Armory will honor fallen guardsmen

WINCHESTER -- Part of the new National Guard Armory in Winchester will be named for two local guardsmen killed in Afghanistan.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced Friday that the new National Guard readiness center will be called the Cherry-Beasley Readiness Center in honor of Staff Sgt. Craig W. Cherry and Sgt. Bobby E. Beasley.

Beasley, of Inwood, W.Va., and Cherry, of Winchester, were both infantrymen assigned to the Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment.

They were killed when an improvised explosive device destroyed their vehicle on Aug. 7, 2004, during a patrol near Ghazikel in eastern Afghanistan.

"It is fitting that the new readiness center in Winchester be named in honor of two soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country and defending the ideals of freedom," Kaine says in a written statement.

"This new readiness center is the kind of facility that will help our soldiers better prepare for challenging missions both here in Virginia and overseas, and naming it in the honor of these two soldiers will serve as a reminder of the serious nature of those missions."

A formal dedication ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 4 at the new facility.

Daily Staff Report