Fallen soldier comes home

A soldier with suburban ties who was killed in Iraq last week received a somber hero's welcome at a Waukegan airport Thursday.

Members of the Patriot Guard Riders, motorcycle enthusiasts who attend military funerals to honor fallen soldiers, waited with family members as the body of Cpl. Keith A. Nurnberg, of Genoa City, Wis., arrived at Waukegan Regional Airport. The riders, from Illinois and Wisconsin, then helped lead a funeral procession to the Sugar Grove Funeral Chapel.

More than 30 motorcycles, lined up double file, participated in the procession. Most of the riders wore blue jeans and T-shirts, but their leather vests and jackets bore the yellow and blue emblem of the Patriot Guard.

Many of the Patriot Guard motorcycles bore U.S. flags for the procession, as did the silver hearse carrying Nurnberg's body.

"These men and women over there are putting it on the line for us," said ride captain Joe Alger, of Crystal Lake. "It's the least I can do."

Nurnberg, formerly of McHenry, died Sept. 5 after his unit was attacked during a combat operation in Baghdad. A 1999 McHenry West High School graduate, he was on his second tour of duty in Iraq.

He was awarded the rank of corporal posthumously.

Nurnberg's widow, Tonya, is a third-grade teacher at Village Elementary School in Round Lake. Their first child is due in November.

The private jet carrying Nurnberg's body was steered into a hangar after it landed Thursday. The transfer to the hearse occurred privately inside.

The Illinois State Police and police officers from the Lake County sheriff's office, Waukegan, Antioch and Fox Lake helped keep the route to the funeral home clear. Two vehicles carrying military personnel also were in the procession.

Visitation for Nurnberg is scheduled for 3 to 8 p.m. today at the funeral home, 8103 Wilmot Road.

Prayers for Nurnberg will be said at 9:45 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home, followed by a 10:30 a.m. Mass at St. Joseph Church, 10519 N. Main St., Richmond.

Interment will be at Bloomfield Township Cemetery in Pell Lake, Wis.