Reported by: Tom McKee
Photographed by: Scott Wegener
Web produced by: Neil Relyea
Greater Cincinnati is poised to pay its last respects to a fallen hero.
Plans have been finalized for the visitation and funeral service for U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Matt Maupin.
Maupin was captured in Iraq in 2004 and his remains were reported to be found North of Baghdad, Iraq a few weeks ago.
Residents and officials of Clermont County's Union Township and the cities of Cincinnati and Montgomery are making sure Maupin's service to his country will be honored and his life celebrated.
The visitation is from 11:00 a.m. Saturday through 7:00 a.m. Sunday at the Union Township Civic Center on Aicholtz Road. A public funeral service is Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Great American Ball Park, Downtown.
A private burial is planned for Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Montgomery.
Things begin early Saturday when the casket arrives at Lunken Airport.
A procession is planned from Lunken Airport to the Civic Center.
Yellow ribbons already line the route down Wilmer Avenue, across the Beechmont Levee, east on Route 32 and into Clermont County.
They are also everywhere along Glen Este-Withamsville Road going toward Maupin's alma mater, Glen Este High School.
Their final path leads down Aicholtz Road to the Union Township Civic Center.
"Hundreds of volunteers put them up," said June Creager, of the Clermont County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
She was among the first making yellow ribbons four years ago when Matt Maupin was captured, and has continued to help out at the Yellow Ribbon Support Center in Eastgate since then.
"This was a spontaneous combustion of enthusiasm and support," she added.
Backed by community's support of Keith and Carolyn Maupin, the Yellow Ribbon Support Center has been a mainstay in keeping U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan connected to home.
Care package number "9,599" was ready to be shipped overseas Tuesday.
That level of support and dedication to a cause impressed U.S. Army Major Annmarie Daneker, who is heading the military team coordinating the various aspects of the funeral.
"If I had to say a word about that, it would be 'awesome,'" she said.
Union Township police Sergeant Mike White says nobody knows for sure how many people will show up for the visitation, but he expects it will be in the thousands.
"We're asking people on that day to be patient," said Sgt. White.
The parking lot closest to the Civic Center is being reserved for Maupin family members, invited guests and those with handicapped stickers.
The Park & Ride lot will be available to the public, but both it and Aicholotz Road may be closed at times to manage the flow of traffic more effectively.
Shuttle buses from the West Clermont Local School District and Croswell Bus lines will be available in the Eastgate Mall parking lot closest to I-275.
They'll also run from the parking lot of Total Quality Logistics (TQL).
TQL executive vice-president Kerry Byrne said the company is honored to be able to help.
"It was a no-brainer when we were asked to help," Byrne said. "It's the least we could do."
Once the visitation ends Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m., a second procession will begin the journey to Great American Ballpark for the 1:00 p.m. funeral service.
It will be conducted with full military honors, including a flyover of fighter jets.
Lt. Mark Briede, public information officer for the Cincinnati police department, says they plan moving forward as though the stadium will be filled with 42,000 people.
"It's always easier for us to downsize if the crowd isn't that large," he added.
There are a number of other downtown events Sunday that will provide police with logistical challenges as people scramble for parking spaces.
A March of Dimes Walk is expected to draw 10,000 people to the riverfront Sunday morning and there are two Sesame Street shows at U.S. Bank Arena, in addition to the Maupin funeral.
Another walk is scheduled for the mid-town area.
"Come early," is Lt. Briede's advice.
