Remember Our Heroes
Army Capt. Timothy I. McGovern, 28, of Indiana
Capt. McGovern was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Bliss, Texas; died Oct. 31, 2007 in Mosul, Iraq, of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations. Also killed was Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman.
Army officer from Indiana killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
IDAVILLE, Ind. — An Army officer from northern Indiana died in Iraq, the military says, when a bomb exploded nearby during combat operations.
Capt. Timothy McGovern was a 28-year-old graduate of Twin Lakes High School in Monticello and Purdue University. The military says he and a soldier from Texas were killed Oct. 31 by the bombing in Mosul.
Relatives say McGovern was a month away from finishing his second tour of duty in Iraq.
McGovern’s uncle, Mike Wright, says he gave his life to his country and was doing the work he wanted to do.
McGovern is the 93rd member of the military from Indiana to have died after being sent to the Middle East for the war in Iraq.
Idaville pulls together after losing 2nd son to Iraq war
The Associated Press
IDAVILLE, Ind. — Volunteers firefighters set up a trail of 500 miniature American flags leading to a cemetery to honor the second soldier from the town killed in Iraq.
Army Capt. Timothy McGovern, 28, of Idaville and a soldier from Texas were killed Oct. 31 in a bombing in Mosul, the military said.
McGovern was a graduate of Twin Lakes High School in Monticello and Purdue University. Relatives say McGovern was a month away from finishing his second tour of duty in Iraq. He was being buried Nov. 9 during a private ceremony.
On July 17, Army Cpl. Nathaniel Baughman, 23, also of Idaville, was killed when rocket-propelled grenades were fired at a convoy vehicle in which he was riding in Bayji.
Lisa Landis didn’t know McGovern but still feels the loss in the 800-person community about 30 miles north of Lafayette.
“Being that he risked his life by going over and fighting for us, it’s a tremendous loss,” Landis said. “You almost take it personally because he was there for us.”
Resident Ron Cooper, a retired Army sergeant who served in the military for 22 years, put out his American flag to show his solidarity with McGovern’s family.
“The reason that we’re over there notwithstanding, you’ve still got to support the troops,” he said.
McGovern was the 93rd member of the military from Indiana to have died since February 2003 after being sent to the Middle East for the war in Iraq.
McGovern’s parents asked for privacy during and after their son’s funeral.
But volunteer firefighters planned to stand at an intersection on the route to the cemetery and salute as the funeral procession passes.
Barbara Allen, another Idaville resident, remembers what a powerful experience it was to stand along the road during Baughman’s funeral procession. She believes the town is just as supportive of McGovern, even if residents show that support quietly, by respecting his family’s request for privacy.
“I think the town just kind of pulls together.”
Army Capt. Timothy I. McGovern was killed in action on 10/31/07.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman, 21, of Conroe, Texas
Spc. Smitherman was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Bliss, Texas; died Oct. 31, 2007 in Mosul, Iraq, of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations. Also killed was Capt. Timothy I. McGovern.
Soldier's sacrifice celebrated
BY JOYCE GODWIN
HERALD DEMOCRAT
Harvey Smitherman is an investigator for the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office, serving the people of Grayson County. As adept as he is at hearing and seeing tragic news, Smitherman was not prepared to be on the receiving end of tragedy.
Last week Smitherman received news that his son is one of the casualties of the Iraqi war. Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman, 21 of Conroe, was one of two soldiers killed while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom in Mosul, Iraq. The Department of Defense reported that the two soldiers died Oct. 31 of injuries suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle during combat operations. Both soldiers were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division of Fort Bliss. The other soldier was Cpt. Timothy I. McGovern, 28, of Indiana.
Ricky Wheeler of the GCSO said about 15 uniformed members of the department will attend Spc. Smitherman’s funeral at 1 p.m. Friday in Conroe.
A report from the Houston Community News online aptly described Smitherman’s final homecoming as one of tears and honor. The roads in Conroe were lined for miles with people wishing to pay homage to a fallen warrior.
“From North Loop 336 West to Texas 105 West, hundreds of residents paid their respects with salutes and signs honoring Smitherman,” stated the news report. “At the end of the procession in front of Metcalf Funeral Home, a large U.S. flag hung across the highway from the ladders of two Conroe Fire Department trucks.” The report said young Smitherman is the fourth Montgomery County soldier to die in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007. The county has lost 11 soldiers since those wars began.
Spc. Smitherman was a 2004 graduate of Montgomery High School. His father, Harvey Smitherman, said the young man was “a hard-working kid growing up. All I ever had to do was tell him what I wanted him to do. He might not like doing some things I told him to do, but he did it and didn’t complain. And when he went in the military, he was a go-getter and always wanted to help somebody.”
When asked about Spc. Smitherman’s motivation to join the Army, the senior Smitherman said, “He told me he wanted to go so I would be proud of him. He wanted to go to college and major in criminal justice. His goal was to be a game warden. He wanted to be in law enforcement like me.”
Harvey Smitherman said Brandon was “a loving son who loved his family and loved his country. He felt he was supporting freedom for all of us.”
A quick Internet search on Spc. Smitherman reveals a plethora of statements attesting to his fine character and the great number of friends and family who’ve been touched by his life and death.
Grayson County Sheriff J. Keith Gary released a statement Thursday afternoon to say he and his department members are deeply saddened by the loss for the Smitherman family. “We share in the loss of such a fine young man, but we also share in the pride Brandon’s family had in his service to his country.”
Like so many other youngsters Brandon’s age, he had a page on the World Wide Web on which he communicated things about himself and stayed in touch with others. Brandon said this about himself on his Web page: “There is not much to say about myself, but if u know me then u know that I am a good guy ... I can’t wait to get home and relax, being with my family.”
Harvey Smitherman said his son was scheduled to come home on leave Dec. 14. He had a plan to come home unannounced and walk into his mother’s workplace to surprise her. Following his leave he would have gone to Fort Bliss to finish his time in the Army.
“Coping has been difficult, but family and friends have made the difference,” Harvey Smitherman said. “A father losing a child ... you don’t think you’ll be able to make it through, but with prayers and family and friends ... The military has been great to send people to support us. We go to Victory Life Church and the support there has been tremendous. This (Conroe) is my home town prior to moving to Grayson County.”
Smitherman said that some of the people in battle with his son have said Brandon went after a person who was trying to harm them. He put himself in harm’s way to be able to protect others. He was a driver of a Bradley tank.
The family has said, instead of flowers they would like to see donations to the Spc. Brandon William Smitherman Memorial Fund, account No. 1072800 at First Bank of Conroe. Proceeds will go to buy a holiday care package for Smitherman’s unit in Mosul, Iraq.
Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman was killed in action on 10/31/07.
Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman, 21, of Conroe, Texas
Spc. Smitherman was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Bliss, Texas; died Oct. 31, 2007 in Mosul, Iraq, of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations. Also killed was Capt. Timothy I. McGovern.
Soldier's sacrifice celebrated
BY JOYCE GODWIN
HERALD DEMOCRAT
Harvey Smitherman is an investigator for the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office, serving the people of Grayson County. As adept as he is at hearing and seeing tragic news, Smitherman was not prepared to be on the receiving end of tragedy.
Last week Smitherman received news that his son is one of the casualties of the Iraqi war. Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman, 21 of Conroe, was one of two soldiers killed while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom in Mosul, Iraq. The Department of Defense reported that the two soldiers died Oct. 31 of injuries suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle during combat operations. Both soldiers were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division of Fort Bliss. The other soldier was Cpt. Timothy I. McGovern, 28, of Indiana.
Ricky Wheeler of the GCSO said about 15 uniformed members of the department will attend Spc. Smitherman’s funeral at 1 p.m. Friday in Conroe.
A report from the Houston Community News online aptly described Smitherman’s final homecoming as one of tears and honor. The roads in Conroe were lined for miles with people wishing to pay homage to a fallen warrior.
“From North Loop 336 West to Texas 105 West, hundreds of residents paid their respects with salutes and signs honoring Smitherman,” stated the news report. “At the end of the procession in front of Metcalf Funeral Home, a large U.S. flag hung across the highway from the ladders of two Conroe Fire Department trucks.” The report said young Smitherman is the fourth Montgomery County soldier to die in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007. The county has lost 11 soldiers since those wars began.
Spc. Smitherman was a 2004 graduate of Montgomery High School. His father, Harvey Smitherman, said the young man was “a hard-working kid growing up. All I ever had to do was tell him what I wanted him to do. He might not like doing some things I told him to do, but he did it and didn’t complain. And when he went in the military, he was a go-getter and always wanted to help somebody.”
When asked about Spc. Smitherman’s motivation to join the Army, the senior Smitherman said, “He told me he wanted to go so I would be proud of him. He wanted to go to college and major in criminal justice. His goal was to be a game warden. He wanted to be in law enforcement like me.”
Harvey Smitherman said Brandon was “a loving son who loved his family and loved his country. He felt he was supporting freedom for all of us.”
A quick Internet search on Spc. Smitherman reveals a plethora of statements attesting to his fine character and the great number of friends and family who’ve been touched by his life and death.
Grayson County Sheriff J. Keith Gary released a statement Thursday afternoon to say he and his department members are deeply saddened by the loss for the Smitherman family. “We share in the loss of such a fine young man, but we also share in the pride Brandon’s family had in his service to his country.”
Like so many other youngsters Brandon’s age, he had a page on the World Wide Web on which he communicated things about himself and stayed in touch with others. Brandon said this about himself on his Web page: “There is not much to say about myself, but if u know me then u know that I am a good guy ... I can’t wait to get home and relax, being with my family.”
Harvey Smitherman said his son was scheduled to come home on leave Dec. 14. He had a plan to come home unannounced and walk into his mother’s workplace to surprise her. Following his leave he would have gone to Fort Bliss to finish his time in the Army.
“Coping has been difficult, but family and friends have made the difference,” Harvey Smitherman said. “A father losing a child ... you don’t think you’ll be able to make it through, but with prayers and family and friends ... The military has been great to send people to support us. We go to Victory Life Church and the support there has been tremendous. This (Conroe) is my home town prior to moving to Grayson County.”
Smitherman said that some of the people in battle with his son have said Brandon went after a person who was trying to harm them. He put himself in harm’s way to be able to protect others. He was a driver of a Bradley tank.
The family has said, instead of flowers they would like to see donations to the Spc. Brandon William Smitherman Memorial Fund, account No. 1072800 at First Bank of Conroe. Proceeds will go to buy a holiday care package for Smitherman’s unit in Mosul, Iraq.
Army Spc. Brandon W. Smitherman was killed in action on 10/31/07.
Army Sgt. Louis A. Griese
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Louis A. Griese, 30, of Sturgeon Bay, Wis.
Sgt. Griese was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died Oct. 31, 2007 in Tikrit, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Family says Sturgeon Bay H.S. grad killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
STURGEON BAY, Wis. — A Sturgeon Bay high school graduate who joined the Army 12 years ago has been killed in Iraq, his mother said Oct. 31.
Susan Frihart said the family was informed that her son, Louis Griese, 30, was killed by a roadside bomb while on his third tour of duty in Iraq with the Army’s 101st Airborne Division. The Department of Defense had not released information on him as of Oct. 31.
Griese was stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky., where he lived with his wife Stephanie and baby daughter Skylar, Frihart said.
The birth of his daughter made it difficult for him to leave for this tour a few months ago, only a month or so after she was born, Frihart said.
“He didn’t really want to go this time,” she said. “He didn’t want to leave that newborn baby, but he left because that was his duty.”
He also had served in Hawaii and Korea in an Army career that started when he signed up only months after leaving high school, his mother said. She said he wanted to be like his father, the late John Griese, who served in the Army.
“He loved the service. He was very proud to be a soldier,” she said. “That was going to be his life.”
She recalled that when he signed up for military service she had one piece of advice — “Just remember: Mom didn’t raise a quitter.”
Frihart said she last saw her son when he was between tours last fall, and she just missed talking with him a few weeks ago.
“He had called. I missed him by maybe 10 minutes.”
There have been 80 military personnel from Wisconsin killed in the Iraq war.
Pentagon confirms Wisconsin native’s death in Iraq
The Associated Press
STURGEON BAY, Wis. — A Sturgeon Bay soldier killed during his third tour in Iraq was a brand-new father who loved working on cars, professional wrestling and watching the “Halloween” movie series.
Sgt. Louis A. Griese, 30, died Oct. 31 in Tikrit of wounds suffered when a homemade bomb blew up near his vehicle north of Samarra, the Department of Defense said.
Griese was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, out of Fort Campbell, Ky. He is the 80th Wisconsin soldier killed in the Iraq war.
Doug Roatch said Griese was a good friend of his in high school. He loved to work on cars, Roatch said.
“He liked to mess around with cars, fix ‘em, tweak ‘em, put in stereo gear,” he said.
Griese’s mother, Susan Frihart of Sturgeon Bay, said he joined the Army soon after graduation from Sturgeon Bay High School in 1996.
He and his wife, Stephanie, and their 4-month-old daughter, Skylar, lived near the 101st home base at Fort Campbell.
His mother said Griese left for his third tour in Iraq shortly after his daughter’s birth, making it difficult for him to go, “but he left because that was his duty.”
“He’d do anything for soldiers, for his buddies, and when it came time to be a solider, he was a very strong soldier,” his wife said in a telephone interview.
Stephanie Griese said she met her husband of nearly six years online. Skylar was born July 7 and Griese shipped out Sept. 20, she said.
He was extremely worried about this stint in Iraq because he wasn’t familiar with the area, she said.
“He was really scared of going this time. We both felt very uneasy,” she said. “He wasn’t even gone two months.”
Griese loved to watch World Wrestling Entertainment and was a “big movie guy,” she said. His favorite was the “Halloween” slasher series.
“He died on Halloween, ironically,” Stephanie Griese said.
Most of all, he loved the daughter who will never know him. Stephanie Griese said that’s what she’ll tell Skylar, when she’s old enough.
“He loved his daughter to no end,” she said. “How much he loved her ...”
Her voice quaking, she said she couldn’t answer any more questions.
Army Sgt. Louis A. Griese was killed in action on 10/31/07.
Army Sgt. Louis A. Griese, 30, of Sturgeon Bay, Wis.
Sgt. Griese was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died Oct. 31, 2007 in Tikrit, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Family says Sturgeon Bay H.S. grad killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
STURGEON BAY, Wis. — A Sturgeon Bay high school graduate who joined the Army 12 years ago has been killed in Iraq, his mother said Oct. 31.
Susan Frihart said the family was informed that her son, Louis Griese, 30, was killed by a roadside bomb while on his third tour of duty in Iraq with the Army’s 101st Airborne Division. The Department of Defense had not released information on him as of Oct. 31.
Griese was stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky., where he lived with his wife Stephanie and baby daughter Skylar, Frihart said.
The birth of his daughter made it difficult for him to leave for this tour a few months ago, only a month or so after she was born, Frihart said.
“He didn’t really want to go this time,” she said. “He didn’t want to leave that newborn baby, but he left because that was his duty.”
He also had served in Hawaii and Korea in an Army career that started when he signed up only months after leaving high school, his mother said. She said he wanted to be like his father, the late John Griese, who served in the Army.
“He loved the service. He was very proud to be a soldier,” she said. “That was going to be his life.”
She recalled that when he signed up for military service she had one piece of advice — “Just remember: Mom didn’t raise a quitter.”
Frihart said she last saw her son when he was between tours last fall, and she just missed talking with him a few weeks ago.
“He had called. I missed him by maybe 10 minutes.”
There have been 80 military personnel from Wisconsin killed in the Iraq war.
Pentagon confirms Wisconsin native’s death in Iraq
The Associated Press
STURGEON BAY, Wis. — A Sturgeon Bay soldier killed during his third tour in Iraq was a brand-new father who loved working on cars, professional wrestling and watching the “Halloween” movie series.
Sgt. Louis A. Griese, 30, died Oct. 31 in Tikrit of wounds suffered when a homemade bomb blew up near his vehicle north of Samarra, the Department of Defense said.
Griese was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, out of Fort Campbell, Ky. He is the 80th Wisconsin soldier killed in the Iraq war.
Doug Roatch said Griese was a good friend of his in high school. He loved to work on cars, Roatch said.
“He liked to mess around with cars, fix ‘em, tweak ‘em, put in stereo gear,” he said.
Griese’s mother, Susan Frihart of Sturgeon Bay, said he joined the Army soon after graduation from Sturgeon Bay High School in 1996.
He and his wife, Stephanie, and their 4-month-old daughter, Skylar, lived near the 101st home base at Fort Campbell.
His mother said Griese left for his third tour in Iraq shortly after his daughter’s birth, making it difficult for him to go, “but he left because that was his duty.”
“He’d do anything for soldiers, for his buddies, and when it came time to be a solider, he was a very strong soldier,” his wife said in a telephone interview.
Stephanie Griese said she met her husband of nearly six years online. Skylar was born July 7 and Griese shipped out Sept. 20, she said.
He was extremely worried about this stint in Iraq because he wasn’t familiar with the area, she said.
“He was really scared of going this time. We both felt very uneasy,” she said. “He wasn’t even gone two months.”
Griese loved to watch World Wrestling Entertainment and was a “big movie guy,” she said. His favorite was the “Halloween” slasher series.
“He died on Halloween, ironically,” Stephanie Griese said.
Most of all, he loved the daughter who will never know him. Stephanie Griese said that’s what she’ll tell Skylar, when she’s old enough.
“He loved his daughter to no end,” she said. “How much he loved her ...”
Her voice quaking, she said she couldn’t answer any more questions.
Army Sgt. Louis A. Griese was killed in action on 10/31/07.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. James D. Bullard
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. James D. Bullard, 28, of Marion, S.C.
SSgt. Bullard was assigned to the South Carolina National Guard's 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor Regiment, in Marion, S.C.; died Oct. 30, 2007 in Spearwan Ghar, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using rocket-propelled grenade fire, machine gun fire, mortars and small-arms fire during combat operations.
S.C. Guard soldier, a new father, dies in combat in Afghanistan
By Susanne M. Schafer
The Associated Press
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A soldier who was home in September for the birth of his first child was killed this week by enemy fire in Afghanistan, family and officials said Oct. 31.
South Carolina Army National Guard Staff Sgt. James David Bullard, 28, died in Sperwan Ghar on his first tour of duty, according to his brother-in-law, Harold Caldwell.
“He was in for 11 years and he died doing what he loved,” Caldwell said in a telephone interview. “His family made him happy. He was a real good family guy.”
Bullard, of Marion, came home to be with his wife Amber, arriving two days before the birth of their son Kristopher Hayden Bullard, the brother-in-law said.
Bullard was sent to Afghanistan in January. His unit was due to return either in December or January.
