Photos by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
U.S. Army Reserve Sergeant 1st Class Lydia Ruff was among the members of the U.S. Coast Guard and representatives from the U.S. Army Reserve who took part in a Jan. 28 ceremony to remember the 198 Coast Guardsmen, 56 U.S. Army stevedores, and a U.S. Public Health Service surgeon who died on the USS Serpens.
The USS Serpens AK 97 was anchored off Lunga Beach, Guadalcanal, Solomon Island when it suddenly exploded on January 29, 1945.
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| From left to right: U.S. Army Reserve Sergeant First Class Lydia Ruff, Senior Chief Petty Officer Jon Ostrowski, Commander Louis Rondon, and Yeoman First Class Marcus Hyde hold wreaths before a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on January 28, 2012. |
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| U.S. Army Reserve Sergeant 1st Class Lydia Ruff places a wreath, honoring the 56 Army soldiers lost aboard the USS Serpens, at Arlington National Cemetery on January 28, 2012. |
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| Coast Guard Auxilarist Paul Deafenbaugh plays taps to conclude a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on January 28, 2012. |
