Remember Our Heroes
Army Sgt. Randolph A. Sigley, Jr., 28, of Richmond, Ky.
Sgt. Sigley was assigned to the 2123rd Transportation Company, Kentucky National Guard, Richmond, Ky.; died April 18, 2010 in Bagram, Afghanistan. He was found dead in his quarters, and the circumstances are under investigation.
A Kentucky Army National Guard soldier who lived in Richmond died Sunday while serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.
Sgt. Randolph “Randy” Sigley Jr., 28, was found dead in his quarters at Bagram Airbase where he was serving with the National Guard’s Richmond-based 2123rd Transportation Company.
The cause of death has not been determined and is under investigation, according to a statement from Lt. Col. Kirk Hilbrecht.
Sigley, whose family lives in Casey County, had attended Eastern Kentucky University and lived in Richmond, where he worked full-time with the Guard, before deploying to Afghanistan on March 18, said David Altom, a Guard spokesperson.
Sigley had commanded a mine-resistant, ambush-protected Humvee that helped protect military convoys in Afghanistan, Altom said.
“The death of Sgt. Sigley is a tremendous loss to us all,” said Capt. John Moore, who commands Sigley’s unit. “His professionalism, selfless service and devotion was contagious to all who served with him. Randy was not only a great soldier but a fantastic human being who cared deeply for his brothers and sisters in arms. He was a true patriot who loved his country, state and unit.”
“Sgt. Sigley’s family is in our thoughts and prayers as we grieve his loss,” said Moore. “He was a fine soldier and a Kentuckian in the true pioneer spirit.”
A member of the Kentucky Army National Guard since 2006, Sigley served from 2000-2004 with the United States Marine Corps. He had served a tour of duty in Afghanistan with the Marines.
“The entire Kentucky National Guard is saddened by the news of Sgt. Sigley’s death,” said Maj. Gen. Edward W. Tonini, Kentucky adjutant general. “We want to recognize in particular Randy’s family as they grieve for the loss of this wonderful son and brother. They are part of our Kentucky National Guard family, and so we will extend to them all of the assistance and support in our power.”
Sigley is survived by his mother, Mrs. Rhonda L. Hardin, his stepfather, Alton A. Hardin, and his sister, Kristin Mattingly. Also survived by his father, Randolph A. Sigley, Sr. and stepmother, Terry Penner.
RIP Randolph A. Sigley, Jr.
8 comments:
I'm glad to see that people take the time out of their day to honor the fallen (this means a lot to me). You see, Sgt. Randy Sigley was my boyfriend of two years and the man I planned to marry. To honor his memory, I recently had his name and the date he passed tattooed on my left foot (inside & out). I also dedicated a couple of blogs on my blogger to him. Feel free to check them out.
Randy is my son. His stepmom and I raised him from age five to fifteen. At age five he could ride like the wind, at age 8 he skied like an Olympian. Like Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, Helen Keller, and so many great people, my son battled against health issues from birth but he never flagged in his enthusiasm for life. He never let it curb his zeal for the daring. When I saw him for the last time I could not bear to see that great little guy's spirit silenced. Randy I shall always remember you at age 5 in those red shorts, that blue and white shirt, the too-large cowboy hat, and those cowboy boots. Oh goodness those boots. I look at pictures of you on your first pony,cub scout badges, Pinewood Derby winner's trophy, math awards, YMCA card with your little picture, crazy caps from Disneyland and Disney World, pictures of you with Mickey Mouse, Randy at the Grand Canyon, Randy at the Capitol, Randy on horseback on the Custer Battlefield, that video of you playing football when you bumped into your own player that we thought about sending to AFV, the video of you at the Little Bighorn, pictures of you filming Gods and Generals with Robert Duvall, Star Wars toys, the "shark" hat from your science project, models you painted and assembled, a Halloween costume you wore . . .
And your Indiana Jones hat. . .
It's still here, right next to mine, father's and son's, side by side, on the top of the hutch, and I remember how I bought two of them for you in case one wore out, and it did, and then we saw Batman and we changed heroes, and we could not figure out what to do since Batman did not ride horses and we rode horses and Indy rode horses, and it all gets jumbled together and seems like such a bad dream and it just won't end and I can't wake up and it hurts. It hurts all the time. You are a little boy galloping down the road yelling like a warrior and you are a grown man never coming home again and it hurts. And it all seems unfair.
Now I can only listen to the all too few tapes of your voice. . .
And I remember. . .
I remember.
. . . good times. The times that make my heart strong and joyful.
The good times.
I am never alone when I go there.
No one knows how we love you. Terry cries each day. She could not be there when you went away. So now we think of you, alone 5000 miles away, dying among people who did not raise you and sit with you when you were so ill as a child, nor were there to celebrate when you recovered. We almost lost you twice, but with Drs. Carson, Albin, and Eskeldsen we cheated Death time and again and this seems so unfair. You worked so hard to be a man and I can only pray that you knew just how great a man you became. Part of our solace, if any for us exists, is that you became a man in your own right, on your own strength. All we could do is watch and hope, but we both knew you would do it. Well done. Well done.