Before being deployed on active duty, Bullard worked as a grocery manager for Food Lion in Dillon.
He was involved in JROTC at Marion High School and joined the Guard at age 17, his brother-in-law said.
He attended Florence-Darlington Technical College, Caldwell said.
He served with Company B of the 1-263rd Armor Battalion based in Dillon, according to a statement issued by the South Carolina National Guard.
“He was deeply committed to the cause of freedom and this belief led him to serve his state and country with honor and distinction,” Maj. Gen. Stan Spears, the state Adjutant General, said in the statement. “The S.C. Army National Guard will sorely miss this great American and we join his family and friends in mourning his passing.”
Bullard’s death marks the second South Carolina Guard soldier to die in Afghanistan in as many weeks.
Sgt. Edward Philpot, 38, of Latta, died Oct. 23 when his vehicle rolled over during a convoy operation northwest of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
Both soldiers were part of the 218th Combat Brigade Team from South Carolina sent to help train members of the Afghan Army and police. Some soldiers also have been embedded with Afghan units in the field.
The massive brigade was the largest single unit deployment by the South Carolina National Guard since World War II.
The unit is part of a five-year-old multinational effort designed to keep Afghanistan on the road to recovery following the U.S.-led military campaign that ousted Taliban militants in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Army Staff Sgt. James D. Bullard was killed in action on 10/30/07.
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Army Staff Sgt. James D. Bullard, 28, of Marion, S.C.
SSgt. Bullard was assigned to the South Carolina National Guard's 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor Regiment, in Marion, S.C.; died Oct. 30, 2007 in Spearwan Ghar, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using rocket-propelled grenade fire, machine gun fire, mortars and small-arms fire during combat operations.
S.C. Guard soldier, a new father, dies in combat in Afghanistan
By Susanne M. Schafer
The Associated Press
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A soldier who was home in September for the birth of his first child was killed this week by enemy fire in Afghanistan, family and officials said Oct. 31.
South Carolina Army National Guard Staff Sgt. James David Bullard, 28, died in Sperwan Ghar on his first tour of duty, according to his brother-in-law, Harold Caldwell.
“He was in for 11 years and he died doing what he loved,” Caldwell said in a telephone interview. “His family made him happy. He was a real good family guy.”
Bullard, of Marion, came home to be with his wife Amber, arriving two days before the birth of their son Kristopher Hayden Bullard, the brother-in-law said.
Bullard was sent to Afghanistan in January. His unit was due to return either in December or January.
Before being deployed on active duty, Bullard worked as a grocery manager for Food Lion in Dillon.
He was involved in JROTC at Marion High School and joined the Guard at age 17, his brother-in-law said.
He attended Florence-Darlington Technical College, Caldwell said.
He served with Company B of the 1-263rd Armor Battalion based in Dillon, according to a statement issued by the South Carolina National Guard.
“He was deeply committed to the cause of freedom and this belief led him to serve his state and country with honor and distinction,” Maj. Gen. Stan Spears, the state Adjutant General, said in the statement. “The S.C. Army National Guard will sorely miss this great American and we join his family and friends in mourning his passing.”
Bullard’s death marks the second South Carolina Guard soldier to die in Afghanistan in as many weeks.
Sgt. Edward Philpot, 38, of Latta, died Oct. 23 when his vehicle rolled over during a convoy operation northwest of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
Both soldiers were part of the 218th Combat Brigade Team from South Carolina sent to help train members of the Afghan Army and police. Some soldiers also have been embedded with Afghan units in the field.
The massive brigade was the largest single unit deployment by the South Carolina National Guard since World War II.
The unit is part of a five-year-old multinational effort designed to keep Afghanistan on the road to recovery following the U.S.-led military campaign that ousted Taliban militants in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Army Staff Sgt. James D. Bullard was killed in action on 10/30/07.
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Army Pvt. Cody M. Carver
Remember Our Heroes
Army Pvt. Cody M. Carver, 19, of Haskell, Okla.
Pvt. Carver was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins and Sgt. Daniel L. McCall.
Army Pvt. Cody M. Carver was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Army Pvt. Cody M. Carver, 19, of Haskell, Okla.
Pvt. Carver was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins and Sgt. Daniel L. McCall.
Army Pvt. Cody M. Carver was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Army Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins
Remember Our Heroes
Army Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn.
Pfc. Jenkins was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Sgt. Daniel L. McCall and Pvt. Cody M. Carver.
Brothers recall soldier killed on his birthday
The Associated Press
Rush M. Jenkins’ twin brother, Michael woke up on his birthday and thought of his sibling, off fighting in a faraway place.
“I was waiting for him to give me a call,” he said.
Instead he received another call. Rush “Mickey” Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn., was killed Oct. 30 when his patrol was struck by an explosive and small-arms fire in Salman Pak. He was a 2004 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Benning.
“That’s all I could think of, is why on his birthday?” Michael Jenkins said.
Jenkins worked for a beer distributor in North Carolina after graduating from high school. Uninspired, he joined the Army in March 2006. He played football and wrestled.
“He was ready to get out on his own and be his own man,” said another brother, Sgt. George “Alex” Jenkins.
His father taught him to play guitar when he was about 10, and they paired up often for jam sessions. “He was my picking buddy,” Rickey Jenkins said. “We had about a dozen guitars.”
Jenkins “was doing what he thought was right,” said his brother George. “He was a really nice guy. He was caring and easy to get along with.”
Army Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Army Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn.
Pfc. Jenkins was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Sgt. Daniel L. McCall and Pvt. Cody M. Carver.
Brothers recall soldier killed on his birthday
The Associated Press
Rush M. Jenkins’ twin brother, Michael woke up on his birthday and thought of his sibling, off fighting in a faraway place.
“I was waiting for him to give me a call,” he said.
Instead he received another call. Rush “Mickey” Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn., was killed Oct. 30 when his patrol was struck by an explosive and small-arms fire in Salman Pak. He was a 2004 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Benning.
“That’s all I could think of, is why on his birthday?” Michael Jenkins said.
Jenkins worked for a beer distributor in North Carolina after graduating from high school. Uninspired, he joined the Army in March 2006. He played football and wrestled.
“He was ready to get out on his own and be his own man,” said another brother, Sgt. George “Alex” Jenkins.
His father taught him to play guitar when he was about 10, and they paired up often for jam sessions. “He was my picking buddy,” Rickey Jenkins said. “We had about a dozen guitars.”
Jenkins “was doing what he thought was right,” said his brother George. “He was a really nice guy. He was caring and easy to get along with.”
Army Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Army Sgt. Daniel L. McCall
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Daniel L. McCall, 24, of Pace, Fla.
Sgt. McCall was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins and Pvt. Cody M. Carver.
Soldier from Pace among 3 killed in Iraq by enemy forces
The Associated Press
PACE, Fla. — Three soldiers, including one from Florida, died in Iraq when their unit was attacked by enemy forces, military officials said Friday.
Sgt. Daniel L. McCall, 24, of Pace, died Tuesday in Baghdad, the Department of Defense said. His unit was in Salman Pak, Iraq, when it was attacked with small fire arms and bombs, according to a statement from the military.
Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn., and Pvt. Cody M. Carver, 19, of Haskell, Okla. All three were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.
A telephone listing for McCall’s family could not be located.
The 2001 graduate of Pace High School was known as a good athlete.
“He did all the church functions with us and was a great all-around person,” his friend Jeanna Kay Woodhall told the Pensacola News Journal. “He wasn’t just good at sports. He was good at everything. And he always thought the Army was the best thing that ever happened to him.”
Army Sgt. Daniel L. McCall was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Army Sgt. Daniel L. McCall, 24, of Pace, Fla.
Sgt. McCall was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.; died Oct. 30, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained in Salman Pak, Iraq when enemy forces engaged his unit with small arms fire and an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins and Pvt. Cody M. Carver.
Soldier from Pace among 3 killed in Iraq by enemy forces
The Associated Press
PACE, Fla. — Three soldiers, including one from Florida, died in Iraq when their unit was attacked by enemy forces, military officials said Friday.
Sgt. Daniel L. McCall, 24, of Pace, died Tuesday in Baghdad, the Department of Defense said. His unit was in Salman Pak, Iraq, when it was attacked with small fire arms and bombs, according to a statement from the military.
Also killed were Pfc. Rush M. Jenkins, 22, of Clarksville, Tenn., and Pvt. Cody M. Carver, 19, of Haskell, Okla. All three were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.
A telephone listing for McCall’s family could not be located.
The 2001 graduate of Pace High School was known as a good athlete.
“He did all the church functions with us and was a great all-around person,” his friend Jeanna Kay Woodhall told the Pensacola News Journal. “He wasn’t just good at sports. He was good at everything. And he always thought the Army was the best thing that ever happened to him.”
Army Sgt. Daniel L. McCall was killed in action on 10/30/07.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Army Maj. Jeffrey R. Calero
Remember Our Heroes
Army Maj. Jeffrey R. Calero, 34, of Queens Village, N.Y.
Maj. Calero was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Massachusetts National Guard, Springfield, Mass.; died Oct. 29, 2007 in Kajaki, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was on dismounted patrol.
The love of liberty began burning brightly in Jeffrey Calero at an early age.
While other kids left the usual and sometimes goofy messages in their high school yearbook, the quote under Calero's name read: "Live free or die."
Maj. Jeffrey Calero died Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near him in Kajaki, Afghanistan, while he was on patrol as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, military officials said.
The 34-year-old soldier from Queens Village was serving with the 1st Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group of the Massachusetts National Guard based in Springfield.
His heartbroken parents said last night the death of their "baby" - the youngest of four children - was almost too hard to take. "The only consolation is that he really believed in what the men are doing over there," said Calero's dad, Ray, 65. "They offered him a promotion several times, but he turned it down to stay with the Special Forces," the father said.
Calero, who was born in Puerto Rico and came to the U.S. at the age of 1, attended Incarnation Elementary School in Queens Village, St. Francis Prep in Fresh Meadows, Queens, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he studied mechanical engineering and was a member of the ROTC.
Calero, described by friends as a "quiet guy with a subtle sense of humor," came home "as often as he could" to spend time with the family - especially his two nieces, whom he doted on - said his mom, Roselle, 66.
"The last time was on the weekend of Oct. 6," said Calero's mom. "We got everybody here and we cooked everything he liked. I'm so glad we did it because he really enjoyed himself."
She said she exchanged the last e-mail with her son three days before he died. "I said I love him and he told me he loved me. That was it. And now he's gone," she said, her eyes glistening.
Army Maj. Jeffrey R. Calero was killed in action on 10/29/07.
Army Maj. Jeffrey R. Calero, 34, of Queens Village, N.Y.
Maj. Calero was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Massachusetts National Guard, Springfield, Mass.; died Oct. 29, 2007 in Kajaki, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was on dismounted patrol.
The love of liberty began burning brightly in Jeffrey Calero at an early age.
While other kids left the usual and sometimes goofy messages in their high school yearbook, the quote under Calero's name read: "Live free or die."
Maj. Jeffrey Calero died Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near him in Kajaki, Afghanistan, while he was on patrol as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, military officials said.
The 34-year-old soldier from Queens Village was serving with the 1st Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group of the Massachusetts National Guard based in Springfield.
His heartbroken parents said last night the death of their "baby" - the youngest of four children - was almost too hard to take. "The only consolation is that he really believed in what the men are doing over there," said Calero's dad, Ray, 65. "They offered him a promotion several times, but he turned it down to stay with the Special Forces," the father said.
Calero, who was born in Puerto Rico and came to the U.S. at the age of 1, attended Incarnation Elementary School in Queens Village, St. Francis Prep in Fresh Meadows, Queens, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he studied mechanical engineering and was a member of the ROTC.
Calero, described by friends as a "quiet guy with a subtle sense of humor," came home "as often as he could" to spend time with the family - especially his two nieces, whom he doted on - said his mom, Roselle, 66.
"The last time was on the weekend of Oct. 6," said Calero's mom. "We got everybody here and we cooked everything he liked. I'm so glad we did it because he really enjoyed himself."
She said she exchanged the last e-mail with her son three days before he died. "I said I love him and he told me he loved me. That was it. And now he's gone," she said, her eyes glistening.
Army Maj. Jeffrey R. Calero was killed in action on 10/29/07.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner
Remember Our Heroes
Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner, 50, of Owensboro, Ky.
MSgt Bruner was assigned to the Headquarters, 2nd Brigade, 100th Division, U.S. Army Reserve, Owensboro, Ky.; died Oct. 28, 2007 in Kabul, Afghanistan, from a non-combat-related illness.
Master Sgt. Thomas Bruner liked Christmas so much that he even decorated the inside of the garage, but he was looking forward to the holiday especially this year, because it meant coming home from Afghanistan to celebrate with his family.
"He had reindeer, he had lights, a snowman, a sled," said Bruner's wife, Jane Bruner. "We've always had big Christmases."
But Bruner, who was in his second deployment to Afghanistan with the Army Reserve, died Sunday in Kabul of what is believed to have been a heart attack. He was 50.
"He wanted to go, and I said, 'There's no way I'm going to stop you from doing what you want to do,'" Jane Bruner told the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer on Tuesday. "He was just a soldier doing his job and he loved it."
Bruner had a big family, and people remembered how much he loved it.
"It was all the time family, family, family everywhere he went," recalls his brother, Robert Bruner. "Family was first to him."
Even fellow soldiers recall the tales of family that Thomas Bruner would tell.
"I felt like I knew the whole family before I even got here," said retired Command Sgt. Maj. Durward Thomas, who spent years alongside Bruner in the Army Reserve and visited the family Tuesday night. "I knew all the names, but not the faces."
Funeral arrangements were incomplete, but a service was expected to be held later this week.
Bruner was on active duty from 1975 to 1979, followed by 26 years in the Army Reserve beginning in 1981.
"He knew his guys," said Patrick Rowe, training coordinator at the Owensboro Army Reserve Center. Bruner knew his men's attitudes, where they stood in their careers, their abilities and what they could handle. "You could ask him anything about anybody."
Brian Sandefur, one of Bruner's two stepsons, said he was never treated like anything but Bruner's own son.
"He was always there," Sandefur said. "He was a good father, husband and friend."
For Jane Bruner, it's a big change after 27 years of marriage.
"He spoiled me rotten. He would do anything for me," Jane said. "He was my everything ... my life."
Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner died on 10/28/07.
Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner, 50, of Owensboro, Ky.
MSgt Bruner was assigned to the Headquarters, 2nd Brigade, 100th Division, U.S. Army Reserve, Owensboro, Ky.; died Oct. 28, 2007 in Kabul, Afghanistan, from a non-combat-related illness.
Master Sgt. Thomas Bruner liked Christmas so much that he even decorated the inside of the garage, but he was looking forward to the holiday especially this year, because it meant coming home from Afghanistan to celebrate with his family.
"He had reindeer, he had lights, a snowman, a sled," said Bruner's wife, Jane Bruner. "We've always had big Christmases."
But Bruner, who was in his second deployment to Afghanistan with the Army Reserve, died Sunday in Kabul of what is believed to have been a heart attack. He was 50.
"He wanted to go, and I said, 'There's no way I'm going to stop you from doing what you want to do,'" Jane Bruner told the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer on Tuesday. "He was just a soldier doing his job and he loved it."
Bruner had a big family, and people remembered how much he loved it.
"It was all the time family, family, family everywhere he went," recalls his brother, Robert Bruner. "Family was first to him."
Even fellow soldiers recall the tales of family that Thomas Bruner would tell.
"I felt like I knew the whole family before I even got here," said retired Command Sgt. Maj. Durward Thomas, who spent years alongside Bruner in the Army Reserve and visited the family Tuesday night. "I knew all the names, but not the faces."
Funeral arrangements were incomplete, but a service was expected to be held later this week.
Bruner was on active duty from 1975 to 1979, followed by 26 years in the Army Reserve beginning in 1981.
"He knew his guys," said Patrick Rowe, training coordinator at the Owensboro Army Reserve Center. Bruner knew his men's attitudes, where they stood in their careers, their abilities and what they could handle. "You could ask him anything about anybody."
Brian Sandefur, one of Bruner's two stepsons, said he was never treated like anything but Bruner's own son.
"He was always there," Sandefur said. "He was a good father, husband and friend."
For Jane Bruner, it's a big change after 27 years of marriage.
"He spoiled me rotten. He would do anything for me," Jane said. "He was my everything ... my life."
Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner died on 10/28/07.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, 27, of Los Angeles
SSgt Curreri was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Wash.; died Oct. 27, 2007 in Siet, Lake Jolo Island, Philippines from injuries sustained in a non-combat-related incident.
Fort Lewis Special Forces soldier drowns in Philippines
The Associated Press
TACOMA, Wash. — A Fort Lewis-based Special Forces sergeant who was captain of his University of Southern California swim team has drowned in the Philippines, the Army said Monday.
Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, 27, died Friday in an accident at Siet Lake near Panamao in the southern Philippines, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command said in a statement.
He had been assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group at Fort Lewis as a communications sergeant.
Teams from the 1st Group have been sent for years to train Philippine government troops fighting Islamic militant groups in the nation’s southern islands.
Curreri grew up in Maryland but most recently lived in Los Angeles,
The command said he grew up in suburban Baltimore and swam and played water polo in high school. He was a four-year letterman on the USC swim team and captain his senior year.
He joined the Army in July 2004 and went first to airborne training, then Special Forces training at Fort Bragg, N.C. He was assigned to 1st Group last year, the Army said.
Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri was died 10/27/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, 27, of Los Angeles
SSgt Curreri was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Wash.; died Oct. 27, 2007 in Siet, Lake Jolo Island, Philippines from injuries sustained in a non-combat-related incident.
Fort Lewis Special Forces soldier drowns in Philippines
The Associated Press
TACOMA, Wash. — A Fort Lewis-based Special Forces sergeant who was captain of his University of Southern California swim team has drowned in the Philippines, the Army said Monday.
Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, 27, died Friday in an accident at Siet Lake near Panamao in the southern Philippines, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command said in a statement.
He had been assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group at Fort Lewis as a communications sergeant.
Teams from the 1st Group have been sent for years to train Philippine government troops fighting Islamic militant groups in the nation’s southern islands.
Curreri grew up in Maryland but most recently lived in Los Angeles,
The command said he grew up in suburban Baltimore and swam and played water polo in high school. He was a four-year letterman on the USC swim team and captain his senior year.
He joined the Army in July 2004 and went first to airborne training, then Special Forces training at Fort Bragg, N.C. He was assigned to 1st Group last year, the Army said.
Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri was died 10/27/07.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan, 22, of Ontario, Ore.
