Bereavement in their death to feel
Whom We have never seen –
A Vital Kinsmanship import
Our Soul and theirs – between –
--Emily Dickinson
Note: This is a sister to the diary posted earlier by IGTNT diarist SisTwo. Please go here to view.
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced the deaths of four soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died Aug. 1 in Asadabad, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered in Chowkay Valley, Afghanistan, when their vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device:
Please join me below the fold to honor these unseen young men with whom we most certainly share a kinship.
The DoD notice continues:
Pfc. David J. Badie, 23, of Rockford, IL who was assigned to the Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
2nd Lt. Michael R. Girdano, 23, of Apollo PA, who was assigned to the Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
Spc. William J. Mulvihill, 20, of Leavenworth, KS who was assigned to the Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
Pvt. Jair De Jesus Garcia, 29, of Chatsworth, CA who was assigned to the 6th Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team.
All were from 1st Infantry Division, Ford Hood, Texas.
Pvt. Jair de Jesus Garcia
From the Los Angeles Daily News:
Maria Luisa Avneri got a call early Friday from her son, U.S. Army Pvt. Jair De Jesus Garcia, stationed in Afghanistan.
"I'm OK, just going on a little mission now," the 29-year-old soldier told his mother. "So if you don't hear from me for a couple of days, don't worry, I'll be back."
That night, her heart filled with joy when she spotted a man in a green uniform walking toward her house. Was it Jair? Was his "little mission" a surprise trip home to visit mom? Hardly able to contain her excitement, she called to her husband to come to the door.
Just then, another soldier stepped into view. Within an instant, she no longer wanted to open the door.
"I knew what they were coming to say," Avneri said.
There was an explosion, they told her, and her youngest son was dead.
Pvt. Jair de Jesus Garcia died in an explosion of an improvised explosive device (IED) that also took the lives of his comrades, Pfc. David Badie, Spc. William Mulvihill and 2nd Lt. Michael Girdano in Afghanistan on August 1.
Jair Garcia was an enthusiastic member of the L.A. Riot Squad (LARS) — a fan group supporting the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer club. His brother posted the following on the group's message board:
I really don't know where to put this so please where everyone can see, sp please bare with me......This past Friday my little baby brother "Jairzhino" (board name) was killed in Afghanistan, normally I wouldn't' say anything as I do like to keep my privacy. I only mention this to you all because most of you knew him and I don't have a way of contact everyone individually, he was with the Riot Squad from day one and was with us and as such I think you all should know.
I love him dearly as my own son not a brother and as much as I would disagree putting this out this way, I think letting all you know is something he would of wanted.
My personal feelings on the matter of war, and everything associated with it aside I just wanted to share with you all that I was very proud of him and his accomplishments and our family and I don't want him to be just another statistic and forgotten. – Gunner
From the messages left on the LARS board, it is quite apparent that Jair Garcia was beloved and admired.
According to the Daily News story, Garcia "was once an assistant soccer coach at Fulton College Preparatory in Van Nuys. "He believed in the kids," said his brother Eddie Garcia, "and did everything he could to mentor them and keep them on a positive path. When he was with them, he was able to fit in as one of the guys. The kids loved him, he loved the kids."
The article explains Garcia’s decision to join the Army was driven by his feelings about the state of the world and felt he had to do something about it.
"He really believed in what he was doing, " Eddie Garcia said. "We were very supportive of him. We understood that this is what made him the happiest."
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered the flags flown at half-staff over the California state capitol to specifically honor Garcia.
"Jair de Jesus Garcia was a brave soldier who fought courageously in defense of our nation’s freedom. His sacrifice, service and loyalty to our country will never be forgotten," Schwarzenegger said.
In addition to soccer and football, Jair Garcia was also a fan of the arts, specifically opera. The Daily News describes a specific memory of his mother’s, when she took him as a child to see Madame Butterfly.
"He saw the part when the son is taken away from the mother and he started crying, "she said. "He was a beautiful baby. He’ll always be a beautiful baby to me."
In addition to his mother and father, Jair Garcia is survived by his wife and nine year old son, two brothers and a sister.
Eddie Garcia told the Daily News, "Him and I had this thing where no matter how upset we were, whenever we left a room, no matter how pissed off or how upset we were, the last thing we would say is we love each other. That’s just how he was with everybody."
You will be missed, Pvt. Jair de Jesus Garcia. Be at peace.
