IN MEMORIAM.......These BRAVE Men and Women died.......FOR US

[Silky]

Private First Class Chad E. Bales, 20, Coahoma, Texas

4-11-03

The last time Ginger Metcalf spoke to her oldest son, he told her the big sandstorms they’re used to in west Texas are nothing compared with the ones in Iraq. Chad E. Bales called from the Middle East on March 12. After he mentioned the sandstorms, the line crackled and went dead. Less than a month later, one of those violent sandstorms caused a vehicle accident that killed Bales. He died Thursday, April 3, east of Ash Shahin, Iraq. He was with the 1 st Transportation Support Battalion, 1 st Force Service Support Group, from Camp Pendleton, Calif.

"As long as this nation’s free, he’ll be a part of it," said John Wayne Metcalf, Bales’ stepfather.

Even before he graduated from high school, Bales was so determined to join the Marines he tried three times.

Injuries foiled the first two attempts, Metcalf said.

Bales planned to make the military his career — enlisting long enough to obtain education benefits, earn a college degree and become an officer, Metcalf said.

Bales liked living in California, but he spent most of his life in Coahoma, Texas, a town of 1,000 people about 250 miles west of Dallas.

"He liked home, too," Metcalf said.

A car accident marked the start of Bales’ life. Metcalf said his wife broke her neck in an accident and gave birth to Chad the next day in Lubbock.

"So he started out tumblin’," Metcalf said.

Bales played on the Bulldogs football team at Coahoma High School and liked to work on the family cotton farm. Metcalf said it often was hard to get Bales to quit working even after a long day was finished.

Metcalf said Bales had a mischievous streak and liked to joke but was dedicated, responsible and loving as well.

His final time home was Thanksgiving. He was sent to Kuwait in January.

In late March, Ginger Metcalf received a Valentine’s Day card Bales mailed in February.

"That card is worth all the gold in California now," her husband said.

Metcalf helped raise Bales since age 2½. The family has shed a lot of tears, which he described as half in sorrow and half out of pride.

"He was sure loved, and we’re very proud of what Chad’s done," he said. "I’ve said so many words, but none of them come close to what we felt for Chad."

Bales also is survived by his father, Kem Bales of Muleshoe, Texas, two half-brothers and two half-sisters.

 

[Silky]

Staff Sergeant Wilbert Davis, 40, Tampa, Fla.

4-11-03

Wilbert Davis did not believe in doing things halfway. Whether it was serving in the Army or playing baseball, he gave it everything he had.

The Gulf War veteran volunteered for the assignment that sent him to Iraq and to his death.

Davis died Thursday, April 3, when the Humvee he was riding in flipped into a canal en route to Baghdad. Journalist Michael Kelly, editor-at-large for the Atlantic Monthly and a columnist for The Washington Post, died in the accident.

"He was a very competitive, very independent person," his brother Bob told the Tampa Tribune. "He was a person who had goals and was determined to reach those goals."

Davis was 12 when he pitched for Belmont Heights in the Little League World Series, where it is said the careers of several Major League Baseball players, including Dwight Gooden, Gary Sheffield and Derrick Bell, were spawned.

Little League Chief Executive Officer Stephen Keener expressed condolences to Davis’ family and lauded his sacrifice in a news story on Little League Online. "As with every member of our Armed Forces, Staff Sgt. Davis was a volunteer," Keener said. "It is that spirit of volunteerism and devotion to duty — whether to make the community better by mentoring children, or helping to defend freedom — for which we are extremely grateful."

Davis was stationed at Fort Stewart, Ga., and was assigned to the 3 rd Battalion, 69 th Armor, 3 rd Infantry Division. He was Alpha Company’s maintenance chief. Sgt. Mark Helfrich, who worked with Davis, recalled him as an upbeat, highly motivated person. "He was an incredible leader," he said. "A joyful person to be around. He got the job done." Another Davis brother, Sol, will remember him most for his dedication and upbeat attitude. "No matter how bad things were for any of us, he was always the life of the family," he said. "Nothing much got him down. This assignment was something he volunteered for. It wasn’t necessary for him to go. He believed if you sign up, you do it all the way."

In addition to the Gulf War, Davis served in Korea and Germany.