Sgt. Brennan was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 26, 2007 in Asadabad, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained Oct. 25 at Korengal Valley, when he came in contact with enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenade, machine-gun and small-arms fire during combat operations. Also killed was Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza.
Oregon soldier killed in Afghanistan
The Associated Press
A soldier who grew up in Ontario, Ore., has been killed in a Taliban ambush in Afghanistan, his father said Oct. 26.
Army Sgt. Josh Brennan, 22, was shot in the chest on patrol in Kunar province, his father, Michael Brennan, of McFarland, Wis., told The Associated Press. He was a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
Taliban fighters tried to drag the soldier’s body off, but a medic hurled six hand grenades at them before he himself was killed, Michael Brennan said.
He said the military notified him of his son’s death Oct. 26.
He said his son told him his unit had seen combat almost every day over the last two months. Josh was shot in the leg in August, recovered, and returned to duty, his father said.
His enlistment was to have ended last month but he had to serve another year under the Army’s stop-loss doctrine, Michael Brennan said.
Josh grew up primarily with his mother in Oregon and graduated from Ontario High School, his father said. He spent the summers with his father in Wisconsin.
Michael Brennan said he and his son’s mother both served with the military police in the Army.
In school Josh ran track, played football and won a good citizenship award, Michael Brennan said.
His father said he asked Josh it he wanted him to try to get congressional intervention to get him out of the extra year.
“He said, ‘No, Dad, I don’t want you do any of that. I’ll serve my time with my friends.’ ”
He said his son won two Bronze Stars for valor.
I’m very proud. I didn’t want him to have to give his life up like this,” Michael Brennan said, his voice quivering.
Ontario soldier remembered as dedicated, dependable young man
The Associated Press
ONTARIO, Ore. — Army Sgt. Joshua Brennan asked his mother last month to mail him a sturdy Bible because he was developing a strong relationship with God.
Brennan and his mother, Janice Gates of Ontario, communicated through Gates’ MySpace page. After Brennan’s platoon sergeant died in Afghanistan several weeks ago, she posted the song “Heaven Was Needing a Hero” to comfort her son.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I know heaven was needing him, too,” Gates said a day after learning her son died in combat.
Brennan, 22, died Oct. 26 from wounds he had suffered the day before in a firefight, according to the Department of Defense. He was serving his second tour in Afghanistan with the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Combat Team.
His father, Michael Brennan of McFarland, Wis., told The Associated Press that after Taliban fighters shot his son in the chest, they tried to drag the wounded soldier away, but a medic threw grenades at them before he himself was killed.
“If it weren’t for that medic, horrific things could have happened to Joshua,” Gates said in an interview with The Oregonian newspaper.
Gates said her son’s enlistment was supposed to end in September, but a stop-loss order extended it a year.
“Josh struggled with that for a little while. He certainly wasn’t resentful of it,” Gates said. “He truly felt that what brought him to Afghanistan was a worthwhile and just cause, that they needed to be there to preserve independence and freedom in the United States and worldwide.”
Brennan, a Purple Heart and Bronze Star recipient, was wounded in the leg in early August.
“Within days of being shot, he was insistent he wanted to be back out with his men,” Gates said. “He wanted to make sure they were OK.”
A 2003 graduate of Ontario High School, Brennan ran the hurdles, played football and hunted elk with his grandfather, uncle and stepfather, Jared Cutler. After the military, Brennan intended to attend college and pursue a career in forensic science or criminology, Gates said.
Brennan returned home on leave in May, and friends and family threw a party and “lavished him with love,” his mother said.
“When I was raising Josh, I wasn’t financially able to do things like pay for his car insurance, pay for a vehicle, pay for a cell phone, these extra amenities kids get these days,” Gates said. Brennan worked a part-time job at a print shop and paid for his own extras while maintaining above-average grades.
“He was just such a responsible young man,” she said. “I know he would have done absolutely amazing things in his life.”
Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan was killed in action on 10/25/07.
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Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan, 22, of Ontario, Ore.
Sgt. Brennan was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 26, 2007 in Asadabad, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained Oct. 25 at Korengal Valley, when he came in contact with enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenade, machine-gun and small-arms fire during combat operations. Also killed was Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza.
Oregon soldier killed in Afghanistan
The Associated Press
A soldier who grew up in Ontario, Ore., has been killed in a Taliban ambush in Afghanistan, his father said Oct. 26.
Army Sgt. Josh Brennan, 22, was shot in the chest on patrol in Kunar province, his father, Michael Brennan, of McFarland, Wis., told The Associated Press. He was a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
Taliban fighters tried to drag the soldier’s body off, but a medic hurled six hand grenades at them before he himself was killed, Michael Brennan said.
He said the military notified him of his son’s death Oct. 26.
He said his son told him his unit had seen combat almost every day over the last two months. Josh was shot in the leg in August, recovered, and returned to duty, his father said.
His enlistment was to have ended last month but he had to serve another year under the Army’s stop-loss doctrine, Michael Brennan said.
Josh grew up primarily with his mother in Oregon and graduated from Ontario High School, his father said. He spent the summers with his father in Wisconsin.
Michael Brennan said he and his son’s mother both served with the military police in the Army.
In school Josh ran track, played football and won a good citizenship award, Michael Brennan said.
His father said he asked Josh it he wanted him to try to get congressional intervention to get him out of the extra year.
“He said, ‘No, Dad, I don’t want you do any of that. I’ll serve my time with my friends.’ ”
He said his son won two Bronze Stars for valor.
I’m very proud. I didn’t want him to have to give his life up like this,” Michael Brennan said, his voice quivering.
Ontario soldier remembered as dedicated, dependable young man
The Associated Press
ONTARIO, Ore. — Army Sgt. Joshua Brennan asked his mother last month to mail him a sturdy Bible because he was developing a strong relationship with God.
Brennan and his mother, Janice Gates of Ontario, communicated through Gates’ MySpace page. After Brennan’s platoon sergeant died in Afghanistan several weeks ago, she posted the song “Heaven Was Needing a Hero” to comfort her son.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I know heaven was needing him, too,” Gates said a day after learning her son died in combat.
Brennan, 22, died Oct. 26 from wounds he had suffered the day before in a firefight, according to the Department of Defense. He was serving his second tour in Afghanistan with the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Combat Team.
His father, Michael Brennan of McFarland, Wis., told The Associated Press that after Taliban fighters shot his son in the chest, they tried to drag the wounded soldier away, but a medic threw grenades at them before he himself was killed.
“If it weren’t for that medic, horrific things could have happened to Joshua,” Gates said in an interview with The Oregonian newspaper.
Gates said her son’s enlistment was supposed to end in September, but a stop-loss order extended it a year.
“Josh struggled with that for a little while. He certainly wasn’t resentful of it,” Gates said. “He truly felt that what brought him to Afghanistan was a worthwhile and just cause, that they needed to be there to preserve independence and freedom in the United States and worldwide.”
Brennan, a Purple Heart and Bronze Star recipient, was wounded in the leg in early August.
“Within days of being shot, he was insistent he wanted to be back out with his men,” Gates said. “He wanted to make sure they were OK.”
A 2003 graduate of Ontario High School, Brennan ran the hurdles, played football and hunted elk with his grandfather, uncle and stepfather, Jared Cutler. After the military, Brennan intended to attend college and pursue a career in forensic science or criminology, Gates said.
Brennan returned home on leave in May, and friends and family threw a party and “lavished him with love,” his mother said.
“When I was raising Josh, I wasn’t financially able to do things like pay for his car insurance, pay for a vehicle, pay for a cell phone, these extra amenities kids get these days,” Gates said. Brennan worked a part-time job at a print shop and paid for his own extras while maintaining above-average grades.
“He was just such a responsible young man,” she said. “I know he would have done absolutely amazing things in his life.”
Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan was killed in action on 10/25/07.
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Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza, 29, of Glendale, Ariz.
Spc. Mendoza was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 25, 2007 in Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when he came in contact with enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenade, machine-gun and small-arms fire during combat operations. Also killed was Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan.
Army medic from Glendale dies in ambush in Afghanistan
Beth Duckett
The Arizona Republic
An Army medic who graduated from Trevor Browne High School in Phoenix was killed Thursday in combat in Afghanistan
Family members said Saturday that Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza, 29,of Glendale, was an avid churchgoer who dreamed of becoming a firefighter.
Mendoza, 29, died Thursday in Korengal Valley after his unit was ambushed by enemy forces, according to the Department of Defense Web site. .
Mendoza’s brother, Carlos Mendoza, Jr. of Glendale said his brother was deployed in June to Vicenza, Italy, where his unit is based, The two brothers lived together with Carlos’ wife and three children.
“He liked to bowl and liked to play with my kids,” Carlos said. “The older he got, the more loving he got.”
In a tearful but steady voice, Carlos, 37, said Hugo joined the service last year to get medical training.
“Once he got money for being in service, he was going to use it to go to school and follow his dream of being a firefighter,” Carlos said.
Born in California, Hugo Mendoza spent most of childhood days in El Paso, Texas. As a high school junior, he moved to Phoenix 12 years ago.
He worked in sheet metal construction after he graduated from high school, his brother said.
Since joining the army, Mendoza the remained close with family, calling his mother Sara Mendoza in Detroit every time he had the chance. The Mendozas last heard from him Oct. 17, when he left a cheerful message on the family’s answering machine.
“He sounded in good spirits and was in a good mood ... calling to tell us how he was,” Carlos Mendoza said.
Maria Velasquez, 18, of Phoenix a friend who has known Mendoza since she was a tot, said, “Hugo was like my own brother, my own uncle. He was everything to us ... it’s been hard, it’s been very hard.”
While mourning their loss, family and friends said they are trying to remember all the positive things about Hugo.
“He had an infectious smile,” his brother said. “He treated you the way you wanted to be treated. He was very giving of himself and his time, especially recently.”
Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza was killed in action on 10/25/07.
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Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza, 29, of Glendale, Ariz.
Spc. Mendoza was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 25, 2007 in Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when he came in contact with enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenade, machine-gun and small-arms fire during combat operations. Also killed was Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan.
Army medic from Glendale dies in ambush in Afghanistan
Beth Duckett
The Arizona Republic
An Army medic who graduated from Trevor Browne High School in Phoenix was killed Thursday in combat in Afghanistan
Family members said Saturday that Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza, 29,of Glendale, was an avid churchgoer who dreamed of becoming a firefighter.
Mendoza, 29, died Thursday in Korengal Valley after his unit was ambushed by enemy forces, according to the Department of Defense Web site. .
Mendoza’s brother, Carlos Mendoza, Jr. of Glendale said his brother was deployed in June to Vicenza, Italy, where his unit is based, The two brothers lived together with Carlos’ wife and three children.
“He liked to bowl and liked to play with my kids,” Carlos said. “The older he got, the more loving he got.”
In a tearful but steady voice, Carlos, 37, said Hugo joined the service last year to get medical training.
“Once he got money for being in service, he was going to use it to go to school and follow his dream of being a firefighter,” Carlos said.
Born in California, Hugo Mendoza spent most of childhood days in El Paso, Texas. As a high school junior, he moved to Phoenix 12 years ago.
He worked in sheet metal construction after he graduated from high school, his brother said.
Since joining the army, Mendoza the remained close with family, calling his mother Sara Mendoza in Detroit every time he had the chance. The Mendozas last heard from him Oct. 17, when he left a cheerful message on the family’s answering machine.
“He sounded in good spirits and was in a good mood ... calling to tell us how he was,” Carlos Mendoza said.
Maria Velasquez, 18, of Phoenix a friend who has known Mendoza since she was a tot, said, “Hugo was like my own brother, my own uncle. He was everything to us ... it’s been hard, it’s been very hard.”
While mourning their loss, family and friends said they are trying to remember all the positive things about Hugo.
“He had an infectious smile,” his brother said. “He treated you the way you wanted to be treated. He was very giving of himself and his time, especially recently.”
Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza was killed in action on 10/25/07.
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Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr.
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr., 52, of Upper Marlboro, Md.
SSgt. Towns was assigned to the 275th Military Police Company, 372nd Military Police Battalion, Washington, D.C. National Guard; died Oct. 24, 2007 in Bayji, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations.
D.C. Guardsman Killed After Nine Days in Iraq
Md. Man Loved Family and Football
By Hamil R. Harris
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 27, 2007; Page B01
Besides his wife, Sheila, and their blended family of six children, there were few things that Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr. of Upper Marlboro loved more than entertaining, watching football and barbecuing.
He was known for his cookouts. During games between the Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles, Towns, 52, delighted in donning his Eagles jersey and serving guests his signature barbecued chicken and ribs. Family members and friends said they couldn't stand it when he rooted for the Eagles, but they loved his barbecue so much they never complained.
On Wednesday, Towns was killed in Iraq, nine days after he was deployed there as a member of the D.C. National Guard's 275th Military Police Company.
Towns died in Bayji, northwest of Baghdad, of injuries he suffered when an explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations, according to Staff Sgt. Lorenzo Parnell, a spokesman for the D.C. National Guard. Parnell said Towns was the second member of the D.C. National Guard to die fighting in the Iraq war.
At a gathering yesterday at Sanctuary at Kingdom Square in Capitol Heights, family and friends remembered Towns, who had worked as a corrections officer from December to May, when he left for training. He also worked as a security guard and armored car driver for Dunbar Armored.
Jeff Logan, assistant chief of the Prince George's Department of Corrections, said that though he had been at the department for a short time, "he was on his way to be an asset to the department."
His sister-in-law Joyce Wise said, "He was passionate about everything that he did."
The Rev. Anthony Maclin, pastor of Sanctuary at Kingdom Square, said Towns "loved to serve God, and he had a passion for his brothers and sisters, especially those who serve in the military."
At his modest townhouse in the Campus Way community, a pumpkin sat on the front stoop. A family member who answered the front door said the family did not want to talk.
Towns, a native of Portsmouth, Va., and a 1973 graduate of Manor High School there, enlisted in the Army when he was 17. He rose to platoon sergeant and received an honorable discharge in 1989. He later joined the Army National Guard, serving in units in Maryland, Virginia and the District, where he joined last year. He was serving an 18-month tour when he died.
As a guardsman, Towns worked several natural disasters, including hurricanes Katrina and Isabel. He received the Maryland State Active Duty Medal, the Army Achievement Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said she remembered when Towns's unit was called up for duty. "I saw Staff Sgt. Towns off, along with other members of the D.C. National Guard, just four months ago, with encouraging words that were at odds with what I knew of the danger of the mission of the 275th Military Police Company to train Iraqi police," Norton said in a written statement.
She said that at the send-off for the 275th the group paused to remember the first member of the D.C. National Guard to die in the war, Spec. Darryl T. Dent, 21, of the District.
Towns and his wife were married for 10 years. He had four children from a previous relationship, and she had two. Between them, they all loved football.
"He was the Eagles fan in the family; we would have a ball," Wise said. "I miss his barbecue. It's too bad I can't taste it."
Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr. was killed in action on 10/24/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr., 52, of Upper Marlboro, Md.
SSgt. Towns was assigned to the 275th Military Police Company, 372nd Military Police Battalion, Washington, D.C. National Guard; died Oct. 24, 2007 in Bayji, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations.
D.C. Guardsman Killed After Nine Days in Iraq
Md. Man Loved Family and Football
By Hamil R. Harris
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 27, 2007; Page B01
Besides his wife, Sheila, and their blended family of six children, there were few things that Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr. of Upper Marlboro loved more than entertaining, watching football and barbecuing.
He was known for his cookouts. During games between the Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles, Towns, 52, delighted in donning his Eagles jersey and serving guests his signature barbecued chicken and ribs. Family members and friends said they couldn't stand it when he rooted for the Eagles, but they loved his barbecue so much they never complained.
On Wednesday, Towns was killed in Iraq, nine days after he was deployed there as a member of the D.C. National Guard's 275th Military Police Company.
Towns died in Bayji, northwest of Baghdad, of injuries he suffered when an explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations, according to Staff Sgt. Lorenzo Parnell, a spokesman for the D.C. National Guard. Parnell said Towns was the second member of the D.C. National Guard to die fighting in the Iraq war.
At a gathering yesterday at Sanctuary at Kingdom Square in Capitol Heights, family and friends remembered Towns, who had worked as a corrections officer from December to May, when he left for training. He also worked as a security guard and armored car driver for Dunbar Armored.
Jeff Logan, assistant chief of the Prince George's Department of Corrections, said that though he had been at the department for a short time, "he was on his way to be an asset to the department."
His sister-in-law Joyce Wise said, "He was passionate about everything that he did."
The Rev. Anthony Maclin, pastor of Sanctuary at Kingdom Square, said Towns "loved to serve God, and he had a passion for his brothers and sisters, especially those who serve in the military."
At his modest townhouse in the Campus Way community, a pumpkin sat on the front stoop. A family member who answered the front door said the family did not want to talk.
Towns, a native of Portsmouth, Va., and a 1973 graduate of Manor High School there, enlisted in the Army when he was 17. He rose to platoon sergeant and received an honorable discharge in 1989. He later joined the Army National Guard, serving in units in Maryland, Virginia and the District, where he joined last year. He was serving an 18-month tour when he died.
As a guardsman, Towns worked several natural disasters, including hurricanes Katrina and Isabel. He received the Maryland State Active Duty Medal, the Army Achievement Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said she remembered when Towns's unit was called up for duty. "I saw Staff Sgt. Towns off, along with other members of the D.C. National Guard, just four months ago, with encouraging words that were at odds with what I knew of the danger of the mission of the 275th Military Police Company to train Iraqi police," Norton said in a written statement.
She said that at the send-off for the 275th the group paused to remember the first member of the D.C. National Guard to die in the war, Spec. Darryl T. Dent, 21, of the District.
Towns and his wife were married for 10 years. He had four children from a previous relationship, and she had two. Between them, they all loved football.
"He was the Eagles fan in the family; we would have a ball," Wise said. "I miss his barbecue. It's too bad I can't taste it."
Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr. was killed in action on 10/24/07.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot, 38, of Latta, S.C.
Sgt. Philpot was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor Regiment, South Carolina National Guard, Dillon, S.C.; died Oct. 23, 2007 in Afghanistan from a non-combat-related Humvee rollover accident.
DoD News - A member of the 218th Brigade Combat Team has died while on a convoy operation in Afghanistan.
Adjutant General Stanhope Spears says Sergeant Edward Philpot, 38, of Latta died when the vehicle he was in rolled over during the convory.
Philpot served with the 218th Brigade Combat Team in Afghanistan.
"He was deeply committed to the cause of freedom and this belief led him to serve his state and country with honor and with distinction," Spears said in a written statement. "The South Carolina Army National Guard will sorely miss this great American and we join his family and friends in mourning his passing."
Philpot's family says he was married with three daughters. His wife is a teacher at Latta High School and graduated from Coastal Carolina University in Conway.
