Quiet respect welcomes Statesboro's hero home

Patriot Guard Riders, law enforcement escort body of Chester McBride

A hearse containing the casket of U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride III makes its way down South Main Street in downtown Statesboro, lined with residents honoring the fallen soldier Friday. The Statesboro native was killed on duty Dec. 21 while serving in Afghanistan.

W 010116 MCBRIDE HERO HOMECOMING 01 — A hearse containing the casket of U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride III makes its way down South Main Street in downtown Statesboro, lined with residents honoring the fallen soldier Friday. The Statesboro native was killed on duty Dec. 21 while serving in Afghanistan.

When the hearse bearing the body of U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester J. McBride III turned the corner half a mile away, a shouted order of "Attention!" could be heard all around the Bulloch County Courthouse area. The crowd quickly hushed, and the approaching rumble of the Patriot Guard Riders' motorcycles was almost the only sound. If there had been music and sirens, the scene in front of the courthouse might have seemed like that of a patriotic holiday parade.

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