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RELEASE NUMBER: 050719-04
DATE POSTED: JULY 19, 2005

County dedicates nature trail to Fallen SF Soldier
By Sgt. Christopher Stanis
1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) Public Affairs

PUYALLUP, Wash. (July 19, 2005) — Pierce County Parks and Recreations carved the name of a local hero in stone July 18 with a nature trail dedication to Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Chapman at the South Hill Community Park.

Chapman, a 1st Special Forces Group Soldier and long-time resident of Puyallup, was the first service member to die from enemy fire in Afghanistan.

The dedication ceremony included comments from local political leaders as well as Maj. Guy LeMire, the 1st SF Group executive officer and former team leader of Chapman.

LeMire did not want to talk about how Chapman died, but how he lived. He was a dedicated Soldier, but he was also a dedicated husband and father of two young children.

“Nate served as a touchstone for everyone around him,” said Lemire. “He set himself apart even more from the already elite.”

Following the comments, a bronze plaque with Chapman’s military biography was unveiled. The plaque sits atop a stone wall that reads “Nathan Chapman Memorial Trail.” This is the entrance to the two-and-a-half-mile trail.

Friends of Chapman said the trail and its location is a fitting dedication for the type of man he was.

“The beauty and Solitude of the trail embodies everything Nate enjoyed,” said Master Sgt. Chris Heim, a friend and former teammate of the honored Soldier.

A man who was in tune with nature and the outdoors, Chapman thrived on physical competition.

“Nobody was more competitive, more dominant or more consistently proficient as Nate Chapman,” said LeMire.

It was only too often that LeMire would hear, “Sir, we have a long way to go to be like Nate.”

The Soldiers attending the ceremony said it meant a lot to see the community where Chapman lived, and his family still lives, honor the Green Beret.

“It’s touching,” said Master Sgt. John Iliff, a former team sergeant of Chapman’s. “It makes us happy to see that the people of this community care.”
Everyone, everywhere in the world may have their own heroes, but if the citizens of Pierce County are asked they can say, “We now have a hero.”

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