He is survived by his wife, Huiok; two sons, Terry, 13, and Wil, 8; two daughters from a previous relationship, Shantell, 20, and Shatika, 21, of Tampa; four brothers; and two sisters.

 

[Silky]

Corporal Mark A. Evnin, 21, South Burlington, Vt.

4-9-03

As a kid, Mark Evnin was eager to become a soldier. As a Marine, he still had plenty of kid in him. It wasn’t because his father was an Army officer and his grandfather a military chaplain in World War II. "I don’t know what it was," his mother, Mindy Evnin, said. "A lot of kids want to grow up to be a fireman or a police officer or a soldier. Mark never grew out of it."

Evnin died in combat Thursday, April 3. His unit, the 3 rd Battalion, 4 th Marine Regiment, 1 st Marine Division, had rolled into Kut, a town about 100 miles southeast of Baghdad. Its job: Find and destroy hostile Iraqi forces. It found some.

Evnin was a driver of a Humvee carrying Marines and a scout who helped snipers locate their targets, a job that unnerved his mother.

"When I freaked out completely, he said ‘Mom, it’s safer because I’m not running onto the beach’ " in the way Marines are trained to do, she recalled. "It didn’t turn out that way."

When Iraqis began firing on his group, he fired a grenade launcher at an Iraqi bunker, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which has a reporter attached to the same Marine unit.

When he stepped into the open to fire again, Evnin was hit by gunfire in the abdomen. He died in the helicopter that airlifted him from the battle.

As an only child in South Burlington, Vt., Evnin attended South Burlington schools, playing lacrosse, football and skiing, according to Newsday.

He graduated a semester early in 2000 to join the Marines, said Patrick Burke, principal of South Burlington High School.

"At a faculty meeting on April 4 he was remembered as a kind, hardworking, wellliked student," Burke said in a statement. "Special Education staff recalled how compassionate Mark was, telling of how he would make time for classmates with disabilities."

As a boy, Evnin fancied becoming an Air Force pilot, his mother said. He picked the Marines for their nailtough reputation. Yet he enjoyed devouring Harry Potter books.

Proud of his Jewish heritage, Evnin attended religious services during basic training. At one point, she said, her son linked up with a fellow Marine to attend his Muslim services.

"Mark was accepting of every type of person," she said. He did not dwell on being a Jewish soldier sent to fight in a Muslim nation. "He mostly talked about protecting America," she said, "and doing his duty and being proud he could."

 

[Silky]

Captain Edward J. Korn, 31, Savannah, Ga.

Edward J. Korn died Thursday, April 3, as he investigated the wreckage of an Iraqi tank that his unit destroyed in central Iraq. Details of his death were unavailable.

Korn was assigned to Fort Knox, Ky., and was about to enter advanced officer training when he volunteered to serve in the Middle East. He entered Iraq with the 3 rd Infantry Division of Fort Stewart, Ga., near his hometown of Savannah.

A college professor said Korn excelled in political science classes at Armstrong Atlantic State University, where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1999. Korn participated in an exercise modeling the Organization of African Unity, where students talked about solutions to problems in Africa.

"He just had an incredibly sharp and open mind," professor Daniel Skidmore-Hess said. "He really impressed me with his ability to work with students from diverse backgrounds."

Korn always got A’s in his political science courses, Skidmore-Hess said.

Korn served in the 1991 Gulf War and remained active in the Army ROTC while he was in college

 

[Silky]

Staff Sergeant Nino D. Livaudais, 23, Ogden, Utah

Seven weeks ago, before he left for the war in Iraq, Nino Livaudais called buddy Casey Espinoza back home near Ogden.

They talked about camping at a special spot on Bear Lake, near the Idaho border.

"We used to go up there a lot," said Espinoza, 24, a friend since sixth grade. "It’s one of the things we talked about that he’d like to do when he got back."

Except Livaudais isn’t coming back. He was one of three Army Rangers killed Thursday, April 3, when a car exploded at a U.S. checkpoint northwest of Baghdad. They were members of the 3 rd Battalion of the 75 th Ranger Regiment based at Fort Benning, Ga.

The soldiers served in Afghanistan together, searching for Osama bin Laden. They died as they approached a car after a pregnant woman emerged from the vehicle screaming for help. The woman and the driver also died in the explosion, which U.S. officials called a suicide attack.


