Tonight we are remembering the lives of three sevicemen who were killed in Afghanistan. These men were:
- Marine Sergeant Adan Gonzales Jr who was from California
- Marine Sergeant Joshua J. Robinson who was from Nebraska
- Army Sergeant Alessandro L. Plutino who was from New Jersey
Marine Sergeant Adan Gonzales Jr
Adan Gonzales Jr was from Bakersfield, California and was a graduate of Ridgeview High School. He grew up regularly attending church and helping with Mass. He was an active member of the youth group at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church.
Gonzales joined the Marine Corps and was an infantryman assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, at Camp Pendleton in Southern California. He had served for more than five years, including an earlier deployment to Iraq.
He was deployed to Afghanistan as part of an elite sniper platoon and had plans to attend sniper school early next year.
According to the Bakersfield Californian News site:
However, Father Chummar Chirayath of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church said he's known Adan for 16 years and watched him grow from a child into a man.
"He always came here to this church," Chirayath said Monday. "He helped with the Mass, as did the whole family."
Chirayath said he's spoken with the Gonzales family since they received the news, and he was on his way to visit them Monday night in hopes of bringing them some level of consolation.
"It's difficult," he acknowledged. "You hear about this happening in other communities, but when it happens in your own community, it's difficult."
On August the 7th, 28-year-old Sergeant Gonzales Jr. died after being hit by small arms fire in Helmand province. Another Marine, Sgt. Joshua Robinson, was killed during the same operation.
Both Gonzales and Robinson were members of Camp Pendleton's 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment which has lost at least nine men since the unit got to Afghanistan in late spring.
Sergeant Adan Gonzales leaves behind his parents, siblings, his wife and three young children, two girls and a boy.
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Marine Sergeant Joshua J. Robinson
Joshua J. Robinson was from Omaha, Nebraska. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in December of 2003. He was an infantryman assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, based out of Camp Pendleton, California. He deployed twice to Iraq previously.
Robinson's wife and two sons, ages 4 and 5, moved back to Bennington, Nebraska earlier this year to be close to family while he was deployed to Afghanistan.
Sergeant Joshua J. Robinson was shot twice in the left side of his chest while on patrol in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. He died August 7th from his wounds. He was 29 years old. A Marine from California, Sergeant Adan Gonzales Jr, was also killed in the same incident.
Awards given to Sergeant Joshua J. Robinson include the Combat Action Ribbon, Iraq Campaign Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Navy Unit Commendation, Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation, Humanitarian Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment with Four Bronze Stars, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with Bronze Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and NATO Medal ISAF-Afghanistan.
Among the survivers of the Marine Sergeant are his wife and sons. Funeral services have not been annouced.
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Army Sergeant Alessandro L. Plutino
Alessandro L. Plutino was known as "Sandrino" by his family. He graduated from New Jersey's Pitman High School in 2001. Plutino joined the Army in 2005 after graduating from Wilkes University in Pennsylvania.
According to the NJ.com News site:
Hammond said, in addition to his commitment and patriotism, her son could be remembered as the kid who always had a smile on his face.
“Even when he was very young, he could just walk into a room and capture it,” said Hammond. “He was special. And I know every mother’s son is special, but he really was. People have been coming here to the house all day, his friends, his buddies from the motorcycle group he rode with. He loved to ride, he played football and wrestled, he was an all-American boy.”
…Campbell noted, and Councilwoman Debra Higbee confirmed, that Plutino was not the first in his family to be honored among those lost. Navy veteran and Pitman resident Robert D. Hammond — an uncle of Plutino’s mother — was killed in action during World War II in 1944.
Last March, Plutino opted to continue his mission even though he was due home. The Rifle Team Leader in B Company, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, was serving his third tour in Afghanistan after serving three tours in Iraq. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia.
"Sandrino" called his family from Afghanistan on Sunday, because he knew they'd be worrying about him after news came out that 30 US service members were killed Saturday in a helicopter crash.
Army Ranger Plutino told them he was fine and would be coming back home in 15 days. The next day, Army officials rang the doorbell at 5:30 a.m. to give his mother news of her son's death.
On August 8th in Paktia province, Afghanistan, the Sergeant was killed by enemy gunfire while leading his fellow Rangers in an assault. He would have turned 29 this month.
Sergeant Plutino is survived by his mother, Dianne; father, Sandro; sister, Brenna, and his fiancée, Natalie Layton.
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Helping our troops:
If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider contributing to Fisher House. Donating to Netroots for the Troops provides care packages that make a real difference in a military person's life. To assist the animal companions of our deployed military, information is available here. Also, you could visit:
When our veterans come back home, they need jobs. Look at the programs of Hire Heroes USA and Welcome Back Veterans to see if you can help out.
About the IGTNT series:
”I Got the News Today” is a diary series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifice of our US troops. Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is maintained by Sandy on Signal, Monkeybiz, Noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, Twilight Falling, Joyful, SisTwo, Spam Nunn, True Blue Majority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Maggie Jean, Jax Dem, Kestrel 9000, & TheFatLadySings. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but show our community’s respect for those who have died.
Fallen service members whose names have been released by the US Department of Defense will usually be diarized two days after the official announcement on the DoD website. This allows the IGTNT team to cover each person more fully, but still in a timely manner.
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Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.