In Memoriam

[Grace]

#7

6 August 2011

36-year-old US Navy SEAL Kevin Houston was among the Special Forces fatalities when a Chinook helicopter crashed in Wardak province, Afghanistan on 6th August 2011.

Friends and family have recalled how Houston overcame many hurdles in his life to realise his childhood dream to be a Navy SEAL. At high school, he broke his back in a motorcycle accident. His parents divorced when he was young and he lost his sister, Miranda, to cancer. Despite it all, he joined the Navy as a teenager and became a SEAL in 1999.

He leaves his wife, Meiling, and their three children - two boys and a girl, ages 3, 11 and 17.

Article from hometown radio station.

[Grace]

#8

6 August 2011

28-year-old USAF Airman Daniel Zerbe was killed in action on 6th August 2011 in Wardak province, Afghanistan, when the Chinook helicopter he was in crashed, killing all on board.

Airman Zerbe was a Special Ops Para-rescue jumper, a position that is reserved for an elite few, who was trained to save the lives of injured soldiers.

The helicopter with 30 American Special Forces troops and 7 Afghan Commandos on board, was tasked with helping Army Rangers who were engaged in a battle with enemy forces. As the helicopter was landing, it reportedly took a direct hit from a rocket-propelled grenade.

Airman Zerbe, from Philadelphia, was living his dream military career according to family and friends.

Article from hometown paper.

[Grace]

From ABC, Faces of the Fallen . . . . 20 of them here.


http://abcnews.go.com/US/slideshow/f...opter-14270067

[Grace]

#9

6 August 2011

US Army Specialist Alexander Bennett was killed in action on 6th August 2011 in Wardak province when his Chinook helicopter was shot down by enemy forces. He was serving with the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment.

23-year-old Spc. Bennett was a Chinook helicopter flight mechanic with the Army Reserve. He had previously served in Iraq in 2009. After returning home to Tacoma, Washington from Iraq, he moved to Kansas to join the unit based at New Century AirCenter.

Lt. Col. Richard Sherman, the former commander of Bravo Company, 7th Battalion, told local news that Spc. Bennett had a reputation as a prankster. “He was a typical young kid and liked to go out and have a good time with the guys,” Sherman said. “He never pranked me but then again at the time I was a major so specialists tend to not make majors their targets for pranks.”

[Grace]

#10

6 August 2011

US Navy Chief Petty Officer Brian R. Bill was killed in action on 6th August 2011 when a Chinook helicopter he was in was shot down by enemy forces in Wardak province.

He joined the US Navy in June 2001. On completion of his basic training in Illinois, he attended and completed Basic Underwater Demolition training in California. In 2003, his ambition was realised when he was assigned to an East Coast Navy SEAL team based at Virginia Beach.

Chief Petty Officer Bill earned his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Stamford and Norwich University in Norwich. He was also fluent in French and had studied Russian. He also held a commercial pilot's license.

During his career he was awarded three Bronze Stars with Valor, a Joint Service Commendation Medal with Valor, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, two Combat Action Ribbons and three Good Conduct Medals.

[Grace]

#11

6 August 2011

US Navy Chief Petty Officer Robert James Reeves was killed in action on 6th August 2011 when the Chinook helicopter he was in was shot down by enemy forces in Wardak province, Afghanistan.

CPO Reeves died along with his friend and colleague Lt. Commander Jonas Kelsall. Both men were born in Shreveport.

[Grace]

10 August 2011

23-year-old US Marine Corporal Nicholas S. Ott, died on 10th August 2011 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

Cpl Ott, from Manchester, NJ, served with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, based at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. He joined the Marine Corps in September 2007. This was his first deployment to Afghanistan.

His awards include two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and three Sea Service Deployment Ribbons.