"It makes it a little more difficult when I keep seeing him on the news," Espinoza said, his voice low and halting. "I’m trying to avoid it. Sometimes it catches you."

Livaudais, a Filipino, leaves two sons, Destre, 5, and Carson, 2, and a wife, Jackie, who is four months pregnant. They live in Fort Mitchell, Ala., just across the Georgia state line minutes from Fort Benning.

Jackie Livaudais can understand why her husband, her high-school sweetheart, would help a pregnant woman. "What man wouldn’t run to that? " she told the Associated Press.

Iraq was Livaudais’ third tour of duty. He enlisted in 1998.

He loved being a Ranger — part of an Army unit whose primary mission is to engage in close combat and direct-fire battles.

Livaudais told his wife if he died in combat, he wanted to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. He was laid to rest there Wednesday with full military honors and with several Rangers in attendance.

He received a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for Valor.

"He always told us if anything ever happened in combat, just to keep in mind that was his job and that was a consequence of it," Espinoza said.

In addition to his wife and children, he is survived by his mother, Divina; grandmother, Juana Moya; brothers Walter, Tom, Phillip and Howard, Jr.; and sisters Cathy Temner and Lisa Livaudais. His father, Howard, is deceased.

 

[Big Dude]

Continuing to remember these brave men and women.


Adam aka Big Dude

 

[Silky]

Specialist Ryan P. Long, 21, Seaford, Del.

4-14-03

A rally to support U.S. troops and war heroes held Sunday at Kiwanis Memorial Park in Seaford, Del., began with a moment of silence in tribute and respect for Ryan Long, a fourthgeneration soldier. Long was killed Thursday, April 3, when a car exploded at a checkpoint near Baghdad. Among the speakers was the Rev. Sam Mc-Garvey of the Atlanta Road Alliance Church. He said his son, Wade, who is in the Air Force, and Long were classmates at Seaford High School and served together in ROTC. McGarvey said his son called from Texas, where he is stationed. "We told him about Ryan’s death ," he said. "It was just disbelief." "I taught Ryan in social studies class," Stephanie Smith, now a school counselor, said. "He was an all-around good kid, did sports, he did his work, had goals. He was fun and had character. When I saw who it was, I immediately pictured where he sat in my class." At Seaford High School, Long was active in the Junior ROTC and was a starter on the varsity soccer team.

"Ryan contributed to the group, not just as a player, but through his personality and character," soccer coach Timothy Lee said. "I am proud to have known someone who would give his life for his country."

Longtime family friend Suzanne Barnes said Long was committed to becoming a Ranger. Injuries to both legs after jumping from a helicopter didn’t stop him from realizing his goal.

Long joined the Army in September 1999. He was assigned to A Company, 3 rd Battalion, 75 th Ranger Regiment, at Fort Benning, Ga.

He was sent twice to Afghanistan but tried to get home as often as he could, visiting his parents in February.

"We got snowed in that weekend," said Donna Long, who said she never told her son she was more fearful about his latest deployment than about his other two tours in Afghanistan. "A mother’s intuition. I don’t know," she said.

In addition to his mother, Long is survived by his father, retired Army Maj. Rudolf Long, and an older brother, Matthew.

 

[Silky]

Specialist Donald ‘Donnie’ Oaks, 20, Harborcreek Township, Pa.

4-9-03

Samuel Oaks would agree it’s been a TV war, one his grandson, Donald "Donnie" Oaks, 20, was sort of co-starring in. "He was with the same outfit that David Bloom was reporting on," Oaks said. "We were glued to the TV. I kept the channel on MSNBC. Every time David came on, I listened, because Donnie was with David."

It was a deadly week for the TV war and the 3 rd Infantry Division.

Donald Oaks died Thursday, April 3.

Late in the day, the TV war came home in the worst way, right up Samuel Oaks’ lane in Harborcreek Township, about a mile from Lake Erie in northwest Pennsylvania.

An Army sergeant told Samuel Oaks and other family members Donnie died at 12:33 a.m. that morning.

The family also learned the cause might have been friendly fire. An Air Force F-15 fighter jet had dropped ordnance in the area, but the Iraqis had been shooting, too.

"This week has just been the worst thing that ever happened to us here," Samuel Oaks said.

