Braun's mother, Patty, sister Diana, and brothers Mike and Chris, were joined by Braun's friend Terry Braman on the tarmac for the solemn repatriation ceremony as a gentle breeze rippled over the eastern Ontario military base.

Braun's mother, Patty Braun, said in a written statement this week that the family is proud of Braun's bravery and asked Canadians to continue to support our troops in Afghanistan. Each looked on in sorrow, dabbing away tears, as Braun's coffin was lowered from the plane and carried by uniformed pallbearers to a waiting hearse, accompanied by a lone piper playing a mournful lament for the fallen solider.

Military officials said that at the family's request, Braun's coffin was draped with the Canadian Forces Ensign, a white flag bearing both the Canadian maple leaf and the emblem of the Forces.

Braun's mother then approached the hearse, kissed her hand and touched her son's casket before laying a single yellow rose on top.Braun's siblings and friend followed, taking a moment to pay their respects before placing a rose of their own.

Braun's family wept and pipers played a lament Saturday as his coffin, draped in a Canadian Forces Ensign, was escorted from a military jet to a hearse. The young soldier will be buried with full military honours in his home town of Raymore, Saskatchewan.