It has been a very difficult summer for US forces in the Middle East. Tonight we honor the memories of four more soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice. They are among the most recent of the 4334 members of the US military who have lost their lives in Iraq and the 713 military members who have lost their lives in the war in Afghanistan. Please follow me below the fold, as we remember the lives and sacrifices Spc. Matthew D. Hastings and Pfc. William Z. Vanosdol who lost their lives in Iraq and Staff Sgt. Clayton P. Bowen and Pfc. Morris L. Walker who were killed when their vehicle was destroyed by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan while they were trying to provide security for the Afghan elections.
The World War I poet, F. W. Bourdillon, wrote the following:
The Debt Unpayable
What have I given,
Bold sailor on the sea?
In earth or heaven,
That you should die for me?
What can I give,
O soldier, leal and brave,
Long as I live,
To pay the life you gave?
What tithe or part
Can I return to thee,
O stricken heart,
That thou shouldst break for me?
The wind of Death
For you has slain life's flowers,
It withereth
(God grant) all weeds in ours.
Today we honor four may to whom we owe an unpayable debt. These four men were willing to sacrifice everything for the country they loved.
On Thursday, the Department of Defense made the following announcement:
Spc. Matthew D. Hastings, 23, of Claremore, Okla., died Aug. 17 in Baghdad, Iraq, of injuries sustained from a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 582nd Medical Logistics Company, 1st Medical Brigade, 13th Sustainment Command, Fort Hood, Texas.
The circumstances surrounding Spc. Hasting's death are under investigation. Hastings was a 2005 graduate of the Broken Arrow Alternative Academy, and he joined the Military August of 2006. His mother reports that he had his share of "bumps in the road" as a teenager. Joining the military changed his life:
“He was so proud to be in the Army and he was so proud to serve our country.”...“He loved the structure of it,” [his mother] said. “He loved the honor of it.”
Spc. Hastings trained as a light vehicle mechanic, and he had been stationed at Fort Hood since February of 2007. He was deployed to Iraq in December of 2008 and visited his family for two weeks in Arpil of this year. His awards and decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, and the Overseas Service Ribbon.
Spc. Hastings is survived by his mother and step-father, Lawanda and Roger Lowey, his father, Clark Hastings, Jr., and a sister, Michelle Brazil.
Bless you, Spc. Hastings, for your service to our country. You are a hero.
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On Thurdsay, the Department of Defense also announced the following:
Pfc. William Z. Vanosdol, 23, of Pinson, Ala., died Aug. 19 at Ad Diwaniyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when enemy rocket fire struck his quarters. He was assigned to the 172nd Support Battalion, Schweinfurt, Germany.
Pfc. Vanosdel was a 2005 graduate of Pinson Valley High School in AL. He is the third Alabama servbicemember to lose his life in Iraq this year.
Vanosdol's family have not spoken to the media, and there is little additional information available. Vanosdol is survived by his mother and his two sisters. His father passed away in April of this year while Pfc. Vanosdol was deployed to Iraq.
A visitor to his guestbook wrote the following tribute:
The price Pfc. William Z. Vanosdol and his family have paid for this country and for freedom, Will Never Be Forgotten. Please know how Deeply Sorry I am to learn of the loss of your Brave Young Soldier.
May William, rest safely now, in the Loving Care of God and may the Peace of God be with the Vanosdol family.
There will Never Be Enough Ways to Humbly Thank these Young Heroes for their Sacrifices, my brother among them. Killed in action in Vietnam in 1967.
My prayers are for the Vanosdol family; they have suffered too many losses this year.
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It has been a very difficult month for US forces in Afghanistan, and two more casualties were announced Thursday. the Department of Defense reported:
The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died Aug. 18 in Paktika Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle. They were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.
Killed were:
Staff Sgt. Clayton P. Bowen, 29, of San Antonio, Texas.
Pfc. Morris L. Walker, 23, of Chapel Hill, N.C.
Three other soldiers suffered minor injuries in the incident.
Staff Sgt. Bowen is a Texas native who joined the army in 1998 when he was only 17. Before his deployment to Afghanistan, he had served as a drill sergeant and a shooting instructor. He was assigned to Fort Richardson early in 2009, and he was deployed to Afghanistan in February.
Bowen was an accomplished vocal musician. He was a member of the 82nd Airborne's All American Chorus for three years. He sang bass in this a cappella group, and he had the opportunity to meet celebrities including Faith Hill and Denzel Washington.
Bowen was always concerned about his fellow soldiers. His mother and step-father publish a construction industry newsletter. He asked them to print an ad asking for donations of tools. While he was stationed in Afghanistan, he received a rather unusual package.
Addressed to him, the package contained a collection of heavy-duty construction tools the soldiers later would use to improve living conditions at the crude desert outpost, where plywood huts serve as sleeping quarters.
“I've got connections,” Bowen, 29, explained....
This act of generosity was one of the last in a history of such displays, relatives said. ~source
Bowen was expected home in September to celebrate his 30th birthday. He is survived by his mother and step-father, Buddy and Reesa Doebbler.
Thank you, Staff Sgt. Bowen for your generosity of spirit. Our country is poorer for your loss.
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Pfc. Morris L. Walker was a native of Fayetteville, NC. In 2004, he graduated from the Fayetteville Academy where he had been a student from the 6th through the 12th grades. He was one of the school's graduation speakers in 2004, and his picture appears on the school's admissions brochure. He was also involved in community service, student government, and varsity basketball while he was a student at Fayetteville Academy. Walker visited the school before his deployment to Afghanistan.
The admissions director at the academy, Barbara Lambert remembers Walker:
"He was just a very special young man," Lambert said. "When you're able to watch a child mature and grow in so many different ways, it affords you to be more part of their lives. It affords you the chance to feel like you're a part of their family and they're a part of yours." ~source
His AP American history teacher said:
"When I think about Morris, I think about his love of family, his love of community," she said. "Fayetteville Academy really became Morris's extended family." ~snip
"Morris was very proud to be an American," Harry said. "I was not surprised he made the decision to join the military." ~source
Pfc. Walker attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2004 through 2008, and he received his degree in 2008. He joined the army in September of last year.
Walker's sister sent out an e-mail to friends and relatives notifying them of his death. She said that he had planned to go to law school.
Thank you, Pfc. Walker for your selfless sacrifice for our country. You were a gifted student, and our whole country is poorer for your loss.
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Poppies are the universal symbols of remembrance. May we never forget the sacrifices that these men made for our country.
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. Diaries about the fallen usually appear two days after their names are officially released, which allows time for the IGTNT team to find and tell their stories.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, greenies, blue jersey mom, chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, a girl in MI, JeNoCo, MediaProf, and rb137.
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.