Close friends said he was very involved in the community and a dedicated member of Dillon Church of God.
Over the past eight years, Richard Kopituk said, what began as the interaction between a customer and employee developed into a relationship similar to that of a father and son.
“He told us that he really thought of us like substitute parents,” said Kopituk, owner of RJK Frames and Things in Latta.
Close friends said Philpot spent his Saturday mornings taking his three daughters to Kopituk’s coffee shop for cookies.
“Well, you’re just kind of shocked at first. I think this is the first time the war has really been brought that close to us,” said Neyette Williams, Philpot’s neighbor of eight years.
“It’s just a devastating thing. He’s the first one from here that we have lost, and of course it’s sad anytime you lose somebody,” she said. “But, this hits very close to home because we look out that front door every day and realize he’s not gonna come back anymore.”
Williams said while Philpot was proud to serve his country, he was also a proud father, husband and man of God.
Sergeant Philpot's friends and acquaintances in Latta all said the same thing about him: he was a loving husband, and a gentle, caring father.
"I knew that Ed was a good father," said neighbor Netty Williams. "I watched him play in the yard with his children, play tag with them, run around the tree, pull them in the wagon, take them for walks."
Local business owner Shirley Kopituk has similar memories, saying "(His) girls would climb over him, and kiss him on the cheeks and the back of the neck, and he would just smile and continue his conversation with other people. He was really an exceptional young man."
Sgt. Philpot was originally from Detroit, and was a political science major at Coastal Carolina University.
Philpot's church has set up a fund to aid his wife and three children. If you'd like to help, send your donation to the following address:
Dillion Church of God
P.O. Box 573
Dillon, SC 29536
Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot was killed in Afghanistan on 10/23/07.
Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot, 38, of Latta, S.C.
Sgt. Philpot was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor Regiment, South Carolina National Guard, Dillon, S.C.; died Oct. 23, 2007 in Afghanistan from a non-combat-related Humvee rollover accident.
DoD News - A member of the 218th Brigade Combat Team has died while on a convoy operation in Afghanistan.
Adjutant General Stanhope Spears says Sergeant Edward Philpot, 38, of Latta died when the vehicle he was in rolled over during the convory.
Philpot served with the 218th Brigade Combat Team in Afghanistan.
"He was deeply committed to the cause of freedom and this belief led him to serve his state and country with honor and with distinction," Spears said in a written statement. "The South Carolina Army National Guard will sorely miss this great American and we join his family and friends in mourning his passing."
Philpot's family says he was married with three daughters. His wife is a teacher at Latta High School and graduated from Coastal Carolina University in Conway.
Close friends said he was very involved in the community and a dedicated member of Dillon Church of God.
Over the past eight years, Richard Kopituk said, what began as the interaction between a customer and employee developed into a relationship similar to that of a father and son.
“He told us that he really thought of us like substitute parents,” said Kopituk, owner of RJK Frames and Things in Latta.
Close friends said Philpot spent his Saturday mornings taking his three daughters to Kopituk’s coffee shop for cookies.
“Well, you’re just kind of shocked at first. I think this is the first time the war has really been brought that close to us,” said Neyette Williams, Philpot’s neighbor of eight years.
“It’s just a devastating thing. He’s the first one from here that we have lost, and of course it’s sad anytime you lose somebody,” she said. “But, this hits very close to home because we look out that front door every day and realize he’s not gonna come back anymore.”
Williams said while Philpot was proud to serve his country, he was also a proud father, husband and man of God.
Sergeant Philpot's friends and acquaintances in Latta all said the same thing about him: he was a loving husband, and a gentle, caring father.
"I knew that Ed was a good father," said neighbor Netty Williams. "I watched him play in the yard with his children, play tag with them, run around the tree, pull them in the wagon, take them for walks."
Local business owner Shirley Kopituk has similar memories, saying "(His) girls would climb over him, and kiss him on the cheeks and the back of the neck, and he would just smile and continue his conversation with other people. He was really an exceptional young man."
Sgt. Philpot was originally from Detroit, and was a political science major at Coastal Carolina University.
Philpot's church has set up a fund to aid his wife and three children. If you'd like to help, send your donation to the following address:
Dillion Church of God
P.O. Box 573
Dillon, SC 29536
Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot was killed in Afghanistan on 10/23/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle, 25, of West Jordan, Utah
SSgt. Rougle was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 23, 2007 in Sawtalo Sar Mountain, Kunar Province, Afghanistan, of wounds when he was engaged by enemy small arms fire during combat operations.
Ismael Rougle knew. He served in the Army during the Vietnam War and suffered the loss of good friends there.
Fernando Lopez knew. He served in Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War and helped write the death certificates for several comrades.
And though she liked to pretend otherwise, Nancy Rougle knew, too. Her son feared that this would be his final combat tour and had told her so.
They all knew the cost of war.
"But not like this," sighed Ismael Rougle as he struggled to consider a world without his eldest son, Larry. "No, not like this."
Ismael Rougle learned Tuesday afternoon that his son, a 25-year-old U.S. Army sniper, had been shot in the stomach and killed in Afghanistan's volatile Kunar Province. On Wednesday afternoon, the grieving father was bent under the hood of an old truck, his oil-stained hands contorted behind the leaky radiator as he recalled the day his then-17-year-old son had come home to say that he was going to join the Army.
"I'd never suggested it," said Ismael Rougle, who had served 25 years in the Army. "But he had it in his mind that this is what he wanted to do. And he was so proud."
That was in 1999. And though Ismael Rougle knew all too well the consequences of war, his nation wasn't at war. "I thought it was a good idea," the 61-year-old maintenance man for the U.S. Postal Service said.
Two years later, in the wake of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Larry Rougle departed for his first combat tour. He was 19.
Over the six years that have followed, family members said, Larry Rougle served two more tours in Afghanistan and three in Iraq.
"Six tours," Ismael Rougle said. "Six."
Family members say Larry Rougle never complained about being called away from home, not even after his then-wife gave birth to a daughter, Carmin Jade, now 3 years old.
He loved the girl more than anything, they said, but remained proud to serve and committed to victory.
Along the way, he confided in his uncle, Gulf War veteran Fernando Lopez, about his passion for fighting, his experiences under fire and his fears about the future.
"Unless you've been there during the time when the bullets are flying past, you just can't know what it's like," Lopez said. "So we talked about his various experiences. He would talk and I'd listen."
When Larry Rougle visited his family in Utah last spring, he told his mother that he was returning to Afghanistan again.
"He told me that he didn't think that he would be making it home this time," Nancy Rougle said. "I said, 'No, no, let's not talk about it.' I didn't want to believe it."
But Larry Rougle was determined to prepare his family for the worst. "Afghanistan is more dangerous than Iraq," younger brother David Rougle said. "That is what he told me."
Indeed, relative to the size of the forces in both nations, coalition troops in Afghanistan have suffered greater numbers of casualties than their counterparts in Iraq in each of the past three months.
Rougle is the sixth Utahn to die in the Afghanistan conflict. His death brings to 193 the number of coalition forces killed in Afghanistan so far this year, making this the deadliest year for U.S. and allied troops since the war began in 2001.
Though David Rougle had never served in the military, he also had some understanding of the consequences of war - some context in which to place his brother's grave predictions.
As a ramp worker at Salt Lake City International Airport, he'd watched the flag-draped caskets of several service members roll out from the bellies of passenger aircraft.
But he never thought his brother would be inside of one of the boxes. "Never," David Rougle said. "Not for a moment. I thought he was coming home."
Back under the hood of the truck, perhaps simply happy for the distraction it presented, Ismael Rougle sighed again.
"Until it is your own family," he said, "you really don't know."
Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle was killed in action on 10/23/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle, 25, of West Jordan, Utah
SSgt. Rougle was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Oct. 23, 2007 in Sawtalo Sar Mountain, Kunar Province, Afghanistan, of wounds when he was engaged by enemy small arms fire during combat operations.
Ismael Rougle knew. He served in the Army during the Vietnam War and suffered the loss of good friends there.
Fernando Lopez knew. He served in Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War and helped write the death certificates for several comrades.
And though she liked to pretend otherwise, Nancy Rougle knew, too. Her son feared that this would be his final combat tour and had told her so.
They all knew the cost of war.
"But not like this," sighed Ismael Rougle as he struggled to consider a world without his eldest son, Larry. "No, not like this."
Ismael Rougle learned Tuesday afternoon that his son, a 25-year-old U.S. Army sniper, had been shot in the stomach and killed in Afghanistan's volatile Kunar Province. On Wednesday afternoon, the grieving father was bent under the hood of an old truck, his oil-stained hands contorted behind the leaky radiator as he recalled the day his then-17-year-old son had come home to say that he was going to join the Army.
"I'd never suggested it," said Ismael Rougle, who had served 25 years in the Army. "But he had it in his mind that this is what he wanted to do. And he was so proud."
That was in 1999. And though Ismael Rougle knew all too well the consequences of war, his nation wasn't at war. "I thought it was a good idea," the 61-year-old maintenance man for the U.S. Postal Service said.
Two years later, in the wake of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Larry Rougle departed for his first combat tour. He was 19.
Over the six years that have followed, family members said, Larry Rougle served two more tours in Afghanistan and three in Iraq.
"Six tours," Ismael Rougle said. "Six."
Family members say Larry Rougle never complained about being called away from home, not even after his then-wife gave birth to a daughter, Carmin Jade, now 3 years old.
He loved the girl more than anything, they said, but remained proud to serve and committed to victory.
Along the way, he confided in his uncle, Gulf War veteran Fernando Lopez, about his passion for fighting, his experiences under fire and his fears about the future.
"Unless you've been there during the time when the bullets are flying past, you just can't know what it's like," Lopez said. "So we talked about his various experiences. He would talk and I'd listen."
When Larry Rougle visited his family in Utah last spring, he told his mother that he was returning to Afghanistan again.
"He told me that he didn't think that he would be making it home this time," Nancy Rougle said. "I said, 'No, no, let's not talk about it.' I didn't want to believe it."
But Larry Rougle was determined to prepare his family for the worst. "Afghanistan is more dangerous than Iraq," younger brother David Rougle said. "That is what he told me."
Indeed, relative to the size of the forces in both nations, coalition troops in Afghanistan have suffered greater numbers of casualties than their counterparts in Iraq in each of the past three months.
Rougle is the sixth Utahn to die in the Afghanistan conflict. His death brings to 193 the number of coalition forces killed in Afghanistan so far this year, making this the deadliest year for U.S. and allied troops since the war began in 2001.
Though David Rougle had never served in the military, he also had some understanding of the consequences of war - some context in which to place his brother's grave predictions.
As a ramp worker at Salt Lake City International Airport, he'd watched the flag-draped caskets of several service members roll out from the bellies of passenger aircraft.
But he never thought his brother would be inside of one of the boxes. "Never," David Rougle said. "Not for a moment. I thought he was coming home."
Back under the hood of the truck, perhaps simply happy for the distraction it presented, Ismael Rougle sighed again.
"Until it is your own family," he said, "you really don't know."
Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle was killed in action on 10/23/07.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho
Remember Our Heroes
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, Fla.
Seaman Camacho was assigned to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain; died Oct. 22, 2007 in Bahrain in a non-combat-related incident. Also killed was Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham.
Panama City sailor dies in Bahrain
The Associated Press
PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Two Navy sailors, one from Panama City, died of non-combat injuries in Bahrain, military officials announced Oct. 23.
Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, and Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga., died Oct. 22, according to a statement from the Defense Department. The sailors’ deaths were under investigation.
Both women held the master-at-arms rating and were assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Bahrain, a tiny island nation on the Persian Gulf, is a U.S. ally and home to the Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is responsible for an area of about 2.5 million square miles of water including the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.
About 3,600 personnel work on the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, located just outside Bahrain’s capital, Manama. The base supports U.S. naval ships in the region.
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho was killed 10/22/07/
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, Fla.
Seaman Camacho was assigned to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain; died Oct. 22, 2007 in Bahrain in a non-combat-related incident. Also killed was Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham.
Panama City sailor dies in Bahrain
The Associated Press
PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Two Navy sailors, one from Panama City, died of non-combat injuries in Bahrain, military officials announced Oct. 23.
Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, and Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga., died Oct. 22, according to a statement from the Defense Department. The sailors’ deaths were under investigation.
Both women held the master-at-arms rating and were assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Bahrain, a tiny island nation on the Persian Gulf, is a U.S. ally and home to the Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is responsible for an area of about 2.5 million square miles of water including the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.
About 3,600 personnel work on the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, located just outside Bahrain’s capital, Manama. The base supports U.S. naval ships in the region.
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho was killed 10/22/07/
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham
Remember Our Heroes
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga.
Seaman Gresham was assigned to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain; died Oct. 22, 2007 in Bahrain in a non-combat-related incident. Also killed was Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho.
Georgia sailor shot to death in Bahrain
The Associated Press
Two Navy sailors, one from Georgia, were shot to death in Bahrain, military officials announced Oct. 23.
Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, Fla., and Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga., died Oct. 22, according to a statement from the Defense Department.
A U.S. Navy sailor shot and killed the two sailors early Oct. 22 in the barracks an American military base in Bahrain, officials said.
The alleged shooter, a man, was critically wounded in the shooting at the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, said a Navy official who was not authorized to release the information to the media and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The wounded sailor apparently shot himself, the Navy said.
Both women held the master-at-arms rating and were assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Bahrain, a tiny island nation on the Persian Gulf, is a U.S. ally and home to the Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is responsible for an area of about 2.5 million square miles of water including the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.
About 3,600 personnel work on the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, located just outside Bahrain’s capital, Manama. The base supports U.S. naval ships in the region.
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham was killed on 10/22/07.
For Larger Images
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga.
Seaman Gresham was assigned to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain; died Oct. 22, 2007 in Bahrain in a non-combat-related incident. Also killed was Master-at-Arms Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho.
Georgia sailor shot to death in Bahrain
The Associated Press
Two Navy sailors, one from Georgia, were shot to death in Bahrain, military officials announced Oct. 23.
Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, Fla., and Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga., died Oct. 22, according to a statement from the Defense Department.
A U.S. Navy sailor shot and killed the two sailors early Oct. 22 in the barracks an American military base in Bahrain, officials said.
The alleged shooter, a man, was critically wounded in the shooting at the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, said a Navy official who was not authorized to release the information to the media and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The wounded sailor apparently shot himself, the Navy said.
Both women held the master-at-arms rating and were assigned to Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Bahrain, a tiny island nation on the Persian Gulf, is a U.S. ally and home to the Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is responsible for an area of about 2.5 million square miles of water including the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean.
About 3,600 personnel work on the Naval Support Activity Bahrain base, located just outside Bahrain’s capital, Manama. The base supports U.S. naval ships in the region.
Navy Master-at-Arms Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham was killed on 10/22/07.
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Friday, October 19, 2007
Marine Cpl. Erik T. Garoutte
Remember Our Heroes
Marine Cpl. Erik T. Garoutte, 22, of Santee, Calif.
Cpl. Garoutte was assigned to 1st Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team Company, Marine Corps Security Force Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Norfolk, Va.; died Oct. 19, 2007 in Baghdad.
Marine dies in Iraq
The Associated Press
NORFOLK, Va. — The Pentagon announced Saturday that a Norfolk-based Marine died in Iraq.
Capt. William Pelletier, a Marine Corps spokesman based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, said Cpl. Erik Garoutte of Santee, California, died Friday in Baghdad “as a result of unknown causes.”
Pelletier said he had no additional information about Garoutte’s death.
Garoutte was assigned to the 1st Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team Company, Marine Corps Security Force Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Norfolk.
Pelletier said Garoutte joined the Marine Corps in November 2005.
A release from the Defense Department said the incident is under investigation.
Marine Cpl. Erik T. Garoutte died on 10/19/07.
Marine Cpl. Erik T. Garoutte, 22, of Santee, Calif.
Cpl. Garoutte was assigned to 1st Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team Company, Marine Corps Security Force Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Norfolk, Va.; died Oct. 19, 2007 in Baghdad.
Marine dies in Iraq
The Associated Press
NORFOLK, Va. — The Pentagon announced Saturday that a Norfolk-based Marine died in Iraq.
Capt. William Pelletier, a Marine Corps spokesman based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, said Cpl. Erik Garoutte of Santee, California, died Friday in Baghdad “as a result of unknown causes.”
Pelletier said he had no additional information about Garoutte’s death.
Garoutte was assigned to the 1st Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team Company, Marine Corps Security Force Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Norfolk.
Pelletier said Garoutte joined the Marine Corps in November 2005.
A release from the Defense Department said the incident is under investigation.
Marine Cpl. Erik T. Garoutte died on 10/19/07.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot, 35, of Port Barre, La.
SSgt. Fontenot was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 18, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device and small-arms fire during combat operations.
Fort Carson soldier dies in Baghdad
The Associated Press
FORT CARSON, Colo. — A soldier based at Fort Carson who family members said aspired to be a soldier since he was a little boy has died of injuries suffered after an explosion and gunfire during his second tour in Iraq.
Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot, 35, of Port Barre, La., died Thursday in Baghdad, the military announced Friday.
Military officials said an improvised device exploded and Fontenot came under small arms fire during combat operations.
He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
He is the 224th Fort Carson soldier killed in Iraq since the U.S. invasion in March 2003. The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, has lost 110 of those soldiers.
“He used to play ‘Rambo’ all the time,” Charles Marks, Fontenot’s grandfather, who also served in the Army, told The Gazette of Colorado Springs from his home in Port Barre. “He loved that.”
Fontenot is survived by his wife and four children. Marks said Fontenot’s 17-year-old son, his oldest, was in shock over the news of his father’s death.
“He’s hurt,” he said. “Him and his daddy kept in touch all the time. He’d call him often.”
His mother-in-law Bett Dedon, said Fontenot was a police officer before joining the Army on Christmas Day 1993.
Besides Marks, Fontenot’s two great uncles attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., joining the Marines and the Navy. Fontenot’s sister lives in North Carolina with her husband, who is also in the Army.
During his service, which included stints Korea and Iraq, Fontenot earned numerous awards, including the Army Commendation Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon, and Parachute Badge.
“He loved being a soldier, and he died doing what he loved,” Dedon said.
Fontenot is the 224th Fort Carson soldier killed in Iraq since the U.S. invasion in March 2003.
Body of soldier killed in Iraq arrives home
The Associated Press
OPELOUSAS, La. — The body of a Port Barre soldier killed Oct. 18 in Baghdad has arrived in Opelousas for a military funeral Oct. 27.
Staff Sgt. Jarred Seth Fontenot died last week of injuries suffered from a roadside bomb and small-arms fire. He was 35 and on his second tour of duty in Iraq.
