CLEVELAND -- A local 19-year-old died serving his country in Iraq, and northeast Ohioans joined Saturday with his family and friends to say a final farewell.

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Sloan, Dowdy Among Dead Local Soldiers Among Dead

NewsChannel5's Tony Gaskins reported that mourners turned out by the hundreds to say goodbye to Pvt. Brandon Sloan (pictured, far left), one of the first soldiers killed in action in Iraq.

A rainbow of diversity descended onto the sidewalks outside the doors of the Greater Friendship Baptist Church in Bedford, Ohio.

"(We need to) make sure the guys know if they come back alive or the way Mr. Sloan came back that we're going to take care of them ... give them the support they need," said Steve Specter, a Vietnam veteran.

The Rev. Tandy Sloan told his congregation that he believes his son is in a better place.

"I loved my son very dearly," said Tandy Sloan, who preached at the funeral for his son. "He certainly was the joy of my life."

Col. Andrew Verrett, representing Fort Bliss, Texas, where Sloan had served, read a proclamation awarding Sloan the Bronze Star for service in Iraq and a Purple Heart for being wounded in combat. The congregation burst into applause in response.

Brandon Sloan initially was classified as missing when he and fellow members of the 507th Maintenance Company apparently made a wrong turn near Nasiriyah and were ambushed on March 23. In that same unit was Pfc. Jessica Lynch, 19, a supply clerk rescued April 1.

The Pentagon on April 5 changed the status of Sloan, 1st Sgt. Robert Dowdy (pictured, above), 38, of Cleveland, and six other members of the unit from missing to killed after their bodies were recovered when Lynch was rescued.

The sacrifices of the young and the brave have for now silenced the political talk of why they were sent to Iraq, NewsChannel5 reported.

"I went through that when I was in Vietnam," said Al Dunn, a former Marine. "The politics (are) irrelevant to me, as far as I'm concerned. It's just showing support for the troops that (are) over there."

Nothing has defined the community more precisely than the support it has shown for the sons and daughters fighting in Iraq and now for the family of Brandon Sloan, NewsChannel5 reported.

"This is not just today but this is on an ongoing basis," Mayor Jane Campbell said. "When it is Father's Day, his birthday and Christmas and all the days when there's a hole in your family, we'll be there to say 'Thank you.'"

Besides Campbell, Sen. Mike DeWine and Rep. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones also attended the service.

The Sloan family is not speaking publicly, but many offered their support and appreciation for Brandon Sloan's sacrifice.

Meanwhile, a service for Dowdy will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church in Cleveland.