Flags and hearts in the Port Allegany, Pennsylvania School District are at half mast as they mourn the loss of Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini. Their loss is much more than the death of a local Guardsman, solider, sailor, medic. Their loss is of their beloved school nurse who served his students and his country equally with compassion and love.
Please join me in celebrating the life of a much-loved man who gave all.
Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini, 52, Eldred PA
From the DoD:
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini, 52, of Wilcox, Pa., died Jan. 11 in San Antonio of wounds suffered on Jan. 2 in Khowst Province, Afghanistan, when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard Medical Detachment, Erie Clinic, Erie, Pa.
Lt. Col. Berrettini had survived the IED attack that killed Sgt. Shawn F. Hill, 37, of Wellford, South Carolina on Jan. 2 (see noweasel’s poignant tribute to the fine man here). After the attack Lt. Col. Berrettini was airlifted from Afghanistan through Germany to Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas fighting to live for 10 days. On Jan. 11 he succumbed to his injuries.
Lt. Col. Berrettini, a nurse practitioner, was assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard Medical Detachment, Erie Clinic. He volunteered to serve in Afghanistan and was assigned to the South Carolina National Guard. As a civilian, Berrettini was a Port Allegheny High School nurse for the past seven years and before that an elementary school nurse for seven years. He was a former active duty sailor and joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 1984.
His twelve-month tour of active duty was to end at the end of this month. He was on one of his final missions in the Khost province (near the Pakistani border) when his vehicle hit the IED.
During his deployment he kept in touch with his students. Now, among Lt. Col. Berrettini’s legacy is this bio on the Port Allegany High School website:
Advice to students: Don’t give up. Keep fighting to realize your dreams.
Lt. Col. Berrettini is survived by his wife, Jane; mother, Doris; brother, Nello; and two sons Vincent, 26, and Christopher, 22.
He must have been very proud of his sons. Vincent is a U.S. Air Force Academy graduate and an Air Force pilot. Christopher is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Pennsylvania’s state adjutant general issued this
statement:
"Lt. Col. Berrettini was a committed and dedicated soldier who deeply cared for his fellow service members," said Maj. Gen. Jessica L. Wright, state adjutant general. "We mourn the loss of Richard, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family during this very trying time. He represented the best of our commonwealth and country, and he made the ultimate sacrifice."
The Scranton Times Tribune reported on the reaction at Port Allegany High School, first upon hearing of his injuries and then his passing:
Lt. Col. Berrettini’s colleagues at Port Allegany High School were aware of his injuries but had believed he would pull through.
The news of his death arrived with a shock at about noon Friday and trickled to some students through text messages and cell phone calls, according to Tony Flint, the superintendent of the Port Allegany School District.
An official announcement to students will come today, and grief counselors will be available.
"Most of our previous information was that he had severe and significant injuries, but that he was making a recovery," Mr. Flint told Times-Shamrock newspapers on Sunday.
"He was a good man," Mr. Flint said. "He stressed the importance of education, the importance of community service and the importance of military service."
And from The Buffalo News:
He had kept in touch with Flint and others in the district, e-mailing photos of himself working with Afghan students as part of his military mission, Flint said.
His last e-mail to Flint, sent just before Christmas, noted that Berrettini would be finished with his tour of duty in a few short weeks.
The community of Port Allegany is in a state of shock and disbelief at the new of the loss of Lt. Col. Berrettini, according to The Bradford Era:
The "folks back home" had been picturing the Port Allegany high school nurse recovering from his wounds at Brooke Army Hospital in Texas. They were stunned and saddened to learn that his struggle for life had been lost.
Brooke Army Hospital is said to be the military hospital of choice for treatment of severe burns, using state-of-the-art techniques.
A former colleague, retired teacher Ron Caskey, said, "He was a very good man — very professional, somebody they trusted. He was a confidante. They could go to him with a problem.
"I had the opportunity to work with him on some delicate issues. He was sensitive to others, never condescending."
High school teacher George Riley, a close friend of the Berrettini, said most of the teachers found out after school was dismissed Friday. Some students probably knew by means of cell phone messages.
Riley said high school Principal Marc Budd and the guidance office were arranging to have grief counselors on hand today, knowing that students would be trying to cope with strong feelings of grief and loss.
Budd said, "This is a tragedy. He was extraordinary as a colleague and a friend, and he was a great mentor.
"(Mr. Berrettini) always talked about his family," Budd continued. "My heart goes out to his family. They are in our thoughts and our prayers."
And the accolades and reflections on the loss of Lt. Col. Berrettini continue to pour in. Again from the The Bradford Era:
Guidance counselor Kathy Jeselnick said of Berrettini, "He epitomized professionalism. And he knew his stuff. He was an excellent resource to go to, and shared his knowledge. For example, (he would explain) what we should understand about diabetes and how it could affect a student. He was always really helpful."
As to the grief counseling, Jeselnick said she and the other member of her department, Dan Eskesen, would be available to students and also have arranged for the availability of other supportive services.
--snip--
Staff Sgt. Michael Nelson of Port Allegany, a National Guard recruiter and a friend of Berrettini, said, "It just hurts. It was a blow."
Nelson, like Berrettini, has been part of the 1st. Battalion/112th Infantry. He noted, "Rich had his 20 years in. He didn’t have to go."
