Cavalry Memorial Video [credit to S5 / 1-7 / 3-7 and all other volunteers]
7th Cavalry Regiment Memorial
For Release 26 AUG 2024
24 AUG 2024
1st Battalion Salutes Its Fallen
1st Battalion's Observation of the 2024 7th Cavalry Gaming Regiment Memorial Day
1st Battalion— 24 AUG 2024 — Officers and men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Gaming Regiment, celebrated the memory and legacy of its fallen brothers and sisters during their annual observance of the 7th Cavalry Memorial Day held on Saturday, 24 August 2024. The short memorial service was conducted on a customized Memorial Garden map inside the ArmA 3 game engine and allowed players throughout the Regiment to attend via their avatars to pay their respects. The service itself featured a keynote address from Major Joe Highman, Commander of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, who served as the event emcee as well as a fly-over salute and a rendering of Taps.
A dozen volunteers began the planning process months in advance to ensure that the event was significant, memorable, and appropriate. Representatives from Alpha Company's 2nd Platoon, S3 Operations, and S5 Public Affairs each donated several hours of their time in planning meetings, rehearsals, map designs and edits, speech writing and timing, advertising, and coordination. The process begins almost as soon as the previous year's event concludes.
Four fixed-wing aviators from 2nd Platoon, Alpha Company lent their time and their talents to executing a flawless Missing Man Formation flyover. This display featured three F/A-18E Super Hornets flying an echelon-left formation with a conspicuously absent right wingman position to symbolize the place vacated by the fallen. Warrant Officer 1 William "Scooter" Sutodoreh trained the flight demonstration team and led them through the maneuver that passed only 300 feet above the heads of the spectators on the ground.
"It takes a surprisingly high amount of practice time," WO1 Sutodoreh explained. "It comes down to like 25 or more man-hours," with time spent during Section Practices and dedicated team practice sessions alike.
"It doesn't seem very difficult," he continues, "the difference between a fairly loose formation and this year's very precise one comes down to getting in those hours together as a group."
While the flyover marked a high point and served as punctuation at the end of the ceremony, other key components of a memorial service were observed.
MAJ Highman offered words of solemn remembrance. The impact that each of the fallen has made on the lives of the members of the Regiment, past, present, and future was featured heavily. The address focused on a legacy of selfless service, honor, and commitment to the brotherhood of the "Cav." The words of poet Jon McCrae in his classic memorial poem "In Flanders Fields" capped off the opening remarks before members of the assembly were invited to the podium to give their own remembrances. Thanks to expert coding from the scripts designed into the map file built by Corporal Trygve Zaren, each person in attendance snapped a brisk salute for the playing of the bugle call "Taps," before crisply ordering arms to conclude the event.
Anyone interested in planning a similar event for their own battalions, or if you wish to serve on the event committee for the 2025 observation should reach out to MAJ Highman via forum or Discord PM.
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