And what’s worse, "He is my only grandson, there are no more. That’s the end of our line."

Survived by a sister, Amber Lynn, his mother, Laurie and father, Donald, Donnie mostly was raised by Samuel and his wife, Mary Oaks. Donald and Laurie Oaks are divorced.

By his June 2000 high school graduation, Donnie had a firm relationship with the Army and a romance with a high school sweetheart who followed him to Fort Sill, Okla., for his field artillery training.

"They (the couple) had purchased some furniture and set up housekeeping. When he got word of his deployment to Iraq, hesent her back here on the bus," Samuel Oaks said.

"He told us not to worry, everything would be all right, reassured us he wasn’t afraid."

The TV war flickers on Samuel Oaks’ television screen, but Donnie no longer is a part of it. David Bloom, too, has faded to black. Samuel Oaks prays.

 

[Silky]

Sergeant Todd J. Robbins, 33, Pentwater, Mich.

4-8-03

On the eve of his deployment, Todd Robbins told his uncle he was doing exactly what he’d always wanted to do. "He called me the night he shipped out," said Robert Anzell. "His mother was very upset. But he told me, ‘This is what I do for a living. This is what I’ve wanted to do all my life.’ " Soon after, on Thursday, April 3, Robbins and two fellow soldiers were killed, reportedly when a U.S. Air Force jet mistakenly bombed the men, who belonged to C Battery, 3 rd Battalion, 13 th Field Artillery Regiment based at Fort Sill, Okla.

Anzell said it wasn’t the first time Robbins had been in harm’s way: Robbins joined the Navy soon after graduating from Hart (Mich.) High School and served in the first Gulf War as a seaman.

Afterward, Robbins returned to Michigan and, using the GI Bill, earned a degree in criminal justice. After volunteering with the Mason County, Mich., Sheriff’s Office, he joined the Army, where he planned to make a career, Anzell said.

After serving four years in the Army, he re-enlisted for six more years shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Anzell said residents of the rural Michigan towns of Pentwater and Hart, where Robbins spent his youth and was remembered as a good high school wrestler and football player, were proud of their native son.

"He did his duty, and he did it well," Anzell said. "Everyone here has always been immensely proud of him."

Robbins is survived by a 13-year-old son, Cruz, from his first marriage; his wife, Laura; eight siblings; and his parents, Dale and Anne Marie.

 

[Silky]

Corporal Erik Silva, 22, Chula Vista, Calif

4-12-03

About 2:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in Iraq, Marine Cpl. Erik Silva was leading his squad just southeast of Baghdad when Iraqi soldiers ambushed them.

After the dust cleared, four Marines were down, including Silva, who would die from a gunshot wound to his stomach.

The three other Marines were wounded.

"He died doing what he wanted to," said his aunt Elvira Silva Alvarado of Holtville, Calif., a small town of 4,000 where news of Silva’s death spread quickly.

Silva was with the 3rd Battalion, 5 th Marines, 1 st Division, based at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and had been at Camp Doha, Qatar, before heading to the front.

Silva was born Sept. 10, 1980, in Brawley, Calif., to Javier Duran Silva and Gloria Hernandez Silva and was the youngest of four children that included siblings Javier Jr., Isaac and Gloria. Military service ran deep in his family. Isaac was in the Army National Guard, and Gloria was in the Navy. Their uncle Sergio Hernandez, a Marine, inspired all three of them.

Erik was destined to be a Marine, always playing GI with his fake rifles.

During high school, Silva played golf and soccer. "He was very athletic," said his sister, Gloria. He was a drum major and dabbled with a trumpet from time to time. He really enjoyed days when he could go golfing with his father.

Erik was very close to his family. "He was very loving and kind," said his aunt Elvira, "and he made friends with everyone."

Silva hadn’t experienced combat until two days before his death and was apprehensive about the dangers of being at the front, his family said.

He planned to leave the Marines in September and attend school.

"It’s too bad he had to die so young," his aunt said. "They say only the good people die young."

 

[Silky]

Private First Class Wilfred D. Bellard, 20, Lake Charles, La.