All the people who rallied around you when you were so little were crushed when they heard the news. Dr. Albin wept. Poor Malcolm cannot even say your name without crying. If your accomplishments are any indication of the values that your stepmom and I instilled in you then it can be said that we did our best, and you are a truly great man.
You are my only son. You still live in my heart. As your father it is the natural order of things that I precede you in death but this is not to be. Instead it is you who leaves the legacy for me.
You commanded the respect of a great Nation and its Armed Force. You commanded a combat vehicle. America entrusted you with the sons and daughters of other parents, and none of them ever suffered hurt or death.
General McChrystal, General McKinley, and Admiral Stavridis all sent handwritten personal letters to me about you. You name is known at NATO Supreme Command, and above.
I am your father and knowing you had the sons and daughters of others put in your care makes me more proud than words can ever express. God bless you, son, and rest in peace.
I posted the above tribute to my son and I am not anonymous but I submitted that tribute because, frankly, my computer would not cooperate, so once the tribute was posted, I returned to state that I am Randolph A. Sigley, Sr.. On the night/morning that I posted this tribute it was begun before midnight, but could not be completed until nearly two in the morning as I kept stopping and looking at the many reminders that I have, which were once his. A man cries a great deal at times like that, especially when he is alone and the world is still and quiet.
Finally I knew that I had to close the chapter on that night's memories, but for some reason my computer failed to get onto the access link using my name and onscreen ID, so I hit the only one that worked for my computer (and still does it seems). Tonight I tried other ways to submit this, but I know that there is a way that will work, and so I shall use that one again.
I came back to this site to state proudly that, even though I do not possess the best Internet and computer skills, and even though I finally resigned myself to submitting my tribute under "anonymous", subject to clarification which I am submitting now, I am the very proud father of SGT Randolph A. Sigley, Jr., and my name is Randolph A. Sigley, Sr..
God bless you son and we cry for you every day.
terry said
Stephanie:
My name is Terry Penner and I am Randy's stepmom. I raised him from age 5 through 15 when he decided to move to Kentucky to be closer to his sister.
The parents you are referring to in your comments are his mom and stepdad. His real father wrote the tribute above.
I am a very private person and do not wish to have my conversations in a public forum. If you would like to communicate with me about Randy please email me at: terrytalk123@aol.com. Your comments about Randy and your love for him brought me to tears. I would love to share stories and memories for I feel a great loss also.
Sincerely,
Terry Penner
my name is Joseph Franceus. E-mail joseph0331@att.net I met Randy Sigley in march 2010, right before he deployed to Afghanistan. I was to take a short connecting flight to Lexington Ky. The flight was cancelled and the airline provided a car service from Cincinnati to Lexington. Randy shared that ride with me. we talked about alot of things: family, his deployment and his girlfriend. but most importantly, I asked him if he knew Jesus. he said yes. As we spoke further, he didnt know Jesus as his personal savior. However as we talked further, i shared salvation with him and shared my own story of accepting Jesus as my personal savior. randy thanked me for sharing with him. he allowed me to pray with him before we arrived in Lexington. after we parted, i sent him am email. He responded to my email that it had been years since someone had talked with him about the Lord and he thanked me very much for awakening that in him. he said his Mom had talked about the Lord as he was growing up. I never heard from him again. now i know why. the Holy Spirit put it on my heart today to do a search on google for Randy Sigley. although Randy didnt specifically say that he accepted Jesus, I believe that he did accept him. His message back to me was heartfelt had a peace to it that can only come from God. When I go to heaven i believe i will see him there and we will have a wonderful reunion. I thank God that he gave me the opportunity to talk with and spend 90 precious minutes with a special man and a hero named Randy Sigley and I look forward to seeing him in heaven one day. May God bless his family and his girlfriend as they remember Randy. As a tribute to Randy's willingness to hear the gospel and accept Jesus, I would ask his family and girlfriend to accept Jesus as your personal savior and have an even bigger reunion in Heaven one day. God bless you all.
Hi. I am currently a ROTC cadet. For Veteran's day, 6,285 cards were handed out around campus with the names of American soldiers who died in Iraq or Afghanistan. I recieved Randolph's card. I will keep his card with me as a reminder of what some soldiers have sacrificed.
I'm sorry for your loss. He was a great man and soldier.
To the ROTC cadet who has my son's card:
Thank you but keep yourself and those entrusted unto your leadership safe in the pursuit of your mission. For every life lost there is devastation, torment, and sadness endured by those left behind. Do not merely do your duty - do your duty with a clear vision of victory. Without that victory the deaths of our sons and daughters mean nothing. You have undertaken the noblest calling and with it you have taken upon yourself the weight of our hopes for the safety of our loved ones and for a free world. I do not know how you do it but I am glad that you are there. Thank you.
Lead well, never relent, be wise in all your decisions, and keep your vision of victory foremost in your mind and heart.
Thank you for keeping my son's memory alive. It is all that we have now.
Thank you.
Wow.
Post a Comment