Patriot Guard Riders Assist 'Roll Call Project'

Riverside CA -- The names etched in stone sprang back to life, if only for fleeting seconds in the morning chill.

Boosted by microphones, the names rang out across Riverside National Cemetery, challenged only by honking waterfowl or the occasional whoosh of passing cars.

Under a screened tent, volunteers read lists from two podiums bathed in lamplight that pierced the pre-dawn darkness. Their voices stayed calm and unrushed as a half-mast American flag fluttered gently and mist rose from two ponds in the background.

As the sun rose, a dozen or so spectators joined the handful of jean-jacketed bikers keeping watch. The bikers belonged to the Patriot Guard Riders, a nationwide group of motorcyclists and others who pay their respects at military funerals while shielding mourners from any protesters.

Sunday marked the end run of the Roll Call Project, which seeks to honor all 150,000 or so interred at the nation's third-largest and busiest national cemetery.

The last 10 names will be read today as part of the cemetery's Memorial Day ceremony. More than 500 volunteers signed up to read the names in round-the-clock shifts that started last Saturday, which was Armed Forces Day.

Names were read in random order, with no indication of rank, branch of service or when the deceased served. Some volunteers dedicated their readings to a loved one.

Diane Long, 60, of Rancho Cucamonga, arrived at the cemetery around 3:45 a.m. for her shift.

"I just felt like it was something I needed to do," she said. "I didn't care what time I had to do it."

After she read, Long recalled her father, who served in World War II and cried every Christmas Eve as he remembered a buddy he lost on that date.

It was the second reading shift for Louise Notarte, whose father was wounded in France in World War II. He hitchhiked back to his unit rather than be reassigned to another, she said.

Petronella also saw firsthand the horrors of the Holocaust after helping to liberate a concentration camp. He suffered recurring nightmares afterward, said his widow, Annette Petronella.

Petronella had pictures of what he encountered, but "We eventually burned them," Annette Petronella said. "They were just too horrible."

Carlos Notarte read his list in honor of Army Sgt. William Dean Richardson, a friend of his daughter. A Moreno Valley High School graduate, Richardson was killed in Iraq in 2005 and is buried at Riverside National Cemetery.

Manny Hernandez, 60, of Moreno Valley, watched the roll call after visiting his best friend's grave. William Troast died in 1997.

Hernandez and Troast met while working together for the city of Orange. They quickly bonded over their service in Vietnam, and talking about their experiences was "good therapy," Hernandez said.

While she had her own reasons for taking part, Louise Notarte said those reasons "have expanded 150,000-fold" as she realizes the sacrifices and service of all those who rest forever at the cemetery.

"I'll never look at Memorial Day the same way again," she said. "My heart is full."

Sunday was the seventh straight Roll Call Day for Doyle "Popeye" Tolbert, a Vietnam veteran and Patriot Guard rider.

"That's all there is, it's just their names floating in the air," said Tolbert, 65, of Fontana. "As long as their names are on (people's) lips, they're never forgotten."

Reach Jeff Horseman at 951-375-3727 or jhorseman@PE.com `