His body arrived home Oct. 25.
Fontenot leaves behind a wife, Dana Lamke Fontenot, and four children — 16-year-old Cameron Fontenot, 7-year-old Logan Fontenot, 6-year-old Mason Fontenot and 4-year-old Macy Fontenot.
“We’re thankful we were able to get him home and to the funeral home privately, and we appreciate that,” said Bett Dedon, his mother-in-law. “The only thing we ask you is to keep his wife and children in your prayers.”
Fontenot’s family has requested privacy especially for the children. However, Sibille Funeral Home in Opelousas was to be open to the public for visitation Oct. 26.
Army Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot was killed in action on 10/18/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot, 35, of Port Barre, La.
SSgt. Fontenot was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 18, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device and small-arms fire during combat operations.
Fort Carson soldier dies in Baghdad
The Associated Press
FORT CARSON, Colo. — A soldier based at Fort Carson who family members said aspired to be a soldier since he was a little boy has died of injuries suffered after an explosion and gunfire during his second tour in Iraq.
Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot, 35, of Port Barre, La., died Thursday in Baghdad, the military announced Friday.
Military officials said an improvised device exploded and Fontenot came under small arms fire during combat operations.
He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
He is the 224th Fort Carson soldier killed in Iraq since the U.S. invasion in March 2003. The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, has lost 110 of those soldiers.
“He used to play ‘Rambo’ all the time,” Charles Marks, Fontenot’s grandfather, who also served in the Army, told The Gazette of Colorado Springs from his home in Port Barre. “He loved that.”
Fontenot is survived by his wife and four children. Marks said Fontenot’s 17-year-old son, his oldest, was in shock over the news of his father’s death.
“He’s hurt,” he said. “Him and his daddy kept in touch all the time. He’d call him often.”
His mother-in-law Bett Dedon, said Fontenot was a police officer before joining the Army on Christmas Day 1993.
Besides Marks, Fontenot’s two great uncles attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., joining the Marines and the Navy. Fontenot’s sister lives in North Carolina with her husband, who is also in the Army.
During his service, which included stints Korea and Iraq, Fontenot earned numerous awards, including the Army Commendation Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon, and Parachute Badge.
“He loved being a soldier, and he died doing what he loved,” Dedon said.
Fontenot is the 224th Fort Carson soldier killed in Iraq since the U.S. invasion in March 2003.
Body of soldier killed in Iraq arrives home
The Associated Press
OPELOUSAS, La. — The body of a Port Barre soldier killed Oct. 18 in Baghdad has arrived in Opelousas for a military funeral Oct. 27.
Staff Sgt. Jarred Seth Fontenot died last week of injuries suffered from a roadside bomb and small-arms fire. He was 35 and on his second tour of duty in Iraq.
His body arrived home Oct. 25.
Fontenot leaves behind a wife, Dana Lamke Fontenot, and four children — 16-year-old Cameron Fontenot, 7-year-old Logan Fontenot, 6-year-old Mason Fontenot and 4-year-old Macy Fontenot.
“We’re thankful we were able to get him home and to the funeral home privately, and we appreciate that,” said Bett Dedon, his mother-in-law. “The only thing we ask you is to keep his wife and children in your prayers.”
Fontenot’s family has requested privacy especially for the children. However, Sibille Funeral Home in Opelousas was to be open to the public for visitation Oct. 26.
Army Staff Sgt. Jarred S. Fontenot was killed in action on 10/18/07.
Army Spc. Wayne M. Geiger
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Wayne M. Geiger, 23, of Lone Pine, Calif.
Spc. Geiger was assigned to 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany; died Oct 18, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Owens Valley Honors Fallen Soldier
Written by Tom Woods
Tuesday, 30 October 2007
A somber mood prevailed over the Eastern Sierra this past weekend as the casket of Army Corporal Wayne Geiger was carried home to Lone Pine. Geiger was killed on October 18, two months into his tour in Iraq.
Whether they knew Corporal Geiger or not, people of the Owens Valley lined the highway to pay their respects to the young man. Saturday morning, Main Street, Bishop, was lined with American flags. The hundreds of people who came out to watch the funeral procession as it made its way to Lone Pine, brought more red, white, and blue to the street to honor one of our own.
With enough flags to rival the best July Fourth parade, all watched as the Sheriff and Highway Patrol vehicles escorted the white hearse down Main Street. After the procession passed through town the quiet crowd went their various ways, some with tears in their eyes.
Big Pine and Independence were no different as people stood on the side of the highway to pay their respects.
In Lone Pine, the military honor guard escorted the casket into the High School Gymnasium, where hundreds of people gathered for the funeral services. Inyo Sheriff Lt. Randy Geiger, spoke eloquently and lovingly about his son. Lt. Geiger thanked the people of Lone Pine for their open arms and overwhelming support given to himself, his wife Kim and their daughter Jesse.
Lt. Geiger also said that before his son left for Iraq, he was focused and knew what he was getting into. He also said that he was inspired by his son’s inner strength.
All who spoke of Corporal Wayne Geiger mentioned his love for sports, especially basketball.
In the same room where Wayne Geiger shined on the basketball court, former coaches Matt Kingsley and Scott Kemp, spoke on the soldier’s love for the game. Kingsley, as well as friends and family, all spoke about the young Geiger’s sense of humor that kept them entertained over the years.
At the cemetery the honor guard carried the casket to the gravesite. The sobs from the crowd, the military gun salute, and “taps,” marked this solemn occasion.
Lt. Randy Geiger described Wayne as not only his own son, but a son of the Owens Valley. The hundreds of people who came out to honor the fallen soldier revealed that truth.
And, as Mrs. Geiger received the folded American Flag from her son’s casket, her broken heart was shared by all.
Army Spc. Wayne M. Geiger was killed in action on 10/18/07.
Army Spc. Wayne M. Geiger, 23, of Lone Pine, Calif.
Spc. Geiger was assigned to 3rd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany; died Oct 18, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Owens Valley Honors Fallen Soldier
Written by Tom Woods
Tuesday, 30 October 2007
A somber mood prevailed over the Eastern Sierra this past weekend as the casket of Army Corporal Wayne Geiger was carried home to Lone Pine. Geiger was killed on October 18, two months into his tour in Iraq.
Whether they knew Corporal Geiger or not, people of the Owens Valley lined the highway to pay their respects to the young man. Saturday morning, Main Street, Bishop, was lined with American flags. The hundreds of people who came out to watch the funeral procession as it made its way to Lone Pine, brought more red, white, and blue to the street to honor one of our own.
With enough flags to rival the best July Fourth parade, all watched as the Sheriff and Highway Patrol vehicles escorted the white hearse down Main Street. After the procession passed through town the quiet crowd went their various ways, some with tears in their eyes.
Big Pine and Independence were no different as people stood on the side of the highway to pay their respects.
In Lone Pine, the military honor guard escorted the casket into the High School Gymnasium, where hundreds of people gathered for the funeral services. Inyo Sheriff Lt. Randy Geiger, spoke eloquently and lovingly about his son. Lt. Geiger thanked the people of Lone Pine for their open arms and overwhelming support given to himself, his wife Kim and their daughter Jesse.
Lt. Geiger also said that before his son left for Iraq, he was focused and knew what he was getting into. He also said that he was inspired by his son’s inner strength.
All who spoke of Corporal Wayne Geiger mentioned his love for sports, especially basketball.
In the same room where Wayne Geiger shined on the basketball court, former coaches Matt Kingsley and Scott Kemp, spoke on the soldier’s love for the game. Kingsley, as well as friends and family, all spoke about the young Geiger’s sense of humor that kept them entertained over the years.
At the cemetery the honor guard carried the casket to the gravesite. The sobs from the crowd, the military gun salute, and “taps,” marked this solemn occasion.
Lt. Randy Geiger described Wayne as not only his own son, but a son of the Owens Valley. The hundreds of people who came out to honor the fallen soldier revealed that truth.
And, as Mrs. Geiger received the folded American Flag from her son’s casket, her broken heart was shared by all.
Army Spc. Wayne M. Geiger was killed in action on 10/18/07.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Army Spc. Vincent A. Madero
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Vincent A. Madero, 22, of Port Hueneme, Calif.
Spc. Madero was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Oct 17, 2007 in Balad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee.
Ventura County Star - Just hours after one family buried a son killed in Iraq, a few miles away Blas and Sybil Madero were being told by uniformed officers that their son, Army Spc. Vincent Alexander Madero, was born in San Jose, Calif., on Aug. 27, 1985, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Balad, Iraq, on Oct. 17, 2007.
On his second tour of duty, 22-year-old Madero had returned to the war zone in August with the 1st Cavalry Division's 2nd Battalion based in Fort Hood, Texas.
"A lot of people here did know him, and they should know what happened," his brother Daniel Hazelton said. "He did give his life, and we need to honor that. He was proud of what he was doing."
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued a statement on learning of Madero's death. "Maria and I join the community of Port Hueneme in mourning the tragic loss of Specialist Vincent Madero. Serving as a member of our nation's armed forces requires courage and bravery, qualities which Vincent embodied. Our prayers are with his family and friends during this painful time; he will be dearly missed by all who knew him," Schwarzenegger wrote.
Madero's sister, Cassey Penn, said her brother kept in touch through e-mail, but there were times when he was so busy he couldn't write.
To check to see if he was OK, she and her brother would look at the login date on his MySpace page. He last signed on to it the day he died.
His family said he didn't talk much about the war but did not seem to have any trepidation about returning to Iraq.
"He told me he wanted to go back so he could help the younger guys," his sister said.
His only regret about returning, his father said, was that he did not get a chance to spend more time with his new wife, Ellen.
The two were married in June. His MySpace page is titled "Ellensloveloveguy." The page plays a loop of Audrey Hepburn singing "Moon River" from the movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's."
Madero wanted more time with her, and with her baby son from another relationship, his father said.
Madero had trained as an artillery spotter. He had previously served in a Stryker Brigade and was manning a turret gun when the Humvee he was riding in was hit Oct. 17. It was his day off, but he volunteered to go back out.
"We don't really know what happened, whether anyone else was hurt," said his mother as she clutched her husband's arm at the door of their Port Hueneme home. "We just know (his Humvee) caught fire."
The day Madero was killed two uniformed female officers came to his parents' home to tell them of their son's death. That same day, the family of Gilberto Meza, 21, who had been killed Oct. 6, buried their son in Oxnard.
Madero, who married Ellen just six months after returning from his first tour, attended Oxnard High School but graduated from Frontier High School in Camarillo, his father said.
When he joined the Army in 2003, it gave him focus, his family said. He was stationed in Alaska with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and served in Iraq through 2006 with the unit. He had only recently been assigned to Fort Hood before heading back to Iraq in August.
Vincent had many hobbies but mostly he enjoyed mechanics, camping, photography, art work, and he couldn’t survive without his music. He had every CD you could ever think of. Vincent would go out of his way to help anybody. He devoted his time to making others happy and staying on top of things. Vincent was very responsible and he loved taking care of his family. He always had a smile on his face.
Vincent was a leader; he was one of a kind. He brought so much joy in his short lifetime and he will be missed dearly. He used to say to his family: “When you feel alone, look at the spaces between your fingers, remember that in those spaces you can see my fingers.”
Vincent was preceded in death by his grandfather, Miguel Madero of San Antonio.
He is survived by his wife, Ellen Housley Madero and stepson, James Housley, of North Pole; his parents, Bias and Sybil Madero of Port Hueneme, Calif.; big brother and sister-in-law, Daniel and Rasandera Hazelton, nieces and nephew, Breana, Daniel Jr., and twins, Aaliyah and Ashiya Hazelton, all of Arizona; big sister, Casey Penn of Arizona; also many family and friends in Alaska, California, and Texas.
They were only married a little more than six months, but the widow of Spc. Vincent A. Madero says he made an enduring impact on her life.
He had enlisted in the Army in 2003 after receiving his GED. Vincent met his future wife, Ellen Housley Madero, in late 2004 through mutual friends while he was stationed at Fort Wainwright. Ellen felt an immediate connection to the shy soldier.
“He was so quiet, he seemed really mysterious,” Ellen said. “I knew I wanted to get to know him.”
After some time the two began dating. Vincent brought stability to the life of Ellen and her now 3-year-old son Jamie, who called him “da da.” Vincent talked about adopting the boy in the future.
“He taught us so many things,” Ellen said. “He taught us how to do things right.”
In late 2005, Vincent was sent to Iraq for what became a 16-month tour of duty. The couple kept in touch online, with phone calls and by exchanging a journal in which they wrote notes to each other.
When he returned to the United States earlier this year, he asked Ellen to marry him at a special place off the highway near the Salcha River. She accepted, and the two were wed in a small ceremony in March. It was around that time that Ellen had Vincent’s name tattooed on her stomach. Vincent had her initials tattooed on his left hand.
“He told me that every time he checked the time, he’d be reminded of me,” she said.
Though he grew up in California, Vincent was fond of Alaska. He talked about getting a house with Ellen in North Pole, and eventually becoming an Alaska State Trooper or a firefighter in the state.
“He had never been somewhere so cold, but he learned to love it,” said Vincent’s father, Bias Madero.
Before his scheduled redeployment in August, Ellen and Vincent went on vacation to Stevens Village, where she was born. A friend took him out on a boat there and told him to remember the experience whenever he faced something difficult in Iraq.
“I remember he always called and talked about that,” Ellen said.
Bias said his son spoke little about his time in Iraq, but he was not upset about going back and looked forward to training younger soldiers. Vincent often showed that willingness to help others.
“He had a big heart,” Bias said. “He touched a lot of people.”
In Ellen’s last conversations with Vincent, he was optimistic about the future. He told her to pick out a dress for a ball the couple planned to attend next year, and he talked about renewing their vows at a much larger ceremony when they had saved up the money.
Ellen is now unsure what the future holds, but said she’ll think about him every day.
Madero's awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Combat Action Badge.
Army Spc. Vincent A. Madero was killed in action on 10/17/07.
Army Spc. Vincent A. Madero, 22, of Port Hueneme, Calif.
Spc. Madero was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Oct 17, 2007 in Balad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee.
Ventura County Star - Just hours after one family buried a son killed in Iraq, a few miles away Blas and Sybil Madero were being told by uniformed officers that their son, Army Spc. Vincent Alexander Madero, was born in San Jose, Calif., on Aug. 27, 1985, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Balad, Iraq, on Oct. 17, 2007.
On his second tour of duty, 22-year-old Madero had returned to the war zone in August with the 1st Cavalry Division's 2nd Battalion based in Fort Hood, Texas.
"A lot of people here did know him, and they should know what happened," his brother Daniel Hazelton said. "He did give his life, and we need to honor that. He was proud of what he was doing."
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued a statement on learning of Madero's death. "Maria and I join the community of Port Hueneme in mourning the tragic loss of Specialist Vincent Madero. Serving as a member of our nation's armed forces requires courage and bravery, qualities which Vincent embodied. Our prayers are with his family and friends during this painful time; he will be dearly missed by all who knew him," Schwarzenegger wrote.
Madero's sister, Cassey Penn, said her brother kept in touch through e-mail, but there were times when he was so busy he couldn't write.
To check to see if he was OK, she and her brother would look at the login date on his MySpace page. He last signed on to it the day he died.
His family said he didn't talk much about the war but did not seem to have any trepidation about returning to Iraq.
"He told me he wanted to go back so he could help the younger guys," his sister said.
His only regret about returning, his father said, was that he did not get a chance to spend more time with his new wife, Ellen.
The two were married in June. His MySpace page is titled "Ellensloveloveguy." The page plays a loop of Audrey Hepburn singing "Moon River" from the movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's."
Madero wanted more time with her, and with her baby son from another relationship, his father said.
Madero had trained as an artillery spotter. He had previously served in a Stryker Brigade and was manning a turret gun when the Humvee he was riding in was hit Oct. 17. It was his day off, but he volunteered to go back out.
"We don't really know what happened, whether anyone else was hurt," said his mother as she clutched her husband's arm at the door of their Port Hueneme home. "We just know (his Humvee) caught fire."
The day Madero was killed two uniformed female officers came to his parents' home to tell them of their son's death. That same day, the family of Gilberto Meza, 21, who had been killed Oct. 6, buried their son in Oxnard.
Madero, who married Ellen just six months after returning from his first tour, attended Oxnard High School but graduated from Frontier High School in Camarillo, his father said.
When he joined the Army in 2003, it gave him focus, his family said. He was stationed in Alaska with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and served in Iraq through 2006 with the unit. He had only recently been assigned to Fort Hood before heading back to Iraq in August.
Vincent had many hobbies but mostly he enjoyed mechanics, camping, photography, art work, and he couldn’t survive without his music. He had every CD you could ever think of. Vincent would go out of his way to help anybody. He devoted his time to making others happy and staying on top of things. Vincent was very responsible and he loved taking care of his family. He always had a smile on his face.
Vincent was a leader; he was one of a kind. He brought so much joy in his short lifetime and he will be missed dearly. He used to say to his family: “When you feel alone, look at the spaces between your fingers, remember that in those spaces you can see my fingers.”
Vincent was preceded in death by his grandfather, Miguel Madero of San Antonio.
He is survived by his wife, Ellen Housley Madero and stepson, James Housley, of North Pole; his parents, Bias and Sybil Madero of Port Hueneme, Calif.; big brother and sister-in-law, Daniel and Rasandera Hazelton, nieces and nephew, Breana, Daniel Jr., and twins, Aaliyah and Ashiya Hazelton, all of Arizona; big sister, Casey Penn of Arizona; also many family and friends in Alaska, California, and Texas.
They were only married a little more than six months, but the widow of Spc. Vincent A. Madero says he made an enduring impact on her life.
He had enlisted in the Army in 2003 after receiving his GED. Vincent met his future wife, Ellen Housley Madero, in late 2004 through mutual friends while he was stationed at Fort Wainwright. Ellen felt an immediate connection to the shy soldier.
“He was so quiet, he seemed really mysterious,” Ellen said. “I knew I wanted to get to know him.”
After some time the two began dating. Vincent brought stability to the life of Ellen and her now 3-year-old son Jamie, who called him “da da.” Vincent talked about adopting the boy in the future.
“He taught us so many things,” Ellen said. “He taught us how to do things right.”
In late 2005, Vincent was sent to Iraq for what became a 16-month tour of duty. The couple kept in touch online, with phone calls and by exchanging a journal in which they wrote notes to each other.
When he returned to the United States earlier this year, he asked Ellen to marry him at a special place off the highway near the Salcha River. She accepted, and the two were wed in a small ceremony in March. It was around that time that Ellen had Vincent’s name tattooed on her stomach. Vincent had her initials tattooed on his left hand.
