It was an emotional experience for hundreds of Chatham-Kent residents on Friday, as they lined up on the ‘Highway Of Heroes’ to welcome home John Gallagher.
Gallagher died while fighting ISIS in Syria earlier this month.
The Wheatley native was laid to rest on Friday afternoon.
The procession left Toronto at noon, before travelling westbound on Highway 401. It was met by a Chatham-Kent Police escort at Communications Road in the late afternoon and was escorted to the Blenheim Community Funeral Home.
Hundreds of people and emergency services crews paid their respects along the route, with many gathering at the 401 overpasses through Chatham-Kent.
“Felt so proud and thankful to be a Canadian today,” said Lori Lefler, of Wallaceburg, on Facebook. “Brought the kids up to Hwy. 401 to take part in showing our support for our local fallen soldier. Prayers go out to his family and friends.”
“Over and over in my mind, all day the song I’m coming home kept playing like a broken record in my head,” said Tina Marie on Facebook. “John was coming home… I was so humbled today, to see everyone there for the same purpose. To see people from all walks of life show their respect, there are no words to express the feeling. At one point I had to stop shooting, my tears wouldn’t allow for a focused shot and so I put the camera down.”
“Words can not explain being part of this today. RIP John,” Wallaceburg’s Shelley Caron said on Facebook.
Gallagher had been volunteering on the peshmerga Kurdish Forces’ front lines in the fight against ISIS.
He was a former infantryman with the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.
Here are some photos submitted from our readers:
