By Anthony V. Brienza

The mood on Main Street in Farmingdale matched gloomy weather on Wednesday afternoon as the community gathered to mourn the loss of one of their own, a third-generation U.S. Marine.

Lance Cpl. James Argentine, 22, was killed in the Farah district of Afghanistan, on Aug. 6 after a roadside bomb exploded, killing him and two of his fellow Marines. He had joined the service in 2006 and was a rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, based out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay.

Both family and friends gathered on the police-barricaded road, waiting in the rain for one of their last glimpses of the fallen hero before his funeral on Saturday. The streets were illuminated in red and filled with veterans and uniformed officials sporting flags and patriotic colors.

“I’ve seen it before,” said Vietnam Veteran Bob Martinson, as he stood beneath a giant American flag hovering between two fire trucks. “It just makes you feel bad.”

But along with the overwhelming sensation of sadness came an awesome outcry from the community. Among the hundreds of spectators stood men and women who waited upwards of three hours in the rain, who lined the streets to show their support for the family through their darkest of days.

One such woman is Cindy Dickson, president of the organization, Suffolk County Homefront, Inc. Created in memory of the Marine Cpl. Matthew V. Dillon, the nonprofit works to purchase safety equipment to send along with care packages to military units deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan (they can be found online at http://suffolkcountyhomefront.org)

The funeral Mass is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Aug. 15 at St. Kilian Roman Catholic Church and will be followed by his burial at Long Island National Cemetary. Those wishing to honor the procession can line Conklin Street between the church and Route 110 at about 11 a.m.