Crossposted at diatribune
Yesterday, the Department of Defense announced the names of six soldiers killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. According to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count the number of names released by the DoD is now 3295 and there are 3 more names of the deceased awaiting notification of the next of kin before being publicly released.
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
1ST Lt. Gwilym J. Newman, 24, of Waldorf, Md., died April 12 in Tarmiyah, Iraq, of wounds sustained from enemy small arms fire while on dismounted patrol. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
Family Remembers Fallen Soldier
His son was born on his birthday, and 1st Lt. Gwilym J. Newman could not have been more proud. The baby, who will turn 2 on April 27, was given his father's name -- which is Welsh for William -- and looked a lot like him.
This April, the family is in mourning: The proud father and Army officer who spent his high school years in Waldorf was killed Thursday after he came under small-arms fire while on patrol in Tarmiyah, Iraq, according to the Pentagon. Newman would have turned 25.
Newman was an honors student who graduated ahead of his class from Westlake High School in Waldorf in 1999. He went to Frostburg State University, where he majored in psychology and minored in biology and received his diploma in December 2003.
He and his wife, Samantha, married in June 2004, and in a matter of days Newman headed to basic training.
His son was born while he was stationed at Fort Knox, Ky. Most recently, Newman was stationed at Fort Hood in Texas. The child shared his father's birthday but was also born within days or weeks of the birthdays of Newman's wife, his sister and his brother, Patrick.
"He was very big on holidays because it was all about family," his sister said, also recalling him as "a goofy guy. He could make anyone smile when they were upset. He could just cheer you up."
Now, his young son, Gwilym Alexander, "is looking more and more like him," she said.
Rest in Peace, 1st. Lt. Gwilym Newman.
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died Apr. 9 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle. They were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.
Killed were:
Spc. Ismael G. Solorio, 21, of San Luis, Ariz.
Pfc. Brian L. Holden, 20, of Claremont, N.C.
Pvt. Brett A. Walton, 37, of Hillsboro, Ore.
Spc. Ismael Solorio, a wounded Veteran and PTSD sufferer who was sent back to Iraq, killed by an IED.
The tragic story of young Spc. Ismael Solorio brings home the truth of how depleted and overstretched our Army is. Spc. Ismael Solorio received two purple hearts, one for a gunshot wound to the head which knocked out all of his teeth and left him gravely ill; yet, he was still called back for duty in Iraq.
According to his brother, Ismael Solorio was wounded twice in Iraq during his previous two deployments, having been shot once in the head by a sniper and another time when shrapnel from a roadside bomb struck his hand.
"The first time we were told to expect the worst because he was gravely injured," Jesus said. "He got shot through the cheek and shattered his jaw. He didn't have any teeth."
Ismael Solorio was awarded a Purple Heart for each of the injuries, according to his brother.
Spc. Ismael Solorio leaves behind a grieving family, including an infant baby girl.
Rest in Peace, Ismael Solorio.
Pfc. Brian Holden of Claremont, North Carolina killed in Iraq
"I'm not sure what I'm going to do," Holden's widow, Amanda Holden, 19, said Thursday from their North Carolina home. "It's really hard to be so young and have to go through this."
The couple had been married 13 months and had been saving every dime they made to buy a house, she said.
"He told me the other day he was ready to come home, buy a house, settle down and have kids," she said.
The two were planning a trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., during his scheduled leave next month. She said it was going to be the honeymoon they were unable to take when they got married in March 2006, just months before he was sent overseas.
Those plans were changed when she returned home to find Holden's mother and two Army officers in her living room.
"As soon as I saw them I knew," she said.
Her birthday is Saturday and she received a card from him this week.
While they were at Fort Carson together, she said they loved hiking the trails around Pikes Peak and taking their miniature pinscher to Memorial Park. He husband was never without a smile and had a knack for cheering people up, she said.
Rest in Peace, Pfc. Brian Holden.
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. James T. Lindsey, 20, of Florence, Ala., died April 12 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Florence, Alabama Soldier killed in Iraq
FLORENCE -- Mike Nelson said no one had to tell his wife, Genice, and him why the unexpected guests were at their door late Thursday evening.
"They didn't have to say anything. When we saw the two soldiers standing there, we just knew,'' Nelson said.
The U.S. Army messengers, who simultaneously visited the Nelsons in Florence and Tony Lindsey in Russellville, were delivering a message that no parent wants to hear.
Their son, Army Spc. James "Jamie'' Tyler Lindsey, was killed in combat while serving in Iraq.
"We tried to prepare ourselves, but there is really no way,'' said Tony Lindsey, Jamie Lindsey's father.
If one clicks on the link above, there is a photo of a young, handsome man (still looks like a boy in many ways) dressed in his Army fatigues. He leaves behind a young bride and his parents. His father spoke of his son to the Florence paper:
Tony Lindsey said his son had a great sense of humor.
"He liked the outdoors and loved to hunt and fish,'' Tony Lindsey said. "And he spent a lot of time riding ATVs with his grandfather (Wayne Lindsey). They were very close.
"Jamie was a good person and had a kind heart. He was a hard worker, and he was doing what he thought was right.''
Rest in Peace, Spc. Jamie Lindsay.
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Cpl. Jason J. Beadles, 22, of La Porte, Ind., died April 12 in Baghdad, Iraq, of a non-combat related injury. The incident is under investigation. He was assigned to the 887th Engineer Company, 326th Engineer Battalion, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
LaPorte, Indiana family awaits details of their son's death in Iraq
It has been two days since U.S. Army Spc. Jason Beadles, 22, of La Porte died in Iraq, and his family is still awaiting details.
It is believed Beadles, a heavy equipment operator, died as a result of eloctrocution, although his family doesn’t know if that occurred in combat or by accident.
...While Sue Knop didn’t visit the home of the Beadles, the La Porte High School guidance counselor spoke highly of Jason.
“He was a wonderful student, and what a caring person. He was real affable, enthusiastic. He was the kind of son who would make a mother proud and the kind of student who would make a teacher proud,” she said.
Hervey Parker, welding instructor at A.K. Smith Career Center, became familiar with Jason the student who later earned his entry-level welding certification. For two years, Jason was a student of Parker’s.
“He was always happy. He was always concerned about other people,” Parker said. “He would always say, ‘Good Morning.’”
All of the U.S. fatalities can be seen here. They all had loved ones, families and friends. The DoD news releases are here.
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