Unable are the loved to die. For love is immortality. ~Emily Dickinson
I Got the News Today (IGTNT) is a diary series intended to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one.
The beautiful forget-me-nots were created by llbear.
Since 2003 there have been 4486 US casualties in Iraq and since 2001 there have been 1954 US casualties in Afghanistan. Source.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Spc. Jason K. Edens, 22, of Franklin, Tenn., died April 26, in Bethesda, Md., of wounds sustained April 15, in Laghman province, Afghanistan, when the enemy attacked his unit with small arms fire.
Edens was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 13th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, Fort Bliss, Texas.
“He was a hero,” Ashley Edens said while describing her husband, who joined the Army in 2009.
Edens previously received the Purple Heart, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with a Campaign Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Combat Infantryman Badge.
Edens will posthumously receive the Tennessee Fallen Heroes Medal during a private service, according to the press release. Arrangements are pending; however, the Edens family expressed a desire for privacy for Spc. Edens’ funeral and burial.
Edens is survived by his wife Ashley Edens of Elizabethton, his mother Janet Crane of Phoenix City, Alabama and his father James Edens of Franklin.
Source
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Spc. Moises J. Gonzalez, 29, Huntington, Calif., died April 25, in Balkh province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when his vehicle rolled over.
Gonzalez was assigned to the 509th Combat Service Support Company, 504th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, Fort Hood, Texas.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
A vehicle roll-over accident is listed as the cause of death for a Huntington, California, Soldier.
The Department of Defense released the information earlier this morning that SPC Moises J. Gonzalez, 29, died April 25, 2012, when the military vehicle he was in rolled over.
The DOD did not mention if weather or road conditions were a contributing factor in this incident or if SPC Gonzalez was the driver or a passenger in the vehicle. It’s not known if other Soldiers were injured in this same accident.
Source
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Lt. Christopher E. Mosko, 28, of Pittsford, N.Y., died April 26 while conducting combat operations in Nawa district, Ghazni province, Afghanistan. Mosko was assigned as a Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Platoon Commander to Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force, Afghanistan. Mosko was stationed at EOD Mobile Unit 3, San Diego, Calif.
Mosko attended Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania.
Family members stated that Christopher was a great man in so many ways; they loved him and cherished him and now they will grieve him.
Christopher is survived by many loving friends and relatives including his father, John Mosko and his mother.
Source
The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
They died April 26, in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, from injuries sustained when their vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.
Killed were:
Staff Sgt. Brandon F. Eggleston, 29, of Candler, N.C., who was assigned to 4th Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Sgt. Dick A. Lee Jr., 31, of Orange Park, Fla., who was assigned to 95th Military Police Battalion, 18th Military Police Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Sembach, Germany.
Staff Sgt. Brandon Eggleston, who was part of the US Army's Special Forces, has made the ultimate sacrifice for his country.
Eggleston grew up in Eden, NC and was a 2001 graduate of Morehead High School. He went to college at Western Carolina University.
Family members say that Eggleston has been in the Army since 2006, and that this was his third deployment. He was expected to come home later this year, between September and December.
He is survived by his wife, Karen, and two children, who live in Raeford, NC.
Source
Sgt. Dick A. Lee Jr.'s commanding officer called him a great soldier and military dog handler. and that everyone who knew Lee considered it an honor to serve with him.
"Always quick with a smile and laugh, he was the kind of person you always wanted to be around," Col. Brian Bisacre wrote. "Sgt. Lee was a consummate professional; he attacked every mission with passion and strived to be the best at everything he was asked to do.
Sgt. Lee lived and breathed the Army and was a dedicated father, husband, son and soldier. He will never be forgotten."
Lee is survived by a wife and two sons.
Source
Click here to read the series as begun by i dunno, and maintained by Sandy on Signal, noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, Twilight Falling, Sis Two, Spam Nunn, CalNM, Wide Awake in KY,
maggiejean, Jaxdem, Kestrel9000, TheFatLadySings, and Ekaterin
If you would like to contribute to the series, even once a month, please contact Sandy on Signal or noweasels.
To see what these tributes mean to those who have lost a loved one in Iraq or Afghanistan, please read Sandy on Signal’s story about meeting the father of a soldier at NN10.
The IGTNT logo was created by Timroff.
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.