In Memory...

This is borrowed from the 34th Inf. Division Website and
Design Copyright © 2007 Patrick Skelly, for the 34th Infantry Division Association.
For further Website information, contact webmaster@34infdiv.org.

The 'Vacant Chairs' of today's Desert Bulls.

We have seen, over the course of recent deployments that too many of our own soldiers - the 34th Infantry Division - have died in the U.S. Central Command theater. The recent losses are listed below.

We know, from our own experiences in World War II, what it means to lose a fellow Red Bull. To their families, their friends, their comrades still in harm's way, we present this small remembrance in their honor, in your honor.

Specialist Rhys W. Klasno, 20, of Riverside CA and the 1114th Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, died 13 May 2007 in Haditha, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

Staff Sergeant Robert J. Basham, 23, of Kenosha WI and Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 126th Field Artillery Regiment, died 15 April 2007 at Camp As Sayliyah, Doha, Qatar as a result of injuries from a non-combat incident.

Staff Sergeant Greg N. Riewer, 30, of Frazee MN and A Company, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment, died 23 March 2007 in Habbaniyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive devise detonated near his HMMWV during combat operations.

Sergeant Joshua A. Schmit, 26, of Willmar MN and the 1451st Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, died 14 April 2007 in Fallujah, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle.

Sergeant Brandon L. Wallace, 27, of St. Louis MO and the 1451st Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, died 14 April 2007 in Fallujah, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle.

Sergeant 1st Class David R. Berry, 37, of Wichita KS and A Battery, 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, died 22 February 2007 in Qasim, Iraq, when the vehicle he was in struck an improvised explosive device. Berry's 'home unit' was the 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery, Kansas Army National Guard, Dodge City, Kansas.

Sergeant Major Michael C. Mettille, 44, of West Saint Paul MN and the 134th Brigade Support Battalion, died 1 February 2007 from a non-combat related injury at Camp Adder, Iraq.

Specialist Carla J. Stewart, 37, of Sun Valley CA and 250th Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, died 28 January 2007 of injuries suffered in a convoy vehicle rollover in Tallil, Iraq.

Command Sergeant Major Marilyn L. Gabbard, 46, of Polk City IA and Joint Forces Headquarters, Iowa Army National Guard, Camp Dodge IA, died 20 January 2007 in the crash of a UH-60 helicopter in Baghdad, Iraq. Her death is noted here because of her close organizational connection with our division.

Staff Sergeant James Wosika Jr., 24, of Saint Paul MN and 1st Platoon, B Company, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment, was killed in action 9 January 2007 by a car bomb while conducting a vehicle search south of Camp Fallujah, Iraq.

Staff Sergeant Thomas W. Clemons, 37, of Leitchfield KY and the 1st Brigade Troops Battalion died 10 December 2006 of natural causes in Ad Diwaniyah, Iraq. Clemons' 'home' unit was the 2nd Battalion, 123rd Armor Regiment.

Sergeant Nicholas Turcotte, 23, of Maple Grove MN and A Company, 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry Regiment died on 4 December 2006 from injuries suffered north of Logistics Support Area Adder near Al Nasiriyah, Iraq. His M-1117 Armored Security Vehicle had been escorting a logistics convoy when it rolled over. The accident was not the result of enemy action and an investigation was conducted.

Sergeant Bryan T. McDonough, 22, of Maplewood MN and the 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment died on 2 December 2006 from injuries suffered in Al Anbar Province, Iraq. An improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV during security operations supporting the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group.

Sergeant Cory Rystad, 20, of Red Lake Falls MN and the 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment died on 2 December 2006 from injuries suffered in Al Anbar Province, Iraq. An improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV during security operations supporting the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group.

Staff Sergeant Scott E. Nisely, 48, of Marshalltown IA and C Company, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment was killed on 30 September 2006 near Al Asad, Iraq. He was part of a forward security element providing convoy security when insurgent forces attacked with small arms fire. Nisely had previously deployed for Operation Desert Storm as a USMC officer.

Specialist Kampha B. Sourivong of Iowa City IA and C Company, 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry Regiment, was killed in action 30 September 2006 near Al Asad, Iraq.

Sergeant Germaine "DB" Debro of Nebraska and B Troop, 1st Squadron, 167th Cavalry (RSTA), was killed in action 4 September 2006 near Tikrit, Iraq.* RSTA: Reconnaissance, Surveillance, Target Acquisition

Staff Sergeant Joshua Robert Hanson of Dent MN and A Company, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment, was killed in action 30 August 2006 near Khalidiyah, Iraq while supporting 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment.

Staff Sergeant Jeff Hansen of Cairo NE and B Troop, 1st Squadron, 167th Cavalry (RSTA), died 28 August 2006 near Balad, Iraq.

Sergeant Kyle R. Miller, 19, of Willmar, MN, a Signal Support System Specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment (Strike), was killed in action 29 June 2006 when a roadside bomb detonated near his vehicle south of Balad, Iraq.

Sergeant Brent W. Koch of Morton MN and 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment, was killed in action 16 June 2006 when a roadside bomb detonated near his cargo vehicle near Ad Dwaniyah, Iraq.

Specialist Benjamin J. Slaven, 22, of Plymouth NE and a HMMWV gunner for the 2nd Platoon, 308th Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, was killed in action 9 June 2006 when a roadside bomb exploded near his convoy near Ad Diwaniyah, Iraq.

Sergeant Daniel L. Sesker of Ogden IA and C Troop, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment, was killed in action 6 April 2006 near Baghdad, Iraq.

