Today is Christmas Day. Many of us will be getting together with friends and family to exchange gifts and to share a meal. For three military families, there will be an empty seat at the holiday table. Please follow noweasels and me below the fold to learn more about the lives of Pvt. Coleman J. Meadows III, Staff Sgt. Jonathan W. Dean, and Pfc. Coleman W. Hinkefent, whose deaths were announced by the Department of Defense this week.
Not yet for us may Christmas bring
Good-will to men, and peace;
In our dark sky no angels sing,
Not yet the great release
For men, when war shall cease.
So must the guns our carols make,
Our gifts must bullets be,
For us no Christmas bells shall wake;
These ruined homes shall see
No Christmas revelry.
~ Lt. Cyril Winterbotham (KIA August 27, 1916)
On December 18th, the Department of Defense made the following announcement:
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Pvt. Colman J. Meadows III, 19, of Senoia, Ga., died Dec. 16, at Forward Operating Base Ramrod, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained from a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.
Pvt. Meadows, who was known as Joseph, was a 2007 graduate of Northgate High School in Georgia, and he also attended the Central Educational Center. He had recently enlisted in the Army, and he had been in Afghanistan about a month before his death. In the military, Joseph Meadows worked with computers and communications.
His high school principal, Dr. Therese Reddekopp described Pvt. Meadows as "a high spirited student who was still a definite part of the Northgate family."
Pvt. Meadows is an only child; he is survived by his mother and step-father, Kelley and Mike Hooper. The plans for his funeral are still pending.
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On December 22nd, the Department of Defense announced the following:
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Staff Sgt. Jonathan W. Dean, 25, of Henagar, Ala., died Dec. 20, in Bayji, Iraq, of injuries suffered in a non-combat related incident in Tikrit, Iraq. He was assigned to the 561st Military Police Company, 716th Military Police Battalion, 101st Sustainment Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.
Staff Sgt. Dean and his wife, Staff, Sgt. Anne M. Dore were married on December 6th of this year. His wife is also deployed to Iraq, but she will return to the United States for his funeral.
"He had 18 days leave and that's when he and Anne got married," Pam Dean [his stepmother] said. "They had just been married about two weeks." ~source
Dean is a 2001 graduate of Valley Head High School in Alabama. He joined the military in 2004 and arrived at Ft. Campbell in 2005. He was deployed to Iraq in April, and he had already served one tour of duty in Afghanistan. Dean and his wife had decided to reenlist in the Army because he loved serving his country.
In addition to his wife, Staff Sgt. Dean is survived by his father and stepmother, David W. and Pam Dean, his mother, Edith Delaine Dean, and his three-year old son, Forest T. Dean. Funeral arrangements are still pending.
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On Monday, the Department of Defense made the following announcement:
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Pfc. Coleman W. Hinkefent, 19, of Coweta, Okla., died Dec. 20, 2008 in Hamburg, Germany of a non-combat related illness. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Baumholder, Germany.
Pfc. Hinkefent fell ill while he was serving in Iraq. He was transferred to Germany to begin treatment of acute leukemia. His condition worsened, and he passsed away in the early morning on December 20th.
Coleman was proud of his duty and service and he entered the Army with full conviction and knowledge of where he was going and what was expected of him. His quote was "Doin' my job, so my family can sleep in peace at night." ~source
Pvt. Hinkefent is survived by his fiance, Jordan, his parents, Belinda and Eric Hinkefent, and two sisters and a brother.
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May these three servicemembers rest in eternal peace. As we get together with friends and family during the holidays, let us remember those men and women who were willing to sacrifice everything for this country. We pray that their families and friends can find some comfort in their memories.
About "I Got the News Today" (IGTNT)
I Got the News Today is a diary series intended 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. 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.
The series was begun by i dunno and is maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, MsWings, greenies, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, moneysmith, labwitchy, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, AGirlinMI, JeNoCo, mediaprof and Pager.
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.