“He told me that every time he checked the time, he’d be reminded of me,” she said.
Though he grew up in California, Vincent was fond of Alaska. He talked about getting a house with Ellen in North Pole, and eventually becoming an Alaska State Trooper or a firefighter in the state.
“He had never been somewhere so cold, but he learned to love it,” said Vincent’s father, Bias Madero.
Before his scheduled redeployment in August, Ellen and Vincent went on vacation to Stevens Village, where she was born. A friend took him out on a boat there and told him to remember the experience whenever he faced something difficult in Iraq.
“I remember he always called and talked about that,” Ellen said.
Bias said his son spoke little about his time in Iraq, but he was not upset about going back and looked forward to training younger soldiers. Vincent often showed that willingness to help others.
“He had a big heart,” Bias said. “He touched a lot of people.”
In Ellen’s last conversations with Vincent, he was optimistic about the future. He told her to pick out a dress for a ball the couple planned to attend next year, and he talked about renewing their vows at a much larger ceremony when they had saved up the money.
Ellen is now unsure what the future holds, but said she’ll think about him every day.
Madero's awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Combat Action Badge.
Army Spc. Vincent A. Madero was killed in action on 10/17/07.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Army Spc. Micheal D. Brown
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Micheal D. Brown, 20, of Williamsburg, Kan.
Spc. Brown was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died Oct.16, 2007 in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, of a non-combat-related illness after being transported from Tikrit, Iraq.
Army Spc. Micheal D. Brown died of a non-combat illness on 10/16/07.
Army Spc. Micheal D. Brown, 20, of Williamsburg, Kan.
Spc. Brown was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died Oct.16, 2007 in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, of a non-combat-related illness after being transported from Tikrit, Iraq.
Army Spc. Micheal D. Brown died of a non-combat illness on 10/16/07.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin
Remember Our Heroes
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin, 27, of Ward, Ark.
1st Lt. Martin was assigned to 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Al Busayifi, Iraq, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using small-arms fire during combat operations.
An Eagle Scout, Thomas M. Martin took on cleaning up an old red train caboose as a service project.
"He remodeled it to make it where people could go inside. If you saw it before and looked in it after he was through _ it was daylight and dark," said his former principal, Robert Martin, who is no relation.
Martin, 27, of Ward, Ark., died Oct. 14 in Al Busayifi of wounds from small-arms fire. He was assigned to Fort Richardson.
He enlisted in the Army in 1998 after graduating high school and served in Korea before accepting an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 2005.
"He was very polite and respectful. I can't think of him ever overreacting; he had a wonderful, good-natured personality," said Pat Hagge, a family friend.
"It's a terrible tragedy; he was a great young man."
He is survived by his parents, Edmund and Candis.
"Tom was involved in Key Club, German Club and band, making All-Region Band his sophomore year," said his former principal.
"He was a wonderful young man. Those that knew him knew he was funny and outgoing."
Alaska governor honors soldier killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
JUNEAU, Alaska — Governor Sarah Palin has offered her condolences to the family and friends of a Fort Richardson soldier who died Oct. 14 in Iraq.
First Lieutenant Thomas M. Martin of Ward, Arkansas, died when insurgents attacked his unit during combat operations in Al Busayifi, Iraq.
The 27-year-old Martin was a cavalry scout officer who graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 2005 and was assigned to the Alaska fort in June 2006.
He was assigned to C Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division.
Palin will fly an Alaska flag over the state Capitol in his honor.
The flag will be sent along with a letter of condolence to his family.
Anchorage Daily News -- A West Point graduate killed in Iraq on Sunday and whose parents live in San Antonio will be buried in West Point National Cemetery next week.
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin, 27, died in Al Busayifi, Iraq, after his unit was attacked by insurgents, the Defense Department said.
He was with the 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Born in Huron, S.D., he attended school in San Marcos and graduated from high school in Cabot, Ark.
Martin served in Korea after enlisting in the Army in 1998. He accepted an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 2005.
Survivors include his parents, Edmund and Candis Martin of San Antonio; three sisters, Sarah Hood and Becky Martin, both of Fayetteville, Ark., and Laura Martin of San Antonio; his fiancée, 1st Lt. Erika Noyes, currently serving as a Medevac pilot in Iraq; and his grandmother, E. Jean Martin of Huron, S.D.
The family will receive friends Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Porter Loring Mortuary North, 2102 N. Loop 1604 East at Gold Canyon Drive.
The funeral is set for Monday at University United Methodist Church, 5084 De Zavala Road, with viewing at 10 a.m. and the service at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the 1st Lt. Tom Martin Memorial Scholarship, Cabot Scholarship Foundation Inc., 200 West Main St., Cabot, Ark. 72023, or to the Returning Heroes Home, 1162 E. Sonterra Blvd., San Antonio, Texas 78258.
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin, 27, of Ward, Ark.
1st Lt. Martin was assigned to 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Al Busayifi, Iraq, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using small-arms fire during combat operations.
An Eagle Scout, Thomas M. Martin took on cleaning up an old red train caboose as a service project.
"He remodeled it to make it where people could go inside. If you saw it before and looked in it after he was through _ it was daylight and dark," said his former principal, Robert Martin, who is no relation.
Martin, 27, of Ward, Ark., died Oct. 14 in Al Busayifi of wounds from small-arms fire. He was assigned to Fort Richardson.
He enlisted in the Army in 1998 after graduating high school and served in Korea before accepting an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 2005.
"He was very polite and respectful. I can't think of him ever overreacting; he had a wonderful, good-natured personality," said Pat Hagge, a family friend.
"It's a terrible tragedy; he was a great young man."
He is survived by his parents, Edmund and Candis.
"Tom was involved in Key Club, German Club and band, making All-Region Band his sophomore year," said his former principal.
"He was a wonderful young man. Those that knew him knew he was funny and outgoing."
Alaska governor honors soldier killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
JUNEAU, Alaska — Governor Sarah Palin has offered her condolences to the family and friends of a Fort Richardson soldier who died Oct. 14 in Iraq.
First Lieutenant Thomas M. Martin of Ward, Arkansas, died when insurgents attacked his unit during combat operations in Al Busayifi, Iraq.
The 27-year-old Martin was a cavalry scout officer who graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 2005 and was assigned to the Alaska fort in June 2006.
He was assigned to C Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division.
Palin will fly an Alaska flag over the state Capitol in his honor.
The flag will be sent along with a letter of condolence to his family.
Anchorage Daily News -- A West Point graduate killed in Iraq on Sunday and whose parents live in San Antonio will be buried in West Point National Cemetery next week.
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin, 27, died in Al Busayifi, Iraq, after his unit was attacked by insurgents, the Defense Department said.
He was with the 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Born in Huron, S.D., he attended school in San Marcos and graduated from high school in Cabot, Ark.
Martin served in Korea after enlisting in the Army in 1998. He accepted an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 2005.
Survivors include his parents, Edmund and Candis Martin of San Antonio; three sisters, Sarah Hood and Becky Martin, both of Fayetteville, Ark., and Laura Martin of San Antonio; his fiancée, 1st Lt. Erika Noyes, currently serving as a Medevac pilot in Iraq; and his grandmother, E. Jean Martin of Huron, S.D.
The family will receive friends Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Porter Loring Mortuary North, 2102 N. Loop 1604 East at Gold Canyon Drive.
The funeral is set for Monday at University United Methodist Church, 5084 De Zavala Road, with viewing at 10 a.m. and the service at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the 1st Lt. Tom Martin Memorial Scholarship, Cabot Scholarship Foundation Inc., 200 West Main St., Cabot, Ark. 72023, or to the Returning Heroes Home, 1162 E. Sonterra Blvd., San Antonio, Texas 78258.
Army 1st Lt. Thomas M. Martin was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski
Remember Our Heroes
Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski, 22, of West Springfield, Mass.
Pfc. Iwasinski was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations.
The Republican - Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski, 22, a Belchertown resident, was killed by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Iraq in a Humvee on Sunday.
Iwasinski, who enlisted in the Army in March 2006, had been stationed for a year in Iraq and had been scheduled to return to this country, but his tour was extended, his father, Dominick V. Iwasinski, said yesterday.
"He felt he was making a difference," his father said. "In our eyes, he died a hero."
Dominick Iwasinski was informed of his son's death by the Army on Sunday and was provided with more details yesterday.
He said his son was an infantryman, serving as gunner in the Humvee patrolling in southern Baghdad when the bomb exploded near the vehicle. Dominick Iwasinski said he believes the other three soldiers in the vehicle were injured, but that has not been confirmed by the military.
Kenneth Iwasinski lived in a few communities in the Pioneer Valley while growing up. He attended high school, but dropped out and earned a high school equivalency diploma shortly before enlisting.
He was living with his father and his stepmother, Tawnia M., in Belchertown, at the time he enlisted, his father said. The Army lists a West Springfield home address.
"He helped build my house," Dominick Iwasinski said.
Kenneth's mother, Tracy J. Taylor, and his sister, Amanda Taylor, live in Chicopee.
Dominick Iwasinski said he and his son communicated often
"I talked with him 20 minutes before he went out on that mission," Iwasinski said. "He was ready to do what he needed to do and made sure he stayed on top of his game. We had talked about that quite a bit because he was coming to the end of his tour. I wanted to make sure that he stayed focused."
He said his son always had an interest in the Army.
"After 9/11 and the way things were going in Iraq, he felt it was his duty. He enlisted knowing full well that he was going to go to Iraq," Iwasinski said. "He was scared, like everybody else, but he was hoping that what he was doing was making a difference."
In Iraq, Iwasinski was stationed at a combat outpost and his job was patrolling. He was a gunner sometimes and drove sometimes. He was nominated for soldier of the month three times.
Iwasinski enlisted in the Army on March 8, 2006, and had been serving since July 2, 2006, with the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based at Fort Carson, Colo.
He has been serving in Iraq since October 2006.
The Army said yesterday that he died of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations.
Funeral arrangements have not been set.
Dominick Iwasinski said he was concerned about his son going in the Army, but never tried to talk him out of it.
"I believe in what my son believed in. He believed in what he was doing, so I have to believe in what he was doing," Dominick Iwasinski said.
Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski, 22, of West Springfield, Mass.
Pfc. Iwasinski was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations.
The Republican - Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski, 22, a Belchertown resident, was killed by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Iraq in a Humvee on Sunday.
Iwasinski, who enlisted in the Army in March 2006, had been stationed for a year in Iraq and had been scheduled to return to this country, but his tour was extended, his father, Dominick V. Iwasinski, said yesterday.
"He felt he was making a difference," his father said. "In our eyes, he died a hero."
Dominick Iwasinski was informed of his son's death by the Army on Sunday and was provided with more details yesterday.
He said his son was an infantryman, serving as gunner in the Humvee patrolling in southern Baghdad when the bomb exploded near the vehicle. Dominick Iwasinski said he believes the other three soldiers in the vehicle were injured, but that has not been confirmed by the military.
Kenneth Iwasinski lived in a few communities in the Pioneer Valley while growing up. He attended high school, but dropped out and earned a high school equivalency diploma shortly before enlisting.
He was living with his father and his stepmother, Tawnia M., in Belchertown, at the time he enlisted, his father said. The Army lists a West Springfield home address.
"He helped build my house," Dominick Iwasinski said.
Kenneth's mother, Tracy J. Taylor, and his sister, Amanda Taylor, live in Chicopee.
Dominick Iwasinski said he and his son communicated often
"I talked with him 20 minutes before he went out on that mission," Iwasinski said. "He was ready to do what he needed to do and made sure he stayed on top of his game. We had talked about that quite a bit because he was coming to the end of his tour. I wanted to make sure that he stayed focused."
He said his son always had an interest in the Army.
"After 9/11 and the way things were going in Iraq, he felt it was his duty. He enlisted knowing full well that he was going to go to Iraq," Iwasinski said. "He was scared, like everybody else, but he was hoping that what he was doing was making a difference."
In Iraq, Iwasinski was stationed at a combat outpost and his job was patrolling. He was a gunner sometimes and drove sometimes. He was nominated for soldier of the month three times.
Iwasinski enlisted in the Army on March 8, 2006, and had been serving since July 2, 2006, with the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based at Fort Carson, Colo.
He has been serving in Iraq since October 2006.
The Army said yesterday that he died of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations.
Funeral arrangements have not been set.
Dominick Iwasinski said he was concerned about his son going in the Army, but never tried to talk him out of it.
"I believe in what my son believed in. He believed in what he was doing, so I have to believe in what he was doing," Dominick Iwasinski said.
Army Pfc. Kenneth J. Iwasinski was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke, 28, of Krum, Texas
SFC Monschke was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, N.C.; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Arab Jabour, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit while on patrol during combat operations.
Denton Publishing - A Krum native and Special Forces Green Beret officer died Sunday in Iraq when he exited his vehicle and stepped on an improvised explosive device.
Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke, 28, “encountered an IED in the course of conducting a dismounted movement to a suspected enemy position,” according to information provided by the U.S. Army News Service.
His father, Larry Monschke, said his son enlisted in the Army during his junior year of high school.
“He had to graduate high school first, but he wanted to go right away,” Monschke said. “So, as soon as he graduated, he left for boot camp a week later.”
He loved being in the Army, and served his country with pride, his father said.
Justin Monschke’s interest in the Army might have stemmed from his love of Civil War history and military history that he developed in junior high school, his father said.
In high school, Monschke played baseball and ran on the cross country team, his father said.
Larry Monschke said he talked with his son last week, and he was doing well though he couldn’t say anything specific about his work.
Monschke’s mother, Patty Jett, could not be reached for comment.
Monschke was serving in the south Baghdad region of Arab Jabour, Iraq, as a Special Forces Operational Detachment — Alpha Team weapons sergeant assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Monschke graduated from Krum High School in 1997 and enlisted in the Army that June. In 2002, he earned the legendary Green Beret.
Monschke had undergone extensive advanced military tactics, paratroop, emergency medical, Ranger, Special Forces and non-commissioned officer training.
He earned two Army Commendation medals, three Army Achievement medals, three Good Conduct medals, a National Defense Service medal, an Armed Forces Expeditionary medal, campaign medals in Afghanistan and Iraq, a Global War on Terrorism medal, and numerous badges and ribbons.
He served as an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger Training Battalion in Georgia and also as a squad leader and observer/controller at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La.
He deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom in July as a member of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force.
This was his second deployment in the military and his first in Iraq.
He is survived by his wife, Melissa, his daughter and son, Ashley and Ryan, and stepson, Dylan, of Lillington, N.C.; his father, Larry Monschke of Fort Worth; and his mother, Patty Jett of Denton.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke, 28, of Krum, Texas
SFC Monschke was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, N.C.; died Oct. 14, 2007 in Arab Jabour, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit while on patrol during combat operations.
Denton Publishing - A Krum native and Special Forces Green Beret officer died Sunday in Iraq when he exited his vehicle and stepped on an improvised explosive device.
Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke, 28, “encountered an IED in the course of conducting a dismounted movement to a suspected enemy position,” according to information provided by the U.S. Army News Service.
His father, Larry Monschke, said his son enlisted in the Army during his junior year of high school.
“He had to graduate high school first, but he wanted to go right away,” Monschke said. “So, as soon as he graduated, he left for boot camp a week later.”
He loved being in the Army, and served his country with pride, his father said.
Justin Monschke’s interest in the Army might have stemmed from his love of Civil War history and military history that he developed in junior high school, his father said.
In high school, Monschke played baseball and ran on the cross country team, his father said.
Larry Monschke said he talked with his son last week, and he was doing well though he couldn’t say anything specific about his work.
Monschke’s mother, Patty Jett, could not be reached for comment.
Monschke was serving in the south Baghdad region of Arab Jabour, Iraq, as a Special Forces Operational Detachment — Alpha Team weapons sergeant assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Monschke graduated from Krum High School in 1997 and enlisted in the Army that June. In 2002, he earned the legendary Green Beret.
Monschke had undergone extensive advanced military tactics, paratroop, emergency medical, Ranger, Special Forces and non-commissioned officer training.
He earned two Army Commendation medals, three Army Achievement medals, three Good Conduct medals, a National Defense Service medal, an Armed Forces Expeditionary medal, campaign medals in Afghanistan and Iraq, a Global War on Terrorism medal, and numerous badges and ribbons.
He served as an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger Training Battalion in Georgia and also as a squad leader and observer/controller at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La.
He deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom in July as a member of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force.
This was his second deployment in the military and his first in Iraq.
He is survived by his wife, Melissa, his daughter and son, Ashley and Ryan, and stepson, Dylan, of Lillington, N.C.; his father, Larry Monschke of Fort Worth; and his mother, Patty Jett of Denton.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Justin S. Monschke was killed in action on 10/14/07.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Army Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker
Remember Our Heroes
Army Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker, 18, of Greenbrier, Ark.
Pvt. Thacker was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.; died Oct. 12, 2007 in Kirkuk, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Army private from Greenbrier dies in Iraq roadside bombing
The Associated Press
GREENBRIER, Ark. — An 18-year-old Army private from Greenbrier died Oct. 12 in a roadside bombing near Kirkuk, Iraq, the Defense Department said.
Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker had only been in the country for two weeks before his death, according to the soldier’s father, Stephen Thacker. Army officials said the bombing injured three other soldiers, one of them critically hurt.
Thacker’s father said his son felt a duty to enlist.
“He said it was his job,” Stephen Thacker said. “Even after he got his orders that he was going over there, he said it’s his job.”
Thacker served as an infantryman in the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, based out of Fort Drum, N.Y.
Thacker had attended Guy-Perkins High School in Guy. He earned his General Educational Development diploma last year, Stephen Thacker said. Thacker enlisted in the Army in April 2007 and completed his training at Fort Benning, Ga. He arrived at Fort Drum in August 2007. His honors include the Purple Heart.
“Nathan was an excellent man,” sister Sabrina Black said. “He loved me, I loved him, and I’d give anything to have him back.”
The Army said Thacker is survived by his parents and grandfather. He was the third-youngest of seven children.
Army Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker was killed in action on 10/12/07.
Army Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker, 18, of Greenbrier, Ark.
Pvt. Thacker was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.; died Oct. 12, 2007 in Kirkuk, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
Army private from Greenbrier dies in Iraq roadside bombing
The Associated Press
GREENBRIER, Ark. — An 18-year-old Army private from Greenbrier died Oct. 12 in a roadside bombing near Kirkuk, Iraq, the Defense Department said.
Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker had only been in the country for two weeks before his death, according to the soldier’s father, Stephen Thacker. Army officials said the bombing injured three other soldiers, one of them critically hurt.
Thacker’s father said his son felt a duty to enlist.
“He said it was his job,” Stephen Thacker said. “Even after he got his orders that he was going over there, he said it’s his job.”