Sergeant Gregory L. Tull of Pocahontas IA and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 194th Field Artillery Regiment, was killed in action 25 November 2005 near Hit, Iraq, while assigned to the 155th Brigade Combat Team.

Specialist James C. Kearney III of Emerson IA and B Company, 1st Battalion, 168th Infantry Regiment, died 1 November 2004 of combat injuries near Sharan, Afghanistan.

"May they have no more hills to climb,
nor cold, nor rain, nor mud, nor enemy fire,
and may they now rest in Peace."

Welcome Home Redbulls

Ok, so it's a little late but better than never - I have been away for quite some time due to personal reasons - and I wanted to just give a big shout out to the Redbulls who have finally made it home!

WELCOME HOME!

Hello world!

Thanks to all of you who have been so great about sending me your support and kind words. I have been somewhat out of commission for these past couple of months due to personal problems - but plan to be back in full swing before very long. As it sits now, my internet access is sporadic to say the least.
I hope that all of you are still doing all you can to support our troops and their families. One of my own family members who came back from Iraq earlier this year will be leaving for Afghanistan soon, and there are others I care about still in Iraq, so I do not plan on abandoning my blogsite anytime in the near future. I apologize that the posts are so far behind; I hope to remedy that soon.
Until then, take care! And to all of my Redbull friends - you know who you are - hang in there!

Monsters and the Weak

Here's a terrific poem about the valor and commitment on display everyday in Iraq and Afghanistan by our warriors. I received it in an email from my uncle...

"Monsters and the Weak"
The sun beat like a hammer, not a cloud was in the sky.
The mid-day air ran thick with dust; my throat was parched and dry.
With microphone clutched tight in hand and cameraman in tow,
I ducked beneath a fallen roof, surprised to hear "stay low."
My eyes blinked several times before in shadow I could see,
the figure stretched across the rubble, steps away from me.
He wore a cloak of burlap strips, all shades of grey and brown,
that hung in tatters till he seemed to melt into the ground.
He never turned his head or took his eye from off the scope,
but pointed through the broken wall and down the rocky slope.
"About eight hundred yards," he said, his whispered words concise,
"beneath the baggy jacket he is wearing a device."
A chill ran up my spine despite the swelter of the heat,
"You think he's gonna set it off along the crowded street?"
The sniper gave a weary sigh and said "I wouldn't doubt it,"
"unless there's something this old gun and I can do about it."
A thunderclap, a tongue of flame, the still abruptly shattered;
while citizens that walked the street were just as quickly scattered.
Till only one remained, a body crumpled on the ground,
The threat to oh so many ended by a single round.
And yet the sniper had no cheer, no hint of any gloat,
instead he pulled a logbook out and quietly he wrote.
"Hey, I could put you on TV that shot was quite a story!"
But he surprised me once again -- "I got no wish for glory."
"Are you for real?" I asked in awe, "You don't want fame or credit?"
He looked at me with saddened eyes and said "you just don't get it."
"You see that shot-up length of wall, the one without a door?
before a mortar hit, it used to be a grocery store."
"But don't go thinking that to bomb a store is all that cruel,
the rubble just across the street -- it used to be a school.
The little kids played soccer in the field out by the road,"
His head hung low, "They never thought a car would just explode."
"As bad as all this is though, it could be a whole lot worse,"
He swallowed hard; the words came from his mouth just like a curse.
"Today the fight's on foreign land, on streets that aren't my own,"
"I'm here today 'cause if I fail, the next fight's back at home."
"And I won't let my Safeway burn, my neighbors dead inside,
don't wanna get a call from school that says my daughter died;
I pray that not a one of them will know the things I see,
nor have the work of terrorists etched in their memory."
"So you can keep your trophies and your fleeting bit of fame,
I don't care if I make the news, or if they speak my name."
He glanced toward the camera and his brow began to knot,
"If you're looking for a story, why not give this one a shot."
"Just tell the truth of what you see, without the slant or spin;
that most of us are OK and we're coming home again.
And why not tell our folks back home about the good we've done,
how when they see Americans, the kids come at a run."
You tell 'em what it means to folks here just to speak their mind,
without the fear that tyranny is just a step behind;
Describe the desert miles they walk in their first chance to vote,
or ask a soldier if he's proud, I'm sure you'll get a quote."
He turned and slid the rifle in a drag bag thickly padded,
then looked again with eyes of steel as quietly he added;
"And maybe just remind the few, if ill of us they speak,
that we are all that stands between the monsters and the weak."

It's Been Said...

"I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it." — ThomasJefferson

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." — Benjamin Franklin

"But a Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever." — John Adams

"It is seldom that liberty of any kind is lost all at once." — DavidHume

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and success of liberty." — JohnF. Kennedy

Back to blogging...

I am back. Sometimes life outside the blogging world must take precedent - I apologize for my absence -- it was both unexpected and unavoidable, but I am now back to blogging... A big thank-you to all of you who emailed me while I was away for your concerns, it's nice to be cared about. I love this blog and all that it symbolizes - I'm glad to be back and hopefully over the next few days I'll get caught up on everything that needs to be posted -- thanks again for your support!

WMD-Civil Support Teams

The Department of Defense notified Congress yesterday that Weapons of Mass Destruction-Civil Support Teams (WMD-CST) have been certified for four states.

These teams are fully ready to assist civil authorities in responding to a domestic weapon of mass destruction incident and possess the requisite skills, training, and equipment to be proficient in all mission requirements.

Congress has authorized a total of 55 WMD-CSTs, enough to field at least one team in every state, territory and the District of Columbia.

To learn more, click here.