American flags flew high on Monday as the first Chattanooga soldier to die in Iraq was honored with services in Soddy-Daisy and then laid to rest at the National Cemetery.
Veterans waving flags lined the front of the First Baptist Church of Soddy-Daisy where the 1 p.m. rites were held for 22-year-old Sgt. John Michael Sullivan of Hixson.
Then flag-wavers lined the streets and highways as the long procession wound toward his final resting place.
In his second tour of duty in Iraq, he was killed by a roadside bomb just before New Year's while covering the duty of another soldier who was ill.
At the funeral, his young widow held in her arms his infant son and namesake, who was born within hours of his death.
Some 60 members of the Sullivan family along with close friends took part in a private viewing at Williamson Funeral Home last Monday morning.
Then a procession, that included many members of the motorcycle group the Patriot Guard Riders went north on Highway 27 to the church.
Among those waiting at the church were Congressman Zach Wamp, Sen. Bob Corker's state director Todd Womack and Reps. Richard Floyd and Jim Cobb.
A huge American flag was hoisted by a crane in front of the church.
An honor guard waited in front also, and bagpipes played.
The young soldier's widow, Michele Sullivan, and other members of the family watched as the flag-draped casket was taken from the hearse into the church.
Family members said Sgt. Sullivan was of the Baptist faith, loved music and working on his low rider truck. He was a 2003 graduate of Soddy-Daisy High School. He earned his command as a Sergeant in the United States Army with the 217 FA 2nd ID Bravo Battery in Fort Carson, Col.
As an enlisted man he served his basic training in Ft. Sill, Okla. He later served a tour of duty in South Korea and was double deployed into Iraq. After he was injured by a roadside bomb, he refused any medical treatment and his Purple Heart so he could return home.
When he returned home to Ft. Carson, he married his wife, Michele Sullivan, on July 4, 2006. In October of 2006, he began his second tour of duty in Iraq. It was soon after that he was promoted to sergeant.