Thacker served as an infantryman in the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, based out of Fort Drum, N.Y.
Thacker had attended Guy-Perkins High School in Guy. He earned his General Educational Development diploma last year, Stephen Thacker said. Thacker enlisted in the Army in April 2007 and completed his training at Fort Benning, Ga. He arrived at Fort Drum in August 2007. His honors include the Purple Heart.
“Nathan was an excellent man,” sister Sabrina Black said. “He loved me, I loved him, and I’d give anything to have him back.”
The Army said Thacker is survived by his parents and grandfather. He was the third-youngest of seven children.
Army Pvt. Nathan Z. Thacker was killed in action on 10/12/07.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II, 25, of St. Clair Shores, Mich.
SSgt. Munn was assigned to Special Troops Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Oct. 11, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit.
St. Clair Shores, Mich. soldier killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. — A soldier from Michigan was killed when an explosive detonated near his unit, the Department of Defense announced Oct. 12.
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II, 25, of St. Clair Shores, died Oct. 11 in Baghdad.
Munn was leading his platoon on a mission when he sensed something was wrong and tried to get all of his men out safely, said Dorothy Richards, his grandmother. She said Munn was the last to leave when the bomb exploded.
“He’s 25 years old and had a whole life ahead of him,” Richards, who raised Munn, told The Detroit News for a story posted Oct. 12 on its Web site. “He was fighting for his country trying to make everything right for his daughter and this is what happens.”
Munn recently married Jennifer (Salvador) Munn, a soldier from California he met while they were stationed in Germany. They had a daughter, Jordan Lynn, who is 1 year old.
Munn was assigned to Special Troops Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
A member of the Lake Shore High School Class of 2000, Munn attended Western Michigan University for a year before joining the Army.
“He wanted to go into the Army to fight for his country,” Richards said, adding that this was his second tour in Iraq.
Munn was scheduled to come home at the end of the month, but his stay was extended by three months. He wasn’t expected back until February.
“He was very quiet and very caring,” Richards said.
David Krenzer, who had known Munn since the fourth grade, said Munn also loved sports and was a fan of the Detroit Tigers and the Notre Dame football team.
“He was loved by everybody,” Krenzer told The News.
Munn is survived by his wife, daughter and grandmother, along with his mother, Rae Richards, of Bellaire; father, Donald Munn, of Las Vegas; and sister, Courtney Pyles, of Casper, Wyo.
Munn’s funeral will be held in California, where his wife and daughter live.
A local memorial service was being planned at Bagnasco & Calcaterra Funeral Homes in St. Clair Shores. No date has been set.
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II was killed in action on 10/11/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II, 25, of St. Clair Shores, Mich.
SSgt. Munn was assigned to Special Troops Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Oct. 11, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit.
St. Clair Shores, Mich. soldier killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. — A soldier from Michigan was killed when an explosive detonated near his unit, the Department of Defense announced Oct. 12.
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II, 25, of St. Clair Shores, died Oct. 11 in Baghdad.
Munn was leading his platoon on a mission when he sensed something was wrong and tried to get all of his men out safely, said Dorothy Richards, his grandmother. She said Munn was the last to leave when the bomb exploded.
“He’s 25 years old and had a whole life ahead of him,” Richards, who raised Munn, told The Detroit News for a story posted Oct. 12 on its Web site. “He was fighting for his country trying to make everything right for his daughter and this is what happens.”
Munn recently married Jennifer (Salvador) Munn, a soldier from California he met while they were stationed in Germany. They had a daughter, Jordan Lynn, who is 1 year old.
Munn was assigned to Special Troops Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
A member of the Lake Shore High School Class of 2000, Munn attended Western Michigan University for a year before joining the Army.
“He wanted to go into the Army to fight for his country,” Richards said, adding that this was his second tour in Iraq.
Munn was scheduled to come home at the end of the month, but his stay was extended by three months. He wasn’t expected back until February.
“He was very quiet and very caring,” Richards said.
David Krenzer, who had known Munn since the fourth grade, said Munn also loved sports and was a fan of the Detroit Tigers and the Notre Dame football team.
“He was loved by everybody,” Krenzer told The News.
Munn is survived by his wife, daughter and grandmother, along with his mother, Rae Richards, of Bellaire; father, Donald Munn, of Las Vegas; and sister, Courtney Pyles, of Casper, Wyo.
Munn’s funeral will be held in California, where his wife and daughter live.
A local memorial service was being planned at Bagnasco & Calcaterra Funeral Homes in St. Clair Shores. No date has been set.
Army Staff Sgt. Donald L. Munn II was killed in action on 10/11/07.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens, 35, of Lawton, Okla.
SSgt. Clamens was assigned to the 1st Postal Platoon, 834th Adjutant General Company, Miami; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked her unit with rockets. Also killed was Spc. Samuel F. Pearson.
Soldier from Florida unit killed in insurgent attack in Iraq
The Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. — A soldier from a unit in Florida was killed in Iraq, just says before she was due to come home, her family and the military said Oct. 12.
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens was one of two people who died Oct. 10, according to the Department of Defense.
Insurgents fired rockets on Camp Victory in Baghdad from a nearby abandoned school, killing Clamens and Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson, 28, Westerville, Ohio.
Clamens was assigned to the 1st Postal Platoon, 834th Adjutant General Company, Miami.
Family members in Omaha, Neb., say Lillian Clamens was due to return to Homestead, Fla., next week.
“She was the type of person that was honest,” her niece Sierra Cobbin, of Omaha, told KETV. “She never had a bad bone in her body. She did everything for her family. She was confident, strong and just a very down-to-earth person.”
Clamens, who served in the Army Reserve for 17 years, was a full-time postal worker, and served as an administrative clerk for the unit. She was married with three children.
“She died doing what she wanted to do,” said her sister Dana Cobbin, of Omaha. “I don’t have a sister no more. I miss my baby. I’m going to miss her. I just wanted to see her one last time. She was supposed to come home.”
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens, 35, of Lawton, Okla.
SSgt. Clamens was assigned to the 1st Postal Platoon, 834th Adjutant General Company, Miami; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked her unit with rockets. Also killed was Spc. Samuel F. Pearson.
Soldier from Florida unit killed in insurgent attack in Iraq
The Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. — A soldier from a unit in Florida was killed in Iraq, just says before she was due to come home, her family and the military said Oct. 12.
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens was one of two people who died Oct. 10, according to the Department of Defense.
Insurgents fired rockets on Camp Victory in Baghdad from a nearby abandoned school, killing Clamens and Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson, 28, Westerville, Ohio.
Clamens was assigned to the 1st Postal Platoon, 834th Adjutant General Company, Miami.
Family members in Omaha, Neb., say Lillian Clamens was due to return to Homestead, Fla., next week.
“She was the type of person that was honest,” her niece Sierra Cobbin, of Omaha, told KETV. “She never had a bad bone in her body. She did everything for her family. She was confident, strong and just a very down-to-earth person.”
Clamens, who served in the Army Reserve for 17 years, was a full-time postal worker, and served as an administrative clerk for the unit. She was married with three children.
“She died doing what she wanted to do,” said her sister Dana Cobbin, of Omaha. “I don’t have a sister no more. I miss my baby. I’m going to miss her. I just wanted to see her one last time. She was supposed to come home.”
Army Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Sgt. Jason M. Lantieri
Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Jason M. Lantieri, 25, of Killingworth, Conn.
Sgt. Lantieri was assigned to the 725th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Iskandaryah, Iraq, of injuries sustained during a vehicle accident.
Soldier from Killingworth dies in accident in Iraq
By Dave Collins
The Associated Press
HARTFORD, Conn. — An Army paratrooper who grew up in Killingworth died in Iraq when he was accidentally pinned between two vehicles this week, his family said Oct. 11.
Sgt. Jason Lantieri, 25, joined the Army two years ago and was due home in December for a break, said his mother, Kathleen Miller of Clinton. She said a military official came to her home Oct. 10 morning to tell her that her son died Oct. 9 in an accident.
“We don’t have all the details,” Miller said in a phone interview. “Our family is devastated. He was a pretty special person, full of fun, full of life. He went into the service looking for an adventure.”
Military officials said that Lantieri was injured during late-night vehicle maneuvers near Iskandaryah, which is about 30 miles south of Baghdad. The incident is under investigation.
He was assigned to Echo Company, 725th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based in Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Lantieri was supposed to come home over the summer, but his unit’s deployment was extended, Miller said.
Lantieri graduated from Haddam-Killingworth High School in 2000 and earned a business degree from Western New England College in Springfield, Mass. He was serving with the Army’s 25th Infantry Division in Baghdad, state officials said.
Miller said her son’s body will be returned to the U.S. in five to seven days. She said the family tentatively plans a memorial service at Haddam-Killingworth High School. A date has not been set.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered Connecticut and U.S. flags flown at half-staff until Lantieri is buried.
“I ask that we unite as a state to honor the sacrifice that Sgt. Lantieri has made on our behalf,” Rell said in a statement.
Haddam-Killingworth High School Principal Charlie Macunas, who was also Lantieri’s middle school social studies teacher, said he held a solid “B” average while playing on the high school’s soccer, basketball and baseball teams.
“He worked hard academically, but you could always tell it was hard for him to sit still. He was a bundle of energy,” Macunas said of Lantieri, who also served on the school’s student council for two years.
Macunas described Lantieri as outgoing and quick to smile, and said his candor was disarming.
“One of the things that I admired about him was that he didn’t try to hide anything. If he didn’t have his homework, he’d come right out and say, ‘I forgot to do it.’ As a teacher, I admired that honesty and integrity,” Macunas said.
Lantieri was the 39th military member with Connecticut ties to die in Iraq and Afghanistan since the wars began in 2002. The last, Army Pfc. Andre Craig of New Haven, died in Iraq in June. Two Connecticut civilians have also died.
Miller said Lantieri had a difficult early childhood with his biological family in the Naugatuck-Waterbury area. She did not want to elaborate. She and her husband, Jon, adopted him, and he grew up in the Miller family with a brother and sister.
He worked a couple of jobs before joining the Army. His mother believes he enlisted because he was looking for adventure and wanted to see the world.
“I think he was anxious to travel and explore,” Kathleen Miller said.
After they learned of his death, Lantieri’s friends posted notes on his MySpace.com page, calling him a hero.
In a MySpace posting in January, Lantieri described traveling around Europe during a 15-day break from Iraq. He said Europe was beautiful, and he raved about the Coliseum, the Louvre and the food.
He wrote: “Europe is a great place to just live for the day and for the moment. For now i will say Arrivederci, Auf Wiedersehen and Au Revoir to europe, but the next time around i’ll be bringing chuck norris.”
Army Sgt. Jason M. Lantieri was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Sgt. Jason M. Lantieri, 25, of Killingworth, Conn.
Sgt. Lantieri was assigned to the 725th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Iskandaryah, Iraq, of injuries sustained during a vehicle accident.
Soldier from Killingworth dies in accident in Iraq
By Dave Collins
The Associated Press
HARTFORD, Conn. — An Army paratrooper who grew up in Killingworth died in Iraq when he was accidentally pinned between two vehicles this week, his family said Oct. 11.
Sgt. Jason Lantieri, 25, joined the Army two years ago and was due home in December for a break, said his mother, Kathleen Miller of Clinton. She said a military official came to her home Oct. 10 morning to tell her that her son died Oct. 9 in an accident.
“We don’t have all the details,” Miller said in a phone interview. “Our family is devastated. He was a pretty special person, full of fun, full of life. He went into the service looking for an adventure.”
Military officials said that Lantieri was injured during late-night vehicle maneuvers near Iskandaryah, which is about 30 miles south of Baghdad. The incident is under investigation.
He was assigned to Echo Company, 725th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based in Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Lantieri was supposed to come home over the summer, but his unit’s deployment was extended, Miller said.
Lantieri graduated from Haddam-Killingworth High School in 2000 and earned a business degree from Western New England College in Springfield, Mass. He was serving with the Army’s 25th Infantry Division in Baghdad, state officials said.
Miller said her son’s body will be returned to the U.S. in five to seven days. She said the family tentatively plans a memorial service at Haddam-Killingworth High School. A date has not been set.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered Connecticut and U.S. flags flown at half-staff until Lantieri is buried.
“I ask that we unite as a state to honor the sacrifice that Sgt. Lantieri has made on our behalf,” Rell said in a statement.
Haddam-Killingworth High School Principal Charlie Macunas, who was also Lantieri’s middle school social studies teacher, said he held a solid “B” average while playing on the high school’s soccer, basketball and baseball teams.
“He worked hard academically, but you could always tell it was hard for him to sit still. He was a bundle of energy,” Macunas said of Lantieri, who also served on the school’s student council for two years.
Macunas described Lantieri as outgoing and quick to smile, and said his candor was disarming.
“One of the things that I admired about him was that he didn’t try to hide anything. If he didn’t have his homework, he’d come right out and say, ‘I forgot to do it.’ As a teacher, I admired that honesty and integrity,” Macunas said.
Lantieri was the 39th military member with Connecticut ties to die in Iraq and Afghanistan since the wars began in 2002. The last, Army Pfc. Andre Craig of New Haven, died in Iraq in June. Two Connecticut civilians have also died.
Miller said Lantieri had a difficult early childhood with his biological family in the Naugatuck-Waterbury area. She did not want to elaborate. She and her husband, Jon, adopted him, and he grew up in the Miller family with a brother and sister.
He worked a couple of jobs before joining the Army. His mother believes he enlisted because he was looking for adventure and wanted to see the world.
“I think he was anxious to travel and explore,” Kathleen Miller said.
After they learned of his death, Lantieri’s friends posted notes on his MySpace.com page, calling him a hero.
In a MySpace posting in January, Lantieri described traveling around Europe during a 15-day break from Iraq. He said Europe was beautiful, and he raved about the Coliseum, the Louvre and the food.
He wrote: “Europe is a great place to just live for the day and for the moment. For now i will say Arrivederci, Auf Wiedersehen and Au Revoir to europe, but the next time around i’ll be bringing chuck norris.”
Army Sgt. Jason M. Lantieri was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Spc. Frank L. Cady III
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Frank L. Cady III, 20, of Sacramento, Calif.
Spc. Cady was assigned to the 4th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of injuries sustained during a vehicle rollover.
Fort Riley soldier killed in Iraq vehicle rollover
The Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Frank L. Cady III was a veritable “kid genius” who could have been a formidable attorney, his mother said.
But Cady’s dreams took him in another direction after seeing the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, she said. He decided to join the Army after graduating from the Visions in Education charter high school in 2005, and deployed to Iraq in January.
Spc. Cady, 20, died Oct. 10 of injuries from a vehicle rollover in Baghdad, where he served as a chemical operations specialist, the Department of Defense announced Oct. 15. He was assigned to the 4th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, based at Fort Riley, Kan.
The cause of the rollover was under investigation, military officials said.
“My son died living his dream,” said his mother, Billie-Jo Hull, 35. “How many people could say that, if they died today, they would be living their dream?”
Friends and family members also described Cady as a talkative young man who’d do anything for a laugh.
“He was an amazing kid. There was something about him. He had a sparkle in his eyes — I call it a hint of mischief,” said his friend, former Army Pfc. Tasha Feenan. “He was always there for you no matter what, even if you didn’t want him to be. We lost one of the few genuine people left in this world the day he died.”
Cady is survived by his mother, stepfather John Hull and eight siblings.
Funeral services were scheduled for 11 a.m. Oct. 20 at the Sunset Lawn Chapel of the Chimes in Sacramento.
Army Spc. Frank L. Cady III was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Spc. Frank L. Cady III, 20, of Sacramento, Calif.
Spc. Cady was assigned to the 4th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of injuries sustained during a vehicle rollover.
Fort Riley soldier killed in Iraq vehicle rollover
The Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Frank L. Cady III was a veritable “kid genius” who could have been a formidable attorney, his mother said.
But Cady’s dreams took him in another direction after seeing the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, she said. He decided to join the Army after graduating from the Visions in Education charter high school in 2005, and deployed to Iraq in January.
Spc. Cady, 20, died Oct. 10 of injuries from a vehicle rollover in Baghdad, where he served as a chemical operations specialist, the Department of Defense announced Oct. 15. He was assigned to the 4th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, based at Fort Riley, Kan.
The cause of the rollover was under investigation, military officials said.
“My son died living his dream,” said his mother, Billie-Jo Hull, 35. “How many people could say that, if they died today, they would be living their dream?”
Friends and family members also described Cady as a talkative young man who’d do anything for a laugh.
“He was an amazing kid. There was something about him. He had a sparkle in his eyes — I call it a hint of mischief,” said his friend, former Army Pfc. Tasha Feenan. “He was always there for you no matter what, even if you didn’t want him to be. We lost one of the few genuine people left in this world the day he died.”
Cady is survived by his mother, stepfather John Hull and eight siblings.
Funeral services were scheduled for 11 a.m. Oct. 20 at the Sunset Lawn Chapel of the Chimes in Sacramento.
Army Spc. Frank L. Cady III was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson
Remember Our Heroes
Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson, 28, of Westerville, Ohio
Spc. Pearson was assigned to the 376th Finance Company, 88th Regional Readiness Command, Wausau, Wis.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked her unit with rockets. Also killed was Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens.
Ohio soldier killed in rocket attack near Baghdad Airport
The Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio — An Army Reservist from Ohio was one of two soldiers killed when rockets struck U.S. military headquarters near Baghdad Airport on Oct. 10, relatives said.
Spc. Samuel Pearson, 28, had been in Iraq for six weeks, his sister-in-law, Lindsay Pearson of Dayton, said. She described him as a “quiet guy, but a sweet guy.”
Pearson grew up in Piqua and graduated from Otterbein College in the Columbus suburb of Westerville, where he played football and majored in economics. He had worked in Columbus as an accountant, and was serving in the Army Finance Corps.
He joined the Army Reserves in September 2006 and was deployed to Iraq in late August after completing basic combat training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C., Lindsay Pearson said.
Chuck Crist, Pearson’s uncle, said details of Pearson’s death were not immediately known by the family.
Pearson’s parents, Randi and Carolyn Pearson, live in Piqua. Other survivors include brothers John, Andy and Rich, and a sister, Laura Pearson.
Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson, 28, of Westerville, Ohio
Spc. Pearson was assigned to the 376th Finance Company, 88th Regional Readiness Command, Wausau, Wis.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked her unit with rockets. Also killed was Staff Sgt. Lillian Clamens.
Ohio soldier killed in rocket attack near Baghdad Airport
The Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio — An Army Reservist from Ohio was one of two soldiers killed when rockets struck U.S. military headquarters near Baghdad Airport on Oct. 10, relatives said.