4-18-03

The military was Wilfred Bellard’s life, but family and music were his passions. "He was always singing and making music," Bellard’s mother, Janet Brooks, said from her Lake Charles home. "He even made records. He was into it all — rap, R&B, soul. He loved it all, especially music from the ’70s and ’80s." Bellard died when the vehicle he was riding in swerved to avoid mortar rounds and artillery fire, went out of control and ran into a ravine, where he drowned Friday, April 4. Bellard was in the vehicle with two other soldiers from the Army’s 41 st Field Artillery Regiment out of Fort Stewart, Ga. They also died. "He was a really nice student," said Angela Trahan, a secretary at Lake Charles Boston High School. "He was a little on the quiet side, soft-spoken. I remember he was a good student, too, good grades." With a father, siblings and uncles in the military, joining the Army was an easy decision for Bellard.

Brooks said her son lived all around the country and the military was a lifestyle he knew well.

Bellard has a sister in the Army and an older brother in the Navy in Kuwait.

Brooks said the older brother is bringing Bellard home.

"He was proud of his job," she said. "He told me he loved it and that he was ready to go to Iraq to get the job done."

Bellard married his wife, LaTricia, on Dec. 7. Soon after the marriage, the Army sent him to Fort Stewart.

The couple’s second child, a boy, isdue Easter Sunday. He’ll be named Wilfred Jr.

In addition to his mother and his wife, Bellard is survived by a son, Bishop Demoyen; his stepfather, Raymond Brooks; two sisters, Jennifer Bellard Richard of Lake Charles and Jennie Bellard of San Diego; a brother, Ray Bellard of San Diego; six aunts; four uncles; and many nephews, nieces, cousins and friends.

 

[Silky]

Specialist Daniel Francis Cunningham Jr., 33, Lewiston, Maine

4-12-03

Daniel Francis Cunningham Jr. died Friday, April 4, in Baghdad, Iraq, when the vehicle he was riding in fell into a ravine while trying to avoid artillery fire. Two other soldiers in the vehicle died in the accident. They were part of the 41 st Field Artillery Regiment, stationed at Fort Stewart, Ga. Cunningham served in Kosovo and realized during his eight months there how lucky he was to be anAmerican, said his brother James Cunningham. "He told me, ‘Just be thankful for all you have,’" James Cunningham said. Cunningham joined the Army four years ago in part to honor his father, Daniel Cunningham Sr., a Vietnam veteran. The elder Cunningham died Sept. 20.

He hoped his job would provide a better life for his wife, Heather, and their son, Connor, 10, who live in Revere, Mass.

"He adored his boy more than anything," James Cunningham said.

He was scheduled to get out of the Army in January and had hoped to open a sports bar. "He was a wonderful cook, and he loved sports," James Cunningham said. There were four boys in the Cunningham family. James Cunningham, 24, said he always felt closest to his oldest brother, Daniel. "He taught me how to shave," he said. "I’m proud of him," he said. "I just wish he could have come home safely because he promised me he would. When he said he would come home, I believed him."

Daniel Cunningham is survived by his mother, Nancy Cunningham of Lewiston, his wife, his son, and four brothers.

 

[Silky]

Captain Travis Ford, 30, Ogallala, Neb

4-13-03

For years, Travis Ford aspired to follow his older brother Alex into the Marines. In 1991, he did. "He wanted to protect the U.S., protect his family and friends," said Celeste Ford, his niece. "His lifelong dream was to be like his older brother."

Ford, a 30-year-old Nebraska native, and another Marine died Friday, April 4, when the Cobra helicopter they piloted crashed near Ali Aziziyal, Iraq.

The military still is investigating the crash, which might have been an accident.

Ford died three days before his daughter’s second birthday.

Family members said Ford, an avid hunter and fisherman who had an affinity for flying, will be remembered as a hero with a contagious smile.

"He was the best," said Todd Ford, one of four Ford brothers.

Travis Ford was stationed at Camp Pendleton, Calif. He lived there with his wife, Deon, and daughter Ashley.

After entering the Marine Corps in 1991, Ford attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he was a cheerleader and a member of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity.

In October, Ford was assigned to the Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 267, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, at Camp Pendleton.

When he left for Iraq, he was hopeful and happy.

"He was in a good mood," Todd Ford said. "He was upbeat about it. He wanted to go serve his county."

Celeste believes she is following her uncle’s footsteps: The sophomore is a cheerleader at Grant High School in Grant, Neb.