Spc. William J. Mulvihill
Twenty-year-old William J. Mulvihill of Leavenworth, KS always planned on serving his country, according to his family in an interview with MyFox Kansas City News. A graduate of Leavenworth High School where he was a member of the ROTC, William Mulvihill, known as Billy by his family and friends, followed in the footsteps of his older brother...sort of. Where his brother joined the Air Force, Billy joined the Army. Their younger brother is planning to join the Marines.
The interview features Charles Raney, who raised Billy since he was a baby. Mr. Raney says that the thing he remembers most is Mulvihill’s good nature.
In Afghanistan for only a month, Mulvihill died while his team was clearing a road of IEDs. Mr. Raney told My Fox he hopes "we exercise our freedoms with responsibility" as a way to honor his son’s sacrifice.
Mulvihill is survived by his mother and father, two brothers and a sister.
Be at peace, Spc. William J. Mulvihill.
2nd Lt. Michael R. Girdano
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Michael Girdano’s family watched him achieve his life-long dream when he graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in May 2007.
He had attended a West Point football game when he was ten and "seemed captivated by the tradition of the academy’s storied Long Gray Line," said Robert Jackson, Sr. of Apollo, PA – a long-time family friend, told Pittsburgh Live. "As soon as we got there, he said he loved the whole experience. I knew then he wanted to go to West Point. He started telling everyone that going there was his dream."
Girdano was a captain of the football team at Apollo-Ridge High School, where he also was a member of the baseball team. He was also a member of the National Honor Society and other academic clubs.
A friend and fellow West Point graduate, who has himself served two tours in Iraq between 2003 and 2006, Robert Jackson, Jr. told Pittsburgh Live:
"He was better than me in high school, a better cadet at West Point and would have been a better Army officer if given the opportunity. He was a free spirit and lived life as if his time here was short. He has few acquaintances because most who have met him have become lifelong friends. Mikey will be missed by many and our world is surely darker without him.
Former superintendent at Apollo-Ridge, Bill Kerr, told Pittsburgh Live that Michael Girdano "was so giving to others. He had a heart of gold. This is a great loss to our community and our country."
Michael Girdano is survived by his parents, a sister, a brother and both sets of grandparents.
Be at peace, 2nd Lt. Michael Girdano.
Pfc. David J. Badie
Just before leaving for Afghanistan, David Badie was visiting his family in Rockford, IL. In a conversation with his step-father Daniel Morgan, Badie asked Morgan to tell his family how much he loved them if he were to be wounded or killed, according to GaetteXtra.com.
"He enjoyed what he was doing and was proud to be in the Army," Morgan said. "At the same time, he knew the risks. He wanted to remind me how very much he cared for his brothers and sisters. He asked me to tell them that if the worst happened."
Badie’s sister, Kassandra, 18, told the Chicago Tribune that her brother had found structure in the Army and planned to attend college when his enlistment ended. She said his deployment worried the family, but he wanted to serve his country. "He was very proud that he was doing it."
However, the Rockford Register Star reports that Pvt. Badie’s mother, Netha Morgan, said her son died doing what he wanted to do, but would never have joined the military if he hadn’t been "enticed" to do so.
Mrs. Morgan told the Rockford Registerthat her son wanted to go to college and become a history teacher, but that was a dream that was financially impossible until recruiters offered him a $6000 bonus to apply to college.
"I’m angry, I’m hurt and my heart is shredded," she told them.
In January 2008, Badie posted the following blog on his MySpace page:
random thoughts
when u know that something serious is hanging over ur head like life and death and u know that sometimes ur life will be put into someone else's hands u start having some weird thoughts like if something were to happen to me right this instant would I be happy with the way I have lived my life who would care if this is the way I went out am I doing this because I believe in it or because someone else told me 2 then u start to think that I have too much to live for and this isn't the way for an american soldier to go so u trust the people next to u as they trust u with their lives u pull together to complete the mission and come home alive to fix any wrong doings that may have been done in the past to see ur family and friends again.
(JeNoCo's Note: I thought this was so sad and yet so beautiful I was quite moved to include it in this diary.)
David Badie celebrated his 23rd birthday two days before his death. He is survived by his mother, stepfather, two sisters and a brother.
Be at peace, Pfc. David Badie.
About "I Got the News Today" (IGTNT) I Got the News Today is a diary series intended 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.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno and which is maintained by Sandy on Signal, noweasels, MsWings, greenies, blue jersey mom, chacounne, twilight falling, moneysmith, labwitchy, joyful, roses, SisTwo, monkeybiz, mediaprof and me, JeNoCo.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.