventory their personal effects before sending them on their journey home. Lance Cpl. Khoa Pelczar.

"This is probably one of the most honorable missions a Marine can have in the Marine Corps," said Chief Warrant Officer Kim T. Adamson, officer in charge of the MACP Bastion and Dwyer, PRP, 1st MLG (FWD).

Even though it's difficult to see one of their own make the ultimate sacrifice, for Sarkis, 26, from Crofton, Md., it's an honor to be able to send the Angels back home with honor and dignity, while bringing closure to their families.

The process in which an Angel is taken from a forward operating base to the aircraft flown back to the United States is called a dignified transfer, explained Barnett, 36, from Frederick, Md. As a show of respect to the Angel, service members arrive at the flight line and form up on each side of the ramp leading to the aircraft. Prior to loading the Angel on the plane, the Chaplain gives a final prayer to the Angel.
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Embodying the phrase "Once a Marine, always a Marine," the Fallen Angels have served honorably, for which their sacrifices will never be forgotten. These mortuary affairs specialists are proud and honored to be able to bring their fallen brothers and sisters home to their final resting place.