Spc. Samuel Pearson, 28, had been in Iraq for six weeks, his sister-in-law, Lindsay Pearson of Dayton, said. She described him as a “quiet guy, but a sweet guy.”
Pearson grew up in Piqua and graduated from Otterbein College in the Columbus suburb of Westerville, where he played football and majored in economics. He had worked in Columbus as an accountant, and was serving in the Army Finance Corps.
He joined the Army Reserves in September 2006 and was deployed to Iraq in late August after completing basic combat training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C., Lindsay Pearson said.
Chuck Crist, Pearson’s uncle, said details of Pearson’s death were not immediately known by the family.
Pearson’s parents, Randi and Carolyn Pearson, live in Piqua. Other survivors include brothers John, Andy and Rich, and a sister, Laura Pearson.
Army Spc. Samuel F. Pearson was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Eric T. Duckworth
Remember Our Heroes
Army Staff Sgt. Eric T. Duckworth, 26, of Plano, Texas;
SSgt. Duckworth was assigned to the 759th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
A 'Tremendous Leader' Lost
Staff Sergeant on 1st Tour Would Have Come Home Next Month
By Mark Berman
Courtesy of the Washington Post
A week before his 27th birthday, family and friends of Eric Thomas Duckworth gathered to honor him for a different reason. They came together yesterday to mourn him as he was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Army Staff Sergeamt Duckworth, 26, of Plano, Texas, died October 10, 2007, in Baghdad when a makeshift bomb detonated near his vehicle. He was the 391st member of the military killed in Iraq to be buried at Arlington.
Duckworth entered the Army at 18, almost immediately after graduating from Clear Lake High School in Houston. He was on his first deployment to Iraq, which began in August 2006 and would have ended next month.
"He wanted to serve his country; he wanted to make a difference," his mother, Ila Duckworth, told the Dallas Morning News last week. "He felt honored to serve his country."
Duckworth's family told the newspaper that he excelled in JROTC during high school and was selected to attend a national ROTC meeting for outstanding leaders. He loved sports, especially the Dallas Cowboys and NASCAR.
He was a friendly and lively guy.
"He made friends easily," his mother told the Morning News. "He was also very much a family man."
Messages posted on the online tribute site, Legacy, were similar. People who knew him described him as a "great man," "tremendous leader" and "extremely dedicated."
"I was a loser, but he was a straight arrow -- a good kid," one friend wrote. "I looked up to him." Another said that "He was a phenominal soldier and an even better leader."
Yesterday, more than 120 mourners gathered under a gray, cloudy sky threatening rain to say goodbye to Duckworth. American flags were given to his widow, Sonya Lynn Duckworth, and his parents. Among the mourners were his daughter, Madison, 4, son Michael, 1, and stepdaughter Kaylynn, 10.
Kaylynn sat in the front row of seats at the end closest to the firing party that was part of the service. She was the first to stand as they prepared to fire their volleys, but as the seven soldiers fired the first of three shots each, she crumbled to the ground. Another mourner knelt to comfort her, but she was visibly shaken by the sound. Secretary of the Army Pete Geren made his way to Kaylynn, kneeling to speak with her.
Duckworth was assigned to the 759th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, based at Fort Carson, Colorado. During his more than eight years of military service, he received numerous awards, including the Army Service Ribbon and the National Defense Service Medal.
Army Staff Sgt. Eric T. Duckworth was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Army Staff Sgt. Eric T. Duckworth, 26, of Plano, Texas;
SSgt. Duckworth was assigned to the 759th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, Fort Carson, Colo.; died Oct. 10, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
A 'Tremendous Leader' Lost
Staff Sergeant on 1st Tour Would Have Come Home Next Month
By Mark Berman
Courtesy of the Washington Post
A week before his 27th birthday, family and friends of Eric Thomas Duckworth gathered to honor him for a different reason. They came together yesterday to mourn him as he was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Army Staff Sergeamt Duckworth, 26, of Plano, Texas, died October 10, 2007, in Baghdad when a makeshift bomb detonated near his vehicle. He was the 391st member of the military killed in Iraq to be buried at Arlington.
Duckworth entered the Army at 18, almost immediately after graduating from Clear Lake High School in Houston. He was on his first deployment to Iraq, which began in August 2006 and would have ended next month.
"He wanted to serve his country; he wanted to make a difference," his mother, Ila Duckworth, told the Dallas Morning News last week. "He felt honored to serve his country."
Duckworth's family told the newspaper that he excelled in JROTC during high school and was selected to attend a national ROTC meeting for outstanding leaders. He loved sports, especially the Dallas Cowboys and NASCAR.
He was a friendly and lively guy.
"He made friends easily," his mother told the Morning News. "He was also very much a family man."
Messages posted on the online tribute site, Legacy, were similar. People who knew him described him as a "great man," "tremendous leader" and "extremely dedicated."
"I was a loser, but he was a straight arrow -- a good kid," one friend wrote. "I looked up to him." Another said that "He was a phenominal soldier and an even better leader."
Yesterday, more than 120 mourners gathered under a gray, cloudy sky threatening rain to say goodbye to Duckworth. American flags were given to his widow, Sonya Lynn Duckworth, and his parents. Among the mourners were his daughter, Madison, 4, son Michael, 1, and stepdaughter Kaylynn, 10.
Kaylynn sat in the front row of seats at the end closest to the firing party that was part of the service. She was the first to stand as they prepared to fire their volleys, but as the seven soldiers fired the first of three shots each, she crumbled to the ground. Another mourner knelt to comfort her, but she was visibly shaken by the sound. Secretary of the Army Pete Geren made his way to Kaylynn, kneeling to speak with her.
Duckworth was assigned to the 759th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, based at Fort Carson, Colorado. During his more than eight years of military service, he received numerous awards, including the Army Service Ribbon and the National Defense Service Medal.
Army Staff Sgt. Eric T. Duckworth was killed in action on 10/10/07.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris
Remember Our Heroes
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris, 22, of Tacoma, Wash.
LCpl Burris was assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died Oct. 8, 2007 while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, Iraq.
Marine from southeast Texas killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
LIBERTY, Texas — A Marine from southeast Texas who was killed in Iraq was remembered by family members and friends as a man of great faith who leaves behind six younger siblings.
Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris, 22, was killed Monday while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, the Department of Defense said.
Brent Burris said Tuesday that his son was driving a patrol vehicle, accompanied by two other Marines, when they hit an explosive device hidden in the road.
He survived the initial blast and helped get the wounded Marines out of the damaged vehicle, his father said. But when he returned to the vehicle to get some equipment, a second explosive detonated and he was killed instantly, Brent Burris said.
Brent Burris said his son had lived in Liberty, about 40 miles northeast of Houston, since he was 12. After he finished home-schooling, Jeremy Burris moved to Tacoma, Wash., to participate in a Christian discipleship program. The military listed his hometown as Tacoma.
Jeremy Burris attended the non-denominational Cornerstone Church in Liberty, where he led praise and worship sessions for the youth group and was a guitar player during the main services.
“He was a precious young man who touched many lives,” pastor Mike Glazener said.
Burris stayed in Washington for almost two years before enlisting in the Marine Corps about 1 1/2 years ago, his family said.
Burris was assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris was killed in action on 10/08/07.
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris, 22, of Tacoma, Wash.
LCpl Burris was assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died Oct. 8, 2007 while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, Iraq.
Marine from southeast Texas killed in Iraq
The Associated Press
LIBERTY, Texas — A Marine from southeast Texas who was killed in Iraq was remembered by family members and friends as a man of great faith who leaves behind six younger siblings.
Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris, 22, was killed Monday while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, the Department of Defense said.
Brent Burris said Tuesday that his son was driving a patrol vehicle, accompanied by two other Marines, when they hit an explosive device hidden in the road.
He survived the initial blast and helped get the wounded Marines out of the damaged vehicle, his father said. But when he returned to the vehicle to get some equipment, a second explosive detonated and he was killed instantly, Brent Burris said.
Brent Burris said his son had lived in Liberty, about 40 miles northeast of Houston, since he was 12. After he finished home-schooling, Jeremy Burris moved to Tacoma, Wash., to participate in a Christian discipleship program. The military listed his hometown as Tacoma.
Jeremy Burris attended the non-denominational Cornerstone Church in Liberty, where he led praise and worship sessions for the youth group and was a guitar player during the main services.
“He was a precious young man who touched many lives,” pastor Mike Glazener said.
Burris stayed in Washington for almost two years before enlisting in the Marine Corps about 1 1/2 years ago, his family said.
Burris was assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeremy W. Burris was killed in action on 10/08/07.
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Army SSgt. Joshua Holden
Remember Our Heroes
Army SSgt. Joshua Holden, 29, Tucson, Arizona.
Leukemia fells hard-charging Tucson Marine
By Aaron Mackey
Arizona Daily Star
National Guard Staff Sgt. Joshua Holden wouldn't run from a fight, whether it was in Iraq or back at home after his body became a battleground for an extremely rare blood disease and leukemia.
The Marine, who as a reservist deployed to Iraq and later joined the Guard to deploy a second time, provided security along a 90-mile fuel line in Iraq and taught his comrades advanced survival skills.
But eventually the fight against his own body became too much, as the disease, paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, or PNH, led Holden to develop leukemia. He died Sunday from complications related to the leukemia and PNH. He was 29.
Holden was known for his hard-charging work ethic and upbeat attitude. Friends and relatives said he never took time for self-pity, instead devoting the last year and a half of his life to educating others about the blood disease.
The attitude was as ingrained in Holden as his offbeat sense of humor, said Ian Cruikshank, a former Marine reservist who grew up with Holden before both deployed to Iraq.
"That's one thing he told me that the Marine Corps taught to him — you take life's hits, and you keep working with what you have," Cruikshank said.
"He fought it — he certainly would not be the type to cry and moan."
The consummate perfectionist, Holden was dedicated to mastering anything he tried and wasn't satisfied until he could turn around and teach the skill to others, whether it was assembling a machine gun, building a car-audio speaker housing or executing ballroom dance moves.
"He was always learning something new and getting to the point where he could teach you how to do it," Cruikshank said.
"He was somebody you could count on to do anything that was required," said Holden's older brother, James. "He wasn't somebody who would shy away from a responsibility or a task, regardless of the size of it."
Born in Japan to Patrick and Donna Holden while his father served in the U.S. Air Force, Holden grew up in Tucson.
After graduating from Sahuaro High School, Holden followed in his brother's footsteps, enlisting in the Marines in October 1997.
Eager to serve, Holden tried to get deployed after the Sept. 11 attacks, his brother said.
Later, when he learned that Cruikshank's Tucson-based Marine Reserve unit was going to be deployed to Iraq, he asked for transfer into the unit.
"He signed up basically to look after me," Cruikshank said. "We've been best friends since junior high."
Holden was one of several active Marines to transfer into Bulk Fuel Company Alpha to provide security. The unit deployed to Kuwait in February 2003 and helped build a 90-mile temporary fuel line during the invasion.
Immediately after joining the unit, Holden asserted himself and tried to ready the Marines for war, Cruikshank said.
"We didn't really have too much time to do a low crawl on the sand, feeling for land mine triggers," Cruikshank said. "He retrained everybody in a lot of the fundamentals that suddenly we needed."
Once in Iraq, Holden did his best to maintain the unit's high level of training, though he instigated plenty of small pranks to help pass the time.
One time, Holden took a pair of pantyhose — used by soldiers to avoid bug bites — and strung wire inside them to form rabbit ears. He then wore the rabbit ears around, Cruikshank said.
"We spent a lot of time trying to get on our staff sergeant's nerves," Cruikshank said. "He did anything he could to relieve boredom."
Holden returned to Tucson with his unit in June 2003 and began taking classes at Pima Community College. He later got into ballroom dancing and became good enough to be an instructor.
In 2004, Holden enlisted in the Arizona National Guard, looking for a career. After he was told the Marines were seeking volunteers to return to Iraq, Holden tried to get back into the Corps, his brother said.
But Guard officials told him he could deploy with them, and in July 2005 he was mobilized with the security forces of the 1-180th Field Artillery unit, based in Mesa.
Holden served with the unit on active duty until his death, Maj. Paul Aguirre, spokesman for the Arizona National Guard, said in an e-mail.
In Iraq, Holden helped transport inmates from jails to the courts, his brother said.
The first signs of health problems came in October 2006, as Holden was competing in a unit fitness test to see who was the strongest soldier.
While doing push-ups, he began breathing heavily. Later, he felt weak and grew extremely ill.
Officials brought Holden back to the United States, where he was diagnosed with PNH.
The disease, caused by mutations of blood stem cells, can lead to a weakened immune system, said Dr. Andrew Yeager, director of the blood and marrow-transplant program at the University of Arizona's Cancer Center.
PNH, which affects roughly 10,000 Americans, can be cured by a bone marrow transplant.
Eventually, a donor was found for Holden and a transplant arranged, but complications began to weaken his health, his brother said.
In Holden's case, the disease opened the door for the leukemia, a blood cancer that also can be cured by a bone marrow transplant, said Yeager, who treated Holden.
Despite the setbacks, Holden remained upbeat. He spent his days visiting local schools and talking to the media, trying to raise awareness of PNH and the need for bone marrow donors.
"He didn't view it as taking away hope," his brother said. "He viewed it as it wasn't an option so it really didn't matter, so he was just going to deal with it."
Eventually, he needed a ventilator to breathe, though he still remained positive.
Discussing the possibility of death, Holden told his brother that he was grateful he got to come home and see his family, unlike troops killed in combat.
"Even if he didn't make it, he felt lucky that he got to do the service that he wanted to do, and when all was said and done, he got to come home and say good-bye to his friends and family," his brother said.
Army SSgt. Joshua Holden, 29, Tucson, Arizona.
Leukemia fells hard-charging Tucson Marine
By Aaron Mackey
Arizona Daily Star
National Guard Staff Sgt. Joshua Holden wouldn't run from a fight, whether it was in Iraq or back at home after his body became a battleground for an extremely rare blood disease and leukemia.
The Marine, who as a reservist deployed to Iraq and later joined the Guard to deploy a second time, provided security along a 90-mile fuel line in Iraq and taught his comrades advanced survival skills.
But eventually the fight against his own body became too much, as the disease, paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, or PNH, led Holden to develop leukemia. He died Sunday from complications related to the leukemia and PNH. He was 29.
Holden was known for his hard-charging work ethic and upbeat attitude. Friends and relatives said he never took time for self-pity, instead devoting the last year and a half of his life to educating others about the blood disease.
The attitude was as ingrained in Holden as his offbeat sense of humor, said Ian Cruikshank, a former Marine reservist who grew up with Holden before both deployed to Iraq.
"That's one thing he told me that the Marine Corps taught to him — you take life's hits, and you keep working with what you have," Cruikshank said.
"He fought it — he certainly would not be the type to cry and moan."
The consummate perfectionist, Holden was dedicated to mastering anything he tried and wasn't satisfied until he could turn around and teach the skill to others, whether it was assembling a machine gun, building a car-audio speaker housing or executing ballroom dance moves.
"He was always learning something new and getting to the point where he could teach you how to do it," Cruikshank said.
"He was somebody you could count on to do anything that was required," said Holden's older brother, James. "He wasn't somebody who would shy away from a responsibility or a task, regardless of the size of it."
Born in Japan to Patrick and Donna Holden while his father served in the U.S. Air Force, Holden grew up in Tucson.
After graduating from Sahuaro High School, Holden followed in his brother's footsteps, enlisting in the Marines in October 1997.
Eager to serve, Holden tried to get deployed after the Sept. 11 attacks, his brother said.
Later, when he learned that Cruikshank's Tucson-based Marine Reserve unit was going to be deployed to Iraq, he asked for transfer into the unit.
"He signed up basically to look after me," Cruikshank said. "We've been best friends since junior high."
Holden was one of several active Marines to transfer into Bulk Fuel Company Alpha to provide security. The unit deployed to Kuwait in February 2003 and helped build a 90-mile temporary fuel line during the invasion.
Immediately after joining the unit, Holden asserted himself and tried to ready the Marines for war, Cruikshank said.
"We didn't really have too much time to do a low crawl on the sand, feeling for land mine triggers," Cruikshank said. "He retrained everybody in a lot of the fundamentals that suddenly we needed."
Once in Iraq, Holden did his best to maintain the unit's high level of training, though he instigated plenty of small pranks to help pass the time.
One time, Holden took a pair of pantyhose — used by soldiers to avoid bug bites — and strung wire inside them to form rabbit ears. He then wore the rabbit ears around, Cruikshank said.
"We spent a lot of time trying to get on our staff sergeant's nerves," Cruikshank said. "He did anything he could to relieve boredom."
Holden returned to Tucson with his unit in June 2003 and began taking classes at Pima Community College. He later got into ballroom dancing and became good enough to be an instructor.
In 2004, Holden enlisted in the Arizona National Guard, looking for a career. After he was told the Marines were seeking volunteers to return to Iraq, Holden tried to get back into the Corps, his brother said.
But Guard officials told him he could deploy with them, and in July 2005 he was mobilized with the security forces of the 1-180th Field Artillery unit, based in Mesa.
Holden served with the unit on active duty until his death, Maj. Paul Aguirre, spokesman for the Arizona National Guard, said in an e-mail.
In Iraq, Holden helped transport inmates from jails to the courts, his brother said.
The first signs of health problems came in October 2006, as Holden was competing in a unit fitness test to see who was the strongest soldier.
While doing push-ups, he began breathing heavily. Later, he felt weak and grew extremely ill.
Officials brought Holden back to the United States, where he was diagnosed with PNH.
The disease, caused by mutations of blood stem cells, can lead to a weakened immune system, said Dr. Andrew Yeager, director of the blood and marrow-transplant program at the University of Arizona's Cancer Center.
PNH, which affects roughly 10,000 Americans, can be cured by a bone marrow transplant.
Eventually, a donor was found for Holden and a transplant arranged, but complications began to weaken his health, his brother said.
In Holden's case, the disease opened the door for the leukemia, a blood cancer that also can be cured by a bone marrow transplant, said Yeager, who treated Holden.
Despite the setbacks, Holden remained upbeat. He spent his days visiting local schools and talking to the media, trying to raise awareness of PNH and the need for bone marrow donors.
"He didn't view it as taking away hope," his brother said. "He viewed it as it wasn't an option so it really didn't matter, so he was just going to deal with it."
Eventually, he needed a ventilator to breathe, though he still remained positive.
Discussing the possibility of death, Holden told his brother that he was grateful he got to come home and see his family, unlike troops killed in combat.
"Even if he didn't make it, he felt lucky that he got to do the service that he wanted to do, and when all was said and done, he got to come home and say good-bye to his friends and family," his brother said.
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