 

[Silky]

Corporal Bernard G. Gooden, 22, Mount Vernon, N.Y.

4-14-03

Tank gunner Bernard "Brent" Gooden died Friday, April 4, in a firefight in Iraq. Members of his tank crew told the Dallas Morning News a rocket-propelled grenade was deflected into an open turret hatch, killing Gooden.

He was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and lived with an aunt, Carmen Palmer Thompkins, now of Mount Vernon, N.Y. He grew up playing soldier at his grandfather’s banana plantation in Jamaica and was a member of the Military Cadet Corps, Thompkins said. When he was 16, he moved to Whitby, Ontario, Canada, to be with his father, Bernard Gooden Sr. Gooden was a straight-A student, Thompkins said, and wanted to be a lawyer. He attended York College and Centennial College in Toronto but couldn’t afford to complete his education.

Gooden moved to Mount Vernon to be with his aunt, and in June 2001 he joined the Marines as a way to help pay for college and law school.

He was a member of the 2 nd Tank Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, at Camp Lejeune, N.C., and was promoted to corporal Jan. 1.

The firefight at At Tuwayhah in central Iraq killed three Marines, including Gooden, and left five others wounded. His tank column was ambushed near the center of town as the Marines sought to destroy a division of the Republican Guard.

Gooden is survived by his father, his aunt, and his sister, Racquel Davidson of Mount Vernon. He leaves behind his fiancee, Elizabeth Knox of Toronto, whom he met while attending college.

In the last letter he sent to his family, he told his aunt, "I will always be your faithful and loyal son. I have loved you ever since I was able to love, and I always will. Your son, Brent."

There will be a memorial service in Mount Vernon, and Gooden will be buried in St. Ann, Jamaica.

 

[Silky]

Private Devon D. Jones, 20 San Diego

Life finally seemed to be smiling on Devon D. Jones, who died Friday, April 4, with two other soldiers when the Humvee they were in crashed into a ravine in Iraq.

Jones was happy, had a plan for his life and was optimistic about his future, said Harold Moore, his counselor at Lincoln High School in San Diego. "He was doing what he wanted to do," Moore said. "He enlisted and planned to use the service to pay for an education." To many, Jones didn’t stand out because he was an average student and not an athlete at what Moore called an inner-city school of about 700 students — a school famous for producing star football running backs Terrell Davis and Marcus Allen.

"Devon was not a superstar in sports or a superstar in academics and he was not a knucklehead, so a lot of people might have overlooked him," Moore said. "But Devon was a nice young man; always polite and respectful. He was a wonderful guy you liked to be around. Very funny."

Jones could have turned out much differently, especially given his background, Moore said. Jones and his two brothers, Damon, 18, and Dierre, 16, lived in a succession of group homes after their mother, Alphenia Allen, 44, went to jail and their grandmother died. But Moore said Jones was buoyed by his Christian faith.

"He took pride in sharing the word of God with anybody who would listen, especially young people," he said.

At New Creation Church, he met Evelyn Houston, who gave the three brothers a stable home.

"She took on the awesome responsibility of having all three of them," Moore said. "They refer to her as ‘mother’ and really respect her."

So strong was his faith that Jones even convinced his biological mother, Allen, to start attending church upon her release from jail.

"I was incarcerated, locked up, and my son was the inspiration behind the change in my life," Allen told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "He encouraged me behind prison walls."

Moore remembers his last conversation with Jones, just before Jones’ graduation last June from Lincoln High.

"He was so happy he had enlisted," Moore said. "He had goals, a focus, a plan for his life. He was really a beautiful young man."

An artillery specialist, Jones was with the 3 rd Infantry Division’s 41 st Field Artillery Regiment from Fort Stewart, Ga.

 

[Silky]

Lieutenant Brian M. McPhillips, 25, Pembroke, Mass.

4-13-03

Brian McPhillips was proud of his Irish heritage and even prouder being a Marine.

Friends and teachers recall him saying while still a teenager he intended to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the service.

"He was really looking forward to active duty ," said Paul Maloney, a professor at Providence College, where McPhillips graduated with a degree in finance in 2000. "The military really kind of defined who he was."

McPhillips was one of three Marines killed Friday, April 4, in a firefight in central Iraq.

