You, whose forebodings have been all fulfilled,
You who have heard the bell, seen the boy stand
Holding the flimsy message in his hand
While through your heart the fiery question thrilled
"Wounded or killed, which, which?"--and it was "Killed--
"
And in a kind of trance have read it, numb
But conscious that the dreaded hour was come,
No dream this dream wherewith your blood was chilled--
Oh brothers in calamity,
unknown
Companions in the order of black loss,
Lift up your hearts, for you are not alone.
~ Henry Christopher Bradby
(April 1918)
Tonight, we remember five young men who lost their lives in Afghanistan this week. We also honor the five families who received the awful knock on the door.
(Sgt. Joseph A. Bovia is remembered tonight by CalNM)
Sgt. Joseph A. Bovia, 24, of Kenner, Louisiana
Sgt. Bovia died August 31 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. Bovia was assigned to the 3rd Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Okinawa, Japan.
Friends recalled Joseph "Joey" Bovia as a fun-loving, yet focused student who could make friends in minutes. Teachers remember the 2004 Bonnabel High School graduate as a class leader and role model. Everyone said that Joey Bovia's dedication to duty and defending freedom will be remembered most.
His father spoke with Joey by telephone just three days before his death.
"Yesterday, between 6:30 and 7 in the evening the Marines came," said Joseph's mother.
It's an image she won't soon forget.
"When you see 'em at the door you know," she said staring blankly as she recalled the image burned in her mind.
When she got word her son -- 24-year-old Joseph Bovia -- was killed during a firefight in Afghanistan, her heart sank.
"We cry a lot, but we are incredibly proud of him," said Bovia.
The son of a 30-year New Orleans Police Department veteran, Joey Bovia was committed to service. His father said from the day Joey could say Marine, he wanted to be one. In high school Joey was a decorated ROTC cadet. He enlisted in the Marines at age 17 with his parent's permission.
Sgt. Bovia already completed two combat tours in Iraq, and had been offered a stateside assignment. Instead he volunteered for a combat mission to Afghanistan, and begged for a reassignment so he could deploy with the troops he had trained.
Bovia was on a six month tour when he was killed in action.
Among those that Joey Bovia leaves behind are his girlfriend, mother, father, and brother.
Sgt. Joseph Bovia is missed. REST IN PEACE
sources: WDSU; WWLTV; United States Department of Defense
* * * * *
(Lance Cpl. Cody A. Roberts is remembered tonight by CalNM)
Lance Cpl. Cody A. Roberts, 22, of Boise, Idaho
Lance Cpl. Roberts died August 31 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. Roberts was a rifleman assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Cody Roberts grew up in southwest Idaho and graduated from Centennial High School in 2006. He joined the Marines right after graduation and was on his first deployment to Afghanistan.
Roberts’ family requested privacy and did not wish to speak to the media.
The family issued a statement through the military that recognized Cody Roberts as
“an amazing Marine, husband and father,”
who died in combat defending the nation that he loved.
Among those that Lance Cpl. Roberts leaves behind are his wife and infant son, his parents and other family in Idaho.
Lance Cpl. Cody Roberts is missed. REST IN PEACE
sources: Idaho Press; Idaho Statesman; United States Department of Defense.
* * * * *
1st Lt. Mark A. Noziska, 24, of Papillon, Nebraska
1st Lt. Noziska died Aug. 30 in Malajat, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.
“Everything he did, he did for the military," his brother said.
The 9-year-old nephew of a Nebraska soldier killed in Afghanistan wanted to know why his mother was crying, and why his family is leaving for Dover, Del., Wednesday morning.
(snip)
The 24-year-old soldier, who grew up in Grand Island and went to high school in Papillion, was about a month into his first overseas deployment.
He was an excellent uncle, said his sister, Tracy Noziska.
(On) Aug. 14, she gave birth to a baby boy her brother never got to meet.
Her older son, Calvin, is the one with all the questions about what happened to his uncle.
(snip)
Mark Noziska, the youngest of three siblings . . . graduated from Papillion-La Vista High School in 2004 and completed a criminal justice degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2008.
Everything he did, he did for the military, said his older brother, Troy.
(snip)
He joined the National Guard after high school and signed up for active duty with the Army after college.
(snip)
"He was the favorite uncle, of course."
His mother mailed him photos of his new nephews after his sister's baby, Chay, was born.
"I don't even know if he got to see them."
Source ~ Journal Star
On Wednesday, two dozen of Mark Noziska’s high school friends gathered to remember him. They all wished for just one more conversation.
"I think we're all living in a dream right now, just hoping we can wake up from this," said Andy LeBlanc, Noziska's friend.
(snip)
LeBlanc got the call from Mark's dad last night.
(snip)
Tonight, his friends remember the good times they had with Mark.
"We all remember him and he was always in his speedo," laughed LeBlanc.
"He loved the Huskers," said Coby Greiner, Mark's friend.
"If you were ever down, he was there with that big brother mentality and he would do anything for you," said LeBlanc.
Friends since high school, they say Mark was destined for the Army, vowing to join after September 11. He was only a sophomore in high school then.
(snip)
His friends remember the last time they talked to him.
"I talked to him on the phone 4 to 5 days ago," LeBlanc said.
All of them wishing for one more conversation to pass along these messages: "We love you. We miss you. You're home safe. We'll look after your family, because he loved them so much," chimed many of his friends.
Noziska's friends say he had also served in the National Guard for four years, and was named 2005 Soldier of the Year.
He even inspired two of his friends to join the armed forces; one in the Army, the other the Marines, serving a tour in Iraq.
