The “We Remember Tour” will make a stop at Fort Riley on Monday

According to the Army, to honor Gold Star families 1st Infantry Division leaders  at Fort Rileywill host a ceremony  at Marshall Army Airfield. The special event will feature Medal of Honor recipient retired Col. Donald “Doc” Ballard and the “We Remember” airplane, a privately-owned Beechcraft Baron that is decorated with the names of more than 7,700 service men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice since Sept. 11, 2001. Maj. Gen. John Kolasheski, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley Commanding General, will also address the attendees.

Following the ceremony, audience members will be able to see the “We Remember” plane and the names of the fallen who are being remembered through this effort.
The “We Remember Tour” began as a project of two retired airline pilots to honor military personnel who have given their lives in service to the United States. The aircraft is making stops around the country to honor fallen service members and to promote Snowball Express, a program which serves the families of those who have given their lives in the Global War on Terrorism. Snowball Express is one program overseen by the Gary Sinise Foundation.

Monday’s ceremony is open to the public. It begins at 11:00 in that morning at Hangar 833. Hangar 833 is on the southeast side of the airfield and can be reached by turning onto Smoky Hill Road after coming through the Henry Gate off I-70. There is parking across the street from Hangar 833.

Anyone wishing to attend who does not have a Department of Defense identification card will need to get a visitor’s pass at the Visitor Control Center, just off I-70 at Exit 301, near the Henry Gate. Under the recently-announced Trusted Traveler Pilot Program, active duty military and their family members 18 years old and older, military retirees and Federal civilian employees with a valid DoD identification card may escort family members or friends onto the installation.

For more information about accessing Fort Riley, see http://www.riley.army.mil/Units/Garrison-Command/Emergency-Services/Access-Information/.