In Memoriam

[phesina]

Thank you for posting these, Gretchen.

[Grace]

Thank you for posting these, Gretchen.

You're most welcome, Pat.

[Grace]

Monday was a really bad day.
July 6, 2009

The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of 2 soldiers supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Pfc. Nicolas H. J. Gideon, 20, of Murrieta, Calif., died July 6 at Forward Operating Base Salerno, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered earlier that day in Paktya, Afghanistan, when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms and rocket-propelled grenade fires. He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.


Capt. Mark A. Garner, 30, of North Carolina, died July 6 in Argandab District, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels, Germany.

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The Department of Defense announced today the death of four soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died July 6 in Konduz, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle.

Killed were:

2nd Lt. Derwin I. Williams, 41, of Glenwood, Ill. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 106th Cavalry Regiment, Dixon, Ill.

Sgt. Brock H. Chavers, 25, of Bulloch, Ga. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment, Americus, Ga.

Spc. Chester W. Hosford, 35, of Hastings, Minn. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 106th Cavalry Regiment, Dixon, Ill.

Spc. Issac L. Johnson, 24, of Columbus, Ga. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 108th Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition Squadron, Rome, Ga.

[Grace]

July 7, 2009

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Spc. Christopher M. Talbert, 24, of Galesburg, Ill., died July 7 in Shindad, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 130th Infantry Regiment, Marion, Ill.

[Grace]

July 8, 2009

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Darren Ethan Tate, 21, of Canyon, Texas died of non-hostile causes July 8 at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. He was assigned to the USS Iwo Jima, and deployed as an Individual Augmentee to Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan.

[Grace]

3 more from July 8, 2009

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Michael C. Roy, 25, of North Fort Myers, Fla., died July 8 while supporting combat operations in Nimroz province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 3d Marine Special Operations Battalion, Marine Special Operations Advisor Group, Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

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The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Pvt. Lucas M. Bregg, 19, of Wright City, Mo., died July 8 in Baghdad, Iraq, of injuries suffered from a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.

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The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Spc. Gregory J. Missman, 36, of Batavia, Ohio, died July 8 at Bagram, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained elsewhere in Afghanistan, when enemy forces attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 704th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

[Grace]

And then there is this - perhaps the saddest of all.

The Army released suicide data for the month of June today. Among active-duty soldiers there were no confirmed suicides and nine potential suicides. In May, the Army reported one confirmed suicide and 16 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since that time, seven have been confirmed and nine remain under investigation.

There have been 88 reported active-duty suicides in the Army during calendar year 2009. Of these, 54 have been confirmed, and 34 are pending determination of manner of death. For the same period in 2008, there were 67 confirmed suicides among active-duty soldiers.