During the funeral service for Staff Sgt. Tharin McNichols, a member of the 855th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., the Columbus AFB, Miss., Honor Guard act as the firing party. McNichols was laid to rest Jan. 13, 2020, at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Newton County, Miss. The seven-man team fires their three rounds in perfect unison, honoring the fallen with a 21-gun salute.
 

During the funeral service for Staff Sgt. Tharin McNichols, his widow, La Tonya Bradley, receives an American flag from Tech. Sgt. Joseph Massaglia of the Columbus AFB, Miss., Honor Guard. Prior to his death, McNichols was a member of the 855th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Nellis.
 

Columbus Air Force Base Honor Guardsmen carry the casket of Staff Sgt. Tharin McNichols at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Cemetery on Jan. 13, 2020, in Newton County, Miss. McNichols was a member of the 855th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., prior to his death.
 

Members of the Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., Honor Guard, fold an American flag. The flag-folding ceremony was part of a military funeral at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Cemetery Jan. 13, 2020, for Staff Sgt. Tharin McNichols. Once folded, the flag was presented to McNichols’ widow, La Tonya Bradley. Prior to his death, McNichols was a member of the 855th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nev. During a military funeral, the flag is folded into a triangle and presented to the next-of-kin as a symbol of the fallen service member’s service to our nation.
 

As the hearse carrying the body of Staff Sgt. Tharin McNichols passes at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Cemetery, the Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., Honor Guard render a salute. The honor guard’s primary mission is to provide military honors to fallen service members, but they also perform at official Air Force ceremonies and parades.