McPhillips grew up interested in sports and computers, and he spent several summers working as a counselor in the town’s playground program.

He enjoyed designing Web sites, reported The Enterprise, published in Brockton.

McPhillips attended Boston College High School, where he distinguished himself as a racquetball player and founded the school’s Irish Culture Club.

History teacher Nicolas Argento recalled him as popular, friendly, an excellent student who participated frequently in class and a fierce competitor on the racquetball court.

"He always had a fiery determination about him," Argento said. "If he got something wrong, he wanted to know how to make it better."

After graduation from Providence, McPhillips fulfilled his longtime ambition and joined the Marines.

He was assigned to the 2 nd Tank Battalion, 2 nd Marine Division, based at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

McPhillips’ death hit hard in Pembroke, a community of 18,000 about 30 miles south of Boston. He was the first service member from the town to be killed in action since the Korean War.

On the town green, 38 yellow ribbons flutter on a tree, placed there by a support group for families of soldiers in Iraq.

McPhillips’ parents, David and Julie McPhillips, had been attending the group’s meetings for about seven months, said Julie Caruso, who helped establish the organization.

"You could tell they were worried," she told the Boston Globe, "but they were so proud of their son."

Besides his parents, McPhillips is survived by a younger sister, Carolyn.

 

[Silky]

Sgt. 1st Class Randall S. Rehn, 36, Longmont, Colo.

4-7-03

Randall S. Rehn, a 1985 graduate of Colorado’s Niwot High School, was killed Thursday in fighting near Saddam International Airport. He left behind a wife and a 6-month-old daughter.

Assigned to an artillery unit as part of the 3 rd Infantry Division, Rehn was one of three soldiers in his detachment killed during the battle.

Rehn was a 16-year Army veteran who served in Iraq in 1991.

He enlisted in the Army in 1987 and was commanding a rocket-launch vehicle when he was killed about 10 miles southwest of Baghdad, The Associated Press reported.

Rehn’s brother, Joe, 38, lives in Longmont.

"He should be remembered for his love for people," Joe Rehn said. "He would give the shirt off his back to anybody."

Randall Rehn, his wife Raelynn and daughter Megan lived in Lawton, Okla. Rehn was the second of three brothers. The youngest of the three, Jim, 32, served in the Persian Gulf War in 1991.

A member of the wrestling and football teams in high school, Rehn later devoted a huge chunk of his free time to playing golf.

"He had four years left in the service before he was going to retire," Joe Rehn said. "After that, he was going to try a find a job as a golf instructor."

Randall Rehn, stationed at Fort Sill, Okla., was honored Friday by the Colorado House with a moment of silence.

"We may have lost one of Colorado’s bravest men, but we have gained a hero," Gov. Bill Owens said in a statement.

 

[Silky]

Sergeant Duane R. Rios, 25, Hammond, Ind.

4-12-03

Even as a teen in Indiana, Duane Rios seemed destined for the military. He treated his elders with respect and showed discipline while working toward his goals.

Rios died Friday, April 4, in a firefight in central Iraq. He is survived by his high school sweetheart, Erica, whom he married in 1998.

Rios, a combat engineer and squad leader with the 1 st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, had been in the Persian Gulf for two months. He and his squad paved the way for troops pushing into Baghdad, securing bridges and patrolling for mines.

"I have nearly eight years of special memories," Erica Rios told the Northwest Indiana Times. "People were drawn to him. He was the kind of person you wanted to be around. He was my angel. Now he’s gone. . . . He was a great guy, none better. I was very blessed for the time that I had him."

Rios and his wife lived in San Clemente, Calif., while he was stationed at nearby Camp Pendleton.

Duane and Erica Rios talked for the last time on Feb. 15, her birthday.

As a student at Griffith (Ind.) High School, Rios played varsity football for one year. Although he wasn’t a starter, coach Russ Radtke said the "tough kid" earned a letter for his efforts. Erica Rios’ uncle, George Shawn Jr. of Hammond, Ind., recalled meeting Rios in 1994. "He was very respectful — he called me ‘sir’ right away. "He was a born leader," Shawn said. "And he dearly cherished his wife."


