fallen soldier. One of too many.
Under a grove of willow trees planted by a Baucus family forefather more than a century ago, Cpl. Phillip Baucus, a 28-year-old Marine killed last week in Iraq, was laid to rest in a powerful ceremony that included a 21-gun salute and the release of 12 white doves.
The ceremony, which lasted nearly two hours, saw speakers remember Baucus as a brave Marine, a dedicated husband and a caring member of a proud family with deep Montana roots.
A Marine Corps burial team opened the service by removing Baucus' flag-draped casket from a silver hearse. Marching in step, they placed the coffin before a somber crowd, estimated at 400, before lifting their white gloves in salute.
"He was a brave Marine who willingly gave his life as a sacrifice that we all might live in freedom, and those in Iraq might someday enjoy democracy," said the Rev. Ed Warwick, a family friend.
Warwick read from the King James version of the Bible, quoting Thessalonians and speaking of Baucus and his oneness with his maker.
"He loved the Lord," Warwick said. "His momma told me that. I'm here to tell you that his spirit has left the body and he's gone to be with the Lord."
John Baucus, Phillip Baucus' only brother, sat with family in the front row. He stood slowly and made his way to the podium where he remembered the morning that he learned of his brother's death.
"The day I found out about Phillip's passing, I was devastated," he said. "We got along well. We saw eye to eye."
After he received the news, it was his wife who suggested that he take a walk and think things over. He made his way down to the ranch house and this very grove of giant willows, which cast a pool of deep, grassy shade across the yard.
The two brothers played here as boys building tree houses in the sturdy limbs and engaging here in water fights with squirt guns.
As John walked that day, he carried a tune in his head -- a jingle from a cartoon about super heroes. The meaning, while elusive at first, caught up to him when he reached the grove of willows.
"It made perfect sense to me why I had that song in my head," John said. "I thought of my brother. He was one of my four personal heroes. He was a hero of a different kind. He had the power of courage, honor and commitment."