Tonight, we remember a 20 year old soldier from Florida. He was due home soon to be married. What should have been a joyous occasion on planning a wedding, has turned to sorrow, as family and fiance are now planning his funeral. Please take a moment to read and remember Pvt. Jalred Vaquerano.
So far in 2011, 411 American troops have been killed in Afghanistan. Since 2001, there have been 1857 American troops killed in Afghanistan. Please take a moment to honor their sacrifice.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.
DoD Announces Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Pvt. Jalfred D. Vaquerano, 20, of Apopka, Fla., died Dec. 13, in Landstuhl, Germany, of injuries suffered from enemy small-arms fire while deployed in Logar province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss, Texas.
Private Jalfred Vaquerano enlisted in the Army in January, 2011. He was an infantryman and had previously been at Fort Benning before the deployment to Afghanistan. Vaquerano was critically wounded in Logar Province and transported over to Landstuhl, Germany for medical care. His parents and fiance, Katie Madden, flew to Germany to be with him when he passed away on Tuesday, December 13th.
Katie and Jalfred were to be married soon. She wrote on Facebook:
"I'll never have a chance to walk down the aisle towards him...I'll never be able to have beautiful green-eyed babies with the love of my life. I'll never be able to grow old with the one person on earth who made me so happy… I've lost everything."
"The last words I said to him were 'I can't wait to be your wife,' and his were 'Me either, I love you,'" Madden wrote in a note to friends and family.
Carlos Vaquerano, father, thanked his son's many friends for their condolences. He added a remark on the Facebook page:
"From His dad Carlos to all of you: thank you very much. Jalfred was the sweetest of all," he wrote Wednesday morning. "I love you my son and I know I'll be with you soon. Jesus come soon please."
The Vaquerano's have an outpouring of support from their church, the Seventh Day Adventist, one young man posted:
"We just had about 50 something students here at SAU (Southern Adventist University) gather around the flagpole and offer up our prayers for Jalfred's fam, fiancee, and friends," wrote Kristopher A. Candamil, also of Apopka. "We also reminisced on some of the great times we had and talked about how great of a person he is. There is power in prayer! God intended for the church to be a family to uplift each other at our lowest points."
Funeral arrangements are pending. Pvt. Jalfred Vaquerano earned the following awards and decorations: the National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with a Campaign Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Army Service Ribbon.
Rest in peace, Private Jalfred Vaquerano.
Source: Sun-Sentinel
In Flanders Fields
by Lt. Col. John McRae, MD, (1872-1918)
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row
That mark our place, and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago,
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved,
and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
I Got the News Today is a diary series intended to honor, respect and remind. Its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one. Diaries about the fallen usually appear two days after their names are officially released, which allows time for the IGTNT team to find and tell their stories.
All of the U.S. fatalities can be seen here and here. They all had loved ones, families and friends. The DoD news releases are here. I Got the News Today is intended to honor, respect and remind. Click the IGTNT tags below for previous diaries.
Click the IGTNT tags to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by Monkeybiz, Noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, SisTwo, Spam Nunn, True Blue Majority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Maggie Jean, Jax Dem, Kestrel 9000, TheFatLadySings, Ekaterina, and me, Sandy on Signal.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.