Community gathering to honor memory of Claremore soldier killed in action

A year ago Monday, Pfc. Jon Townsend's family in Claremore learned he was one of four soldiers killed in an attack by men dressed as police in Afghanistan.

With a lot of help from the community, they managed to put together a memorial for Jon at Claremore Lake, and will dedicate it during a ceremony at 5:00 p.m. Monday.

Jon's sister, Jennifer Tucker, tells KRMG it has been a rough year for the family, but they've had a lot of support.

"Even though life goes on, and everybody has their own thing going on, nobody's forgotten Jon," she said.

The Claremore High ROTC will play taps and offer a 21-gun salute in Jon's memory as part of the ceremony, and local Army recruiters will raise an American flag on the pole at the center of the memorial.

She said they'll also recognize all the businesses and individuals who have donated time, money, labor and materials to help build the memorial.

"They went above what they had to do and offered to help, and that really is the reason why we're able to have gotten this done in time for today," she told KRMG.

Townsend was one of four soldiers killed on Sept. 16, 2012, apparently by men dressed as Afghan police who turned their weapons on the U.S. soldiers.