Combat wounded Marine died of injuries

Marine loses life to war injuries, Fresno burial planned
The Fresno Bee
BY CARMEN GEORGE
January 18, 2014

Along every overpass from San Jose to Fresno, men and women in uniform stood at attention as the casket carrying Cpl. Farrell Gilliam passed beneath.

An honorary motorcade -- made up of firefighters, cops, sheriff deputies, California Highway Patrol and the Patriot Guard Riders motorcycle group -- accompanied the 25-year-old's body Friday to a Fresno funeral home.

It was a hero's tribute for a Marine who fought for his country during two deployments to Afghanistan, where he lost both legs from an explosive device's blast on Jan. 5, 2011.

"To make the hardest day of our lives that beautiful ... I wish he could have seen it," friend Natasha Martinez said Saturday of the motorcade. "We are very grateful for yesterday." Cpl. Gilliam's body was flown from Texas, where he had been continuing his rehabilitation, to San Jose's airport. His funeral will be Tuesday in Fresno.

Because of the extent of his injuries, doctors said Cpl. Gilliam had a "one in 10 million chance" of surviving, family said. But he was strong. Since the blast, he underwent over 30 surgeries; doctors nicknamed him the "miracle child."

"The war doesn't stop just because they come home, the war is not over for them," said his mom Lisa Gilliam of Fresno. "It still rages on in their hearts and their heads and physical bodies. The sooner everybody realizes that, the better chances these veterans are going to have for survival."

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