(snip)
His plan was to stay in the Army and work his way up to General.
Source ~ KMTV
As it turned out, he was promoted to 1st Lt. on Thursday, four days after his death.
1st Lt. Noziska is survived by his his parents, Bill and Dee, by his older brother, Troy, and by his older sister, Tracy.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Thank you, 1st Lt. Noziska. Godspeed. Your mission is done.
* * * * *
Staff Sgt. Casey J. Grochowiak, 34, of Lompoc, California
Staff. Sgt. Grochowiak died Aug. 30 in Malajat, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.
Casey J. Grochowiak could have opted out of his recent tour in Afghanistan because of a bad back, but he chose to deploy for the sake of the younger soldiers, his family said.
“He felt like he could make a difference,” said his brother Erik Grochowiak, of Carlsbad. “He felt like he needed to look out for the younger, greener soldiers. That was the type of guy he was.”
(snip)
Grochowiak, who had been in the Army more than 10 years, was less than three weeks into his third tour in Afghanistan. He was a Special Forces Army Ranger.
(snip)
Military officials told the family there were two attacks in Afghanistan on Monday, both of which may have involved Grochowiak, his brother said.
Family and friends knew Casey Grochowiak as a warmhearted father, active athlete and harmless prankster.
He graduated from Horizon Christian Fellowship, in San Diego, where played football. He also enjoyed surfing, baseball and snowboarding.
“There were definitely some pranks pulled over the years, but he was also very honorable,” said Joel Savell, a childhood friend. “When push came to shove, he would always do the right thing. He had a lot of love for a lot of people.”
After high school, Grochowiak did construction work and tried community college.
(snip)
Grochowiak was inspired to enlist by the large military presence in San Diego and by the fact that his father, Edward, was a retired Navy officer.
Once enlisted, he was determined to become an Army Ranger. A knee injury derailed his first attempt at Ranger school, his brother said, but he came back 18 months later to try again.
That time, he succeeded.
Source ~ San Diego Union Tribune
Staff Sgt. Grochowiak is survived by his wife, Celestina, and by their two children, son Deegan, 6, and daughter Matia, 14.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Thank you, Staff Sgt. Grochowiak. Godspeed. Your mission is done.
* * * * *
Lance Cpl. Christopher B. Rodgers, 20, of Griffin, Georgia
Lance Cpl. Rodgers died Sept. 1 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
He was 11 years old on 9/11. After watching the attacks on television, he told his family he would one day join the Marines.
According to family friend Allison Moore, a representative from the Marine Corps told the family of Lance Cpl. Christopher Blake Rodgers, 20, that he and his unit had been on patrol in the Helmand Province at 11 a.m. Afghan time when he was shot in the back of his left shoulder. Moore said either the shooter knew this was where the armor is weakest or it was a fluke.
A Navy medic with the unit administered aid and evacuated Rodgers back to the base. He was still alive when they arrived, but died soon afterward. Moore said the Marine Corps said Rodgers bled to death.
(snip)
Rodgers He graduated from Spalding High School in 2008, where he spent all four years in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program. He joined the Marine Corps in October 2008.
(snip)
(Rodgers) had wanted to be on the front lines.
“That was his lifelong dream,” Moore said. “He died doing what he loved.”
Source ~ Griffin Daily News
The students at Spalding High School held a moment of silent in Lance Cpl. Rodgers’ honor on Friday.
Lance Cpl. Rodgers is survived by his parents, Chris and Jane, and by his sister, Emily.
Funeral arrangements are being handled by the Haisten McCullough Funeral Home, 1155 Everee Inn Road, Griffin, Georgia.
Thank you, Lance Cpl. Rodgers. Godspeed. Your mission is done.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Remember them. Honor their sacrifice.
To date, 4416 members of the United States military have lost their lives in Iraq. The death toll thus far in 2010 is 46. More than 40,000 members of the military have been wounded, many grievously. The Department of Defense Press Releases, from which the information at the start of each entry in this diary was drawn, can be seen here. The death toll among Iraqis is unknown, but is at least 200,000 and quite probably many times that number.
To date, 1274 members of the United States military have lost their lives in Afghanistan. The death toll thus far for 2010 is 327. 789 members of the military from other countries have also lost their lives.
Assisting our military: Supporting our troops is the RIGHT THING to do.
You can send a care package. Please consider brightening the day of a soldier with a care package.
You can write letters.
You can send a cup of organic coffee.
You can find other ways to give at anysoldier.com or Fisher House. If you have frequent flyer miles you would like to donate to hospitalized veterans or their families, please see Fisher House’s Hero Miles program.
You can help the left-behind animal companions of our troops. See how here.
And don’t forget them when they get home! Read welcomebackveterans.org to learn what you can do. Visit VoteVets and IAVA.
About the IGTNT series:
(Our beautiful logo was created by kossack Timroff. Thank you, Timroff.)
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. It is one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is currently maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, Proud Mom and Grandma, CalNM, Wide Awake in KY, maggiejean, racheltracks and me, noweasels.
If you would like to contribute to the series, even once a month, please contact Sandy on Signal, or me, 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.
As you read this diary, please consider that the families and friends of those profiled here also may read it and that many members of our community have served in Iraq or Afghanistan or have loved ones currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. As the very proud daughter of a Navy pilot, and the granddaughter of a Marine pilot and a submariner ~ all of whom rest beneath our nation‘s flag ~ I hope that the comments tonight will demonstrate our respect for the sacrifices of our fallen military and our compassion for their families. Please reserve political and other comments for appropriate diaries; this is not one of them.