Military heroes remembered on Memorial Day in Apple Valley, across the High Desert

Residents paid tribute to fallen military heroes during solemn Memorial Day ceremonies across the High Desert.

In Apple Valley, hundreds of American flags danced in the breeze as residents attended a Memorial Day ceremony at Civic Center Park.

Apple Valley Mayor Scott Nassif welcomed early morning visitors to the event, including members of the Apple Valley Town Council, Rep. Jay Obernolte, and Navy veteran Llian Pederson.

Additionally, Granite Hills High School teachers, representing the Granite Recording & Entertainment Arts Training Academy, began the event with the singing of the National Anthem.

Citing a portion of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, found on the south wall of the Lincoln Memorial, Obernolte spoke of a national resolve to remember those who died for freedom's sake and their Gold Star families.

A Gold Star Family is the immediate family of a fallen service member who died while serving in a time of conflict.

“We can’t commemorate the great sacrifice that was made by our military men and women merely by being at a ceremony,” Obernolte said. “But what we can do is reflect on the principles for which they gave their lives. We can rededicate ourselves to defending those principles and we can express our gratitude to their families.”

Obernolte spoke of the family of the late Army veteran Rudy Acosta, “for whom every day is Memorial Day.”

Rudy Acosta, 19, of Canyon Country, was killed in March 2011 while serving in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province. He was among several soldiers at a U.S. military base on the Pakistani border.

Acosta and a group of soldiers were cleaning their weapons before a planned patrol when an Afghan contractor hired to help guard the military base took a machine gun and opened fire.

Acosta was killed in the hail of bullets, along with Cpl. Donald R. Mickler Jr., 29, of Bucyrus, Ohio, according to the Pentagon. Four other soldiers were wounded. Other U.S. soldiers returned fire and killed the gunman.

Acosta served as a health care specialist and planned to enroll in medical school after he completed his service, according to Militar Times.

“We honor our fallen men and women on Memorial Day to remember who fought for our freedom,” Pederson said. “We do this so that the U.S. stays free and to realize that we have so many liberties not found in many countries.”

Pederson shared how she’s partnering with the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 92 to start a women’s coalition for those not being served.

“A lot of women have PTSD, so we are doing things to support them,” Pederson said. “We’re hoping that our coalition can bring women the comfort and healing that they need.”

For more information on Pederson’s group, call 760-241-9647.

Alcantara-Rojas said that it was an honor and privilege to hear amazing speakers and to be a part of the Memorial Day event.

“It’s important to recommit to those values that our veterans so greatly sacrificed their lives for and to remind ourselves that we need to uphold them,” Alcantara-Rojas said.

Pederson was one of several who attached ribbons with messages to flags, which were set out on the lawn for the public.

Mayor Pro Tem Larry Cusack said on Memorial Day, he remembers his father, Early Cusack, who served in Korea.

“It’s always an honor to remember my father, who passed away,” Cusack said. “This day is for my father and those who served this country.”

In 1956, Earl Cusack founded Apple Valley Communications, which is operated by his son.

Former Assemblyman Thurston “Smitty” Smith said that on this "somber day," he remembers those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, including his father, Lt. Col. Thurston Smith who died in WWII.

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227 or RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Military heroes remembered on Memorial Day in Apple Valley, the High Desert