On Sunday, the Department of Defense made the following announcement:
Staff Sgt. Bradley C. Hart, 25, of Perrysburg, Ohio died February 17 at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, Africa, of injuries sustained in a non combat incident. He was assigned to the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Staff. Sgt. Hart was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom at the time of his death. No other details have been released by the Army.
Please follow me below the fold to learn more about Staff Sgt. Hart's life and his service to our nation.
Bradley Hart hails from Perryville, Ohio, a small town located about ten miles southwest of Toledo. He was born in 1985, and graduated from the Penta Career Center in Perrysburg Township before enlisting in the military as a mechanic in August 2003. After he completed his basic training at Fort Jackson, SC, Hart volunteered for Ranger and airborne training at Fort Benning in Georgia. Once he had completed his training. SSgt Hart was assigned to the 82nd Airborne as a paratrooper and a mechanic. Hart had already completed a year's deployment in Afghanistan, and he was awarded an Army Commendation Medal for his actions during his deployment.
The Toledo Blade reports that SSgt Hart is survived by his wife,
Katherine, and his parents. The Blade also notes that about 800 US Special Operations soldiers have been stationed in Djibouti since 2002.
The Toledo Free Press reports that:
The Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa states about 2,000 military personnel from each branch of the U.S. Armed forces, representatives from Coalition and Partner countries as well as civilian employees are based at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti.
Their mission is to “facilitate an indirect, non-kinetic approach to counter violent extremism by applying the ’3Ds’principle, which includes defense, diplomacy and development.
Staff Sgt. Hart's mother, Darlene Hart, " noted that the family is proud of him and his service to his country." ~source
Thank you, Staff Sgt. Bradly C. Hart, for your service to our nation. Our prayers are for your wife and family. Poppies are the universal symbols of remembrance. May we always remember and honor your sacrifice.
The purpose of the I Got the News Today series is to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one.
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