LOCAL

Dedication honors fallen Marine

Lidia Dinkova Correspondent
Lee Vincent, father of Marine Pfc. Donald Wayne Vincent, killed in Afghanistan recently, speaks to attendees of the street dedication ceremony in which a portion of Fort Clarke Boulevard has been named in the fallen soldier's honor near NW 23rd Avenue in Gainesville on Friday, September 11, 2009.

Nearly 200 people, including about 100 students from Ft. Clarke Middle School, attended the ceremony Friday renaming part of Fort Clarke Boulevard after a fallen Marine who once was a student at the school.

Family members and friends of Marine Pfc. Donald Wayne Vincent, 26, who died in Afghanistan in August while supporting combat operations in the Helmand province, were also present. Lee Vincent, the marine's father, struggled to contain his tears as he read from a prepared speech.

“The community outpouring of love and respect and honor for Wayne and us has been tremendous and we sincerely appreciate it,” said Lee Vincent.

The intersection of Northwest 23rd Avenue and Fort Clarke Boulevard now carries a red sign with Vincent’s name and rank, a reminder to everyone of the sacrifice made by the Gainesville resident, who attended the middle school nearby from 1994 to 1997..

The ceremony, which began at 10:30 a.m. and lasted about 20 minutes, included speeches from Alachua County Commissioner Paula Delaney, the county’s Sheriff Sadie Darnell, Alachua County School Board Superintendent Dan Boyd and Ft. Clarke Middle School Principal Donna Kidweld.

Jim Lynch, Alachua County Veterans Service Officer, read a letter from the Afghan Embassy in Washington D.C. that expressed condolences to Vincent’s parents and refered to their son's death as “a loss of one of their own.”

Sheriff Darnell urged those present to think about Vincent and other fallen soldiers whenever they drive on Fort Clarke Boulevard. She also recalled the journey of Vincent’s body from Jacksonville Naval Air Station to Gainesville on Aug. 3, where hundreds of people gathered along the 90-mile roadway to honor his return home.

Vincent is the sixth soldier from Alachua County who has died since the beginning of the war, Lynch said. An honorary renaming of a street has been held for each of the fallen servicemen.

Vincent’s name will also be added to the County Veterans Memorial on Tower Road.

“I believe (Vincent) would probably be blushing by this time,” said Ian Walters, Vincent’s best friend, at the end of Friday’s ceremony.