Ledger photo by TIM GULLA U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. J.W. Owensby, a longtime friend of Chris Fowlkes, was among the hundreds who lined North Limestone Street on Wednesday afternoon to pay their respects as the motorcade escorting Fowlkes' casket passed through downtown Gaffney. Like many others, Owensby took his place more than an hour before the motorcade arrived. In the photo, Owensby shares a touching moment with his one-year-old nephew, Alexander Buccheri. With his camera at the ready, Gaffney High School photography teacher D.H. Blackwelder set out Wednesday to honor a former student by capturing the community's response to a life taken too soon.

Peering through his viewfinder, Blackwelder saw a lot worth preserving in pictures, from the young children lining North Limestone Street with United States flags in their hands and the older veterans who saluted a fallen comrade generations removed, to the tears that rolled down the cheeks of those affected by emotions that bubbled to the surface ever so easily.

"I set out to really capture the true American spirit," Blackwelder said.

And he saw just that.

"It felt like, to me, everyone was there to celebrate a hero, and that's exactly what Chris Fowlkes is," Blackwelder said. "He's a hero."

On Wednesday afternoon, Gaffney was given an opportunity to show its love and appreciation for Lance Cpl. Christopher Fowlkes, as well as its support for the Fowlkes family.

Mike Fowlkes, Christopher's uncle, said on Thursday that thanks weren't enough for what the family witnessed.

"We cannot say thank you enough for keeping the family in your prayers and supporting us through this," he said.

The outpouring of support started at Greenville - Spartanburg International Airport, where Chris Fowlkes' casket arrived on board a chartered plane around 3 p.m.

Waiting at the airport were members of Fowlkes' family, members of the U.S. Marine Corps, more than a dozen local police officers, and more than a hundred members of the Patriot Guard Riders, all of whom accompanied Chris Fowlkes back to Gaffney.

"The family was just blown away by the outpouring of support," Mike Fowlkes said.

Along Interstate 85, volun- -teer firefighters and Upstate residents saluted from every overpass.

"Cars pulled over," South Carolina Senior Ride Captain Randy Stevens later wrote on the Patriot Guard web site. "Trucks pulled over with their drivers standing on the roadway, hand over heart. And when the procession arrived in Gaffney the support for this Marine was astonishing."

Down Hyatt Street and along Petty Street, businesses and residents decorated their yards with United States flags and yellow ribbons while dozens of residents waited on their porches or doorsteps for the motorcade to pass.

And standing along North Limestone Street and West Floyd Baker Boulevard were possibly thousands of people who came out to welcome home a hero.

"God Bless you," one woman with tears in her eyes yelled out as the vehicle containing Fowlkes' parents, Steve and Donna, passed by.

For the most part, however, those watching the motorcade pass by stood in complete silence, most with their hands on their hearts or offering a heartfelt salute.

Fowlkes, who is the first wartime casualty from Gaffney since the Vietnam War, died Sept. 10 from injuries he sustained Sept. 3 when a roadside bomb exploded in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Two other servicemen, including another Marine and a U.S. Navy corpsman, were killed in the blast and two other men sustained critical injuries.

Fowlkes, a 2007 graduate of Gaffney High School, was in the middle of his second overseas deployment when he was injured, having previously served in Iraq.

"He told me from the very start he was going into the Marines," said Blackwelder, his former teacher. "He was destined to go that way. He knew he wanted to do that."

In joining the Marines, Fowlkes followed in the footsteps of his uncle, Mike, and grandfather, John.

Among those standing at attention when the hearse carrying Chris Fowlkes passed by was Lance Cpl. J.W. Owensby, dressed in his highly polished Marine Dress Blues. Owensby said he knew Fowlkes since he was 7-years-old and played Little League baseball with him. Owensby, who is stationed at Camp Lejeune, could be deployed overseas this November.

"It's very tough for me," said Owensby, who is a year younger than Fowlkes. "Not only did I lose a friend, I lost a brother and fellow Marine."

Nancy Bolin said she came out to show her support for the Fowlkes family and pay tribute to the young Marine being honored at an event she said was both sad and inspired at the same time.

"He (Fowlkes) gave up so much for us," Bolin said. "I think (all the people who came out) really appreciated what he did for our country. He sacrificed his life for his country, and you can't ask for a bigger sacrifice than that."

Mike Fowlkes said the family was heartened by the community's response.

"The love that was extended to us was amazing and uplifting," he said. "We realized that Christopher was not just our loss but the community's loss. We're blessed to live where we live and realized as a family that our community hurts along with us."

Based on what the family saw, however, Mike Fowlkes said, "There was no doubt during those moments yesterday he (Christopher) was smiling down on us."

Visitation was held Thursday evening at Blakely Funeral Home. Fowlkes' funeral is scheduled for 4 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church. Internment with full military honors will be in Frederick Memorial Gardens.