Arkansas soldier with no family laid to rest

LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — The roar of the engines of the Patriot Guard Riders echoed through the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery in North Little Rock Friday morning as PFC Dale Barefield was escorted to his final resting place.

The Army veteran died in December at the age of 65 following a fire at his home in Morrilton. And while he had no living family, he is survived by his brothers and sisters in arms.

"There is a camaraderie that develops between service members because you know the person next to you has to have your back in any situation," Veterans of Foreign Wars state commander Will Beams told KATV following the funeral. "And that doesn't stop when you get out of the service."

The Arkansas Veterans Coalition and the Arkansas VFW arranged and organized the funeral, inviting members of the public to attend and pay their respects to Private Barefield - a field artillery target acquisition specialist in the 7th Infantry Division who served nearly four years of active duty. It's an honor they afford fallen service members with no families of their own and a reminder of the permanence of the brotherhood that's unique to America's armed forces.

"It's a small thing," Beams says, "but it's an important thing to get out here and give them their last honors."

Private Barefield received the National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. He was a parachutist, a sharpshooter, and an expert in hand grenades.