Rios, who joined the Marines in January 1999, planned to make the military his career. He had been stationed in Asia and joined his wife for one month before leaving for Iraq on Feb. 4. After their parents divorced, Rios and his younger brother, John, were raised by their grandmother, Ursula Rios, who died in 1999. "I looked up to him," said John Robert Rios, 18. "We’re all just trying to cope with the loss." Services are pending.

 

[Silky]

Captain Russell B. Rippetoe, 27, Arvada,Colo

4-11-03

People often use the term "Like father, like son" with too much ease, making it a generalization more than a real comparison. The saying, however, rang eerily true in the case of Russell Rippetoe. Rippetoe served as an Army Ranger, as did his father, Joseph, a retired lieutenant colonel. "You could tell Russell was following in his dad’s footsteps all the way," said Palmer Mason, who lived across the street from the Rippetoes until his parents moved to Gaithersburg, Md., last week. "He did everything like his dad," Mason said. "They looked alike. They walked alike. They even talked a little alike." Father buried son Thursday in Arlington National Cemetery. Rippetoe became the first soldier from the Iraqi conflict to be buried in the historic cemetery in Virginia.

Rippetoe died Friday, April 4, when a car exploded at an Iraqi checkpoint. The blast killed Rippetoe and two other soldiers who were approaching the car after a pregnant woman stepped from the vehicle and began screaming, U.S. Central Command said.

At Thursday’s ceremony, eight Rangers from his unit, wearing khaki berets and blinking back tears, were honorary pallbearers.

"When he joined, he joined full force. He didn’t just join the Army, he joined the Rangers," said Lt. Col. James May, an Army chaplain. "Russell was a man who loved his troops, and they loved him."

Next to the grave, framed with a wreath of flowers, were pictures of Rippetoe — him grinning as an infant, others of him as a young soldier in fatigues smiling in a tent and holding a rifle, and another of him kissing his mother on the cheek. The seven-member rifle party fired three volleys, and a bugler played taps.

Rippetoe’s parents were given the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart their son was awarded posthumously.

His father, wounded during two tours in Vietnam, was in uniform and saluted the Rangers as they knelt in front of the parents to express condolences.

Rippetoe was a junior at Denver’s Metro State College, where he joined ROTC, which was based at CU’s Boulder campus. He graduated in 1999 and became a Ranger in the 3 rd Battalion of the 75 th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning, Ga.

Mason said Rippetoe was like a brother to her three daughters, now 13, 18 and 21.

"He was 17 when they moved in across the street," she said. "He adored my kids. . . . They loved him."

Rippetoe would see the girls outside and come across the street to play soccer and basketball, she said. "They saw the fun side of him."

"Every time he would leave, she’d get sad," Mason said of her youngest daughter, Harmony. "She couldn’t wait to see him.

"We’ve been talking about him every night."

In addition to his parents, Rippetoe is survived by a sister, Rebecca Kim.

 

[Silky]

Captain Benjamin Sammis, 29, Rehoboth, Mass

4-12-03

From an early age, Benjamin Sammis dreamed of a military career.

Bill Cute, a social studies teacher at Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School in Massachusetts, had Sammis for a student in 1990-91, during the Persian Gulf War.

Cute recalls Sammis was "a very enthusiastic history student. I wasn’t surprised that he pursued a career in the military."

Sammis died Friday, April 4, when the Cobra helicopter he was piloting crashed near Ali Aziziyal, about 30 miles southeast of Baghdad, Iraq. He was assigned to the Marine Light Aircraft Squadron 267, part of the 3 rd Marine Aircraft Wing from Camp Pendleton, Calif.

"He had his heart set on attending The Citadel in Charleston because he liked the military life," Cute said.

Sammis graduated from The Citadel in 1996.

Sammis was an Eagle Scout. "It takes a great deal of persistence to accomplish that," Cute said. "At a relatively young age, he was very goal-oriented. He was a young man who certainly made the most of his opportunities."

His parents, Steven and Beth Sammis of Rehoboth, said in a prepared statement their son "loved the Corps as much as life itself.

"We are devastated by our loss, as we are for all who have lost loved ones. Ben was a true patriot and made the ultimate sacrifice for his country.

"We will be forever proud of him and the character he held so true. To his fellow Marines: Semper Fi."

In addition to his parents, Sammis is survived by his wife, Stacey, and two brothers.