This beautiful tribute from a Guardsman who was much more than a colleague, helps us understand what a heroic battlefield nurse he was and that despite his seniority he insisted on getting deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. Again from The Bradford Era:
Another long time National Guard member and recruiter, Steve Appleby recalled meeting Berrettini in the early 1990s. As years went by the two became buddies and colleagues. Appleby sometimes visited him in the nurse suite at the high school.
"He was our battalion’s medical officer," Appleby said. "He provided the medical coverage when we were in the woods, training.
"I am heartsick," he continued. "(Berrettini) was a fantastic guy. He had 27 years in the military. He was one of the finest officers I ever met."
Noting that Berrettini was "the top ranking nurse in the entire Pennsylvania National Guard," Appleby explained that Berrettini was in charge of all the other nurses, and helped administer the program and train nurses for their vital work, especially in deployment and in battle.
"As a recruiter I wasn’t allowed to go to Iraq, and in his senior position he was not," Appleby said. "He complained bitterly and insisted that he wanted to go to Iraq or Afghanistan.
"He wanted to go over there, to do his job," Appleby said of Berrettini. "Sometimes it seems to be the finest among us that we lose.
Steve Appleby, Lt. Col. Berrettini’s good friend and colleague, went on to describe what a fine Guardsman, nurse, mentor and human being he was:
"This will ripple throughout the National Guard," Appleby predicted. "He was loved by the soldiers. You train as you fight. He was an excellent officer for developing his younger troops."
Appleby and others who spoke of Berrettini described him as modest, someone who never sought the limelight. "He was focused on the other person, and on the job," Appleby recalled.
Appleby noted that Berrettini had doubtless saved a good number of lives, in combat conditions as well as by the excellent training he provided to other nurses who would serve in combat situations. Appleby said that besides the dramatic life-saving work medical staff provide in combat or for the wounded, medical personnel help to maintain the health and fitness of the other troops.
Appleby said his friend "was in great shape. He always kept in good condition." Berrettini enjoyed outdoor sports, hunting and fishing, as well as running. The Port Allegany High School Web site states that the nurse’s motto was "Carpe diem: seize the day!"
Berrettini’s 12-month tour of active duty would have ended later this month. While in Afghanistan he had also worked with native children.
Tributes to Lt. Col. Berrettini are quickly appearing on the Internet, including here and
here. And then there’s this comment from the mother of a child Lt. Col. Berrettini tended to at Port Allegany High School:
I am at a loss for words Mr.B was a real good person an exellent nurse practioner and a nurse at the high school my daughter just loved to go see him at the doctors office. My heartfelt condolences go out to his family and friends and his co-workers may god be with you during this difficult time you are all in my prayers..
Finally, Lt. Col. Berrettini’s brother gave an interview to the Wilkes-Barre citizensvoice.com:
Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini loved to help people, and that’s how he died, his brother says.
The Army nurse’s final months were spent treating comrades and civilians throughout Afghanistan in his first deployment of a decades-long military career.
"He enjoyed the mission. He felt he was making an impact, particularly with helping the children there," his brother Nello Berrettini said. "He’ll always be a hero to me."
--snip--
"How do you describe it? You become devastated. These things aren’t supposed to happen," Nello Berrettini, 55, said.
The Pittston Area graduate volunteered for duty in Afghanistan. Though he was a medic, his job was no less dangerous than that of trained fighters, his brother said.
"The bottom line is, in the Army, everybody is an infantryman when it comes down to it," Nello Berrettini said.
--snip--
In recent months, Berrettini had told relatives about an upswing in violence in Afghanistan, but remained positive about his role, Nello Berrettini said.
"When they had begun escalating, he did say there were incidents occurring," he said.
--snip--
Nello Berrettini said he’d miss the hunting trips he went on with his younger brother.
"I’ll remember all the grouse covers we busted. We didn’t have dogs. We took turns busting the brush. We went every chance we got."
Lt. Col. Berrettini will be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge. With his mission complete, the Patriot Guard Riders will be supporting the family during funeral services.
May the family, friends, Port Allegany students and community and all who served with Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini find the strength to continue on and may they always carry their special memories of him in their broken hearts.
The video is a tribute to the brave medics and corpsmen who have given their lives in service to their country. Please take a moment to honor the memory of Lt. Col. Richard J. Berrettini, "Rich", "Mr. B.", as well as too many other service men and women who have passed through this world much too quickly.
You can view the stories and remembrances of these heroes at sites such as Iraq Veterans Memorial and Honor the Fallen.
Regarding Iraq, the Department of Defense has confirmed 3,923 deaths, according to Iraq Coalition Casualty Count. 480 American troops have died in Afghanistan since 2001.
To support our military service members and veterans, please visit AnySoldier.com, StandUp4Vets.org and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, as well as Welcome Back Veterans.org.
they will always be young
they will always be beautiful
they will be in our hearts
they have become part of our souls
we will carry them with us always
and meet in the fullness of time.
(thank you labwitchy)
About the IGTNT series:
IGTNT stands for "I Got the News Today." The phrase is meant to symbolize that terrible knock on the door that any number of families got today, bringing with it the news that a loved one has died. IGTNT is a diary series intended to honor, respect and remind.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is currently maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, MsWings, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, moneysmith, labwitchy, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn and me, greenies.
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Fallen soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen and National Guard whose names have been released by the Department of Defense will usually be diaried two days after the official announcement on the DoD website. This allows the IGTNT team to cover each fallen service member 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 chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.