BARNEGAT LIGHT, N.J. — The crew of Coast Guard Station Barnegat Light hosted a remembrance ceremony and wreath laying on Long Beach Island Tuesday to honor those who fought in The Battle of Exercise Tiger April 28, 1944.
The annual ceremony pays tribute to the 749 sailors and soldiers who lost their lives April 28, 1944, during The Battle of Exercise Tiger, which began as a top secret naval operation designed to prepare troops for the June 6, 1944, D-Day invasion.
Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brian Williams was honored with the Medal of Combat Valor at the annual ceremony. Williams was wounded in combat during his deployment in Afghanistan serving with members of the 82nd Airborne Division's Bravo Company.
Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathan Bruckenthal was posthumously honored during a wreath laying ceremony along with other soldiers and sailors who lost their lives. Bruckenthal was killed during a security mission April 24, 2004, when a suicide bomber initiated a waterborne assault near the Iraqi Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal.