VIDEO: Soldier Paying His Respects to Fallen Veteran in Pouring Rain

Kenneth Varnes got out of his car and stood to salute a fallen veteran in the pouring rain. He may not have known the man in the funeral procession going by, but that didn’t stop him from paying his respects. Varnes, also a soldier, says it was the brotherhood of the military that made him react the way he did. The photo of his action, snapped by a stranger, took the internet by storm and for a good reason.

Read the full story below, provided by Breitbart News Network.

Kenneth Varnes, a construction engineering soldier assigned to Fort Hood, noticed a funeral procession approaching him as he drove along Highway 195 in Kileen, Texas. Recognizing the flags on the vehicles’ windows as a sign of a veteran’s funeral, Varnes exited his vehicle in the pouring rain and stood at attention, saluting the fallen veteran and the family members in the procession.

Zachary Rummings snapped a photo of the soldier standing in the rain to honor a fellow veteran and posted it to Facebook. He asked if anyone recognized the soldier and to let him know who it was so that he could tag him in the picture. “He stood in the rain the entire time and saluted,” Rummings wrote. “Hats off and respect to that young man. Thank you.”

Not long after Rummings’ post, Varnes began receiving messages on social media alerting him to the photo, KWTX CBS10 reported.

He said it was pouring when he stopped but lightened to a drizzle shortly after. “As soon as I got back in the truck, it poured again, which was really cool,” he explained.

He said that after recognizing it as a veteran’s funeral procession, he did not think twice about his next move. Without even knowing whose funeral was driving by, Varnes honored his fellow vet.

“I don’t care if they were 80 years old, they were in World War II, they were in Vietnam, they were in Iraq, I don’t care if they were 20,” Varnes continued. “It’s a brotherhood.”

A very proud father, Kenneth Varnes, Sr., expressed his pride in his young soldier son. “I am so proud that my son has grew into a very well-mannered young man, his Mom and me taught him no matter what you do in life always have respect, I love you SON. Poppa would be proud of you Son.”

Another Facebook user, Teresita Rey posted, “Please keep sharing this. Let’s make it go viral! This is what respect looks like. I am a proud cousin right now. No one asked Kenneth to do this. He just got out and ignored the rain to focus on thanking a soldier for protecting this country. We need to see more actions like this on a daily basis.”

Even the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs piled on, honoring Varnes’ patriotism and sense of duty. “With a long line of patrol cars and vehicles with American flags hanging from their side windows, Kenneth Varnes, a Fort Hood soldier, knew it must be for a fallen Veteran. It was pouring rain and the sky roared with thunder, but Varnes felt compelled to do something.”

Anyone can write on Evonews. Start writing!