Area residents are to have an opportunity to salute an airman who died in a motorcycle accident while serving in Germany.
The body of Airman 1st Class Nathan E. Smith, 21, is to return to Tiffin this evening. Tiffin Police Department encouraged people on its Facebook page to line the streets as he is transported to Hoffmann-Gottfried-Mack Funeral Home & Crematory, 236 S. Washington St.
The route includes entering Tiffin from the south, traveling on South Sandusky Street, turning right onto West Market Street and turning right onto South Washington Street. Arrival in Tiffin is estimated at 7:30 p.m. today.
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Smith
Smith, who served at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, and was a Tiffin native, died Wednesday from injuries he sustained in a motorcycle accident. He graduated from Columbian High School and Technology Center in 2008 and entered the U.S. Air Force in 2011.
Fred Stevens, interim chief of Tiffin Police Department, encouraged people to honor an active duty serviceman, his 20-year-old widow, his parents and his sister. He said in a statement that his son, Andy, and Smith were best friends, and Andy had joined the Air Force and talked Smith into joining. They were 40 minutes apart in Germany.
Andy, Smith and Smith's wife, Alyssa, spent every other weekend together because they were friends from Tiffin, according to Stevens' statement. Tammy and Rex, Smith's parents, are best friends of Stevens and his wife.
"Nate and (his sister) Erica were their world," it said.
Tiffin Police Department announced Smith's death on its Facebook page Thursday.
"Nathan was an amazing young man who fought for our country. We wish his wife, family and friends comfort during this time of grief," it stated.
