The last days of September saw three US Army men killed while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Two were stationed in the Philippines and the other man was in Afghanistan.
"Bronze Bruce, the Special Forces memorial statue outside the USASOC Headquarters building at Fort Bragg, N.C., overlooks the U.S. flag as it flies at half-mast Oct. 2, in honor of Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Shaw and Staff Sgt. Jack Martin. Both Soldiers, who were Special Forces sergeants serving with 3rd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) from Fort Lewis, Wash., died when their vehicle struck an improvised explosive device Sept. 29 on Jolo Island, Philippines."
Photo by Sgt. Tony Hawkins, USASOC PAO
~~ from the USASOC News site
While "Bruce" gazes at the lowered flag with unseeing eyes, there are all to many tonight who are seeing similar sights in their own hometowns. Tonight we stand with them and mourn.
Those lost to our nation, who are being honored tonight, are:
• Sergeant 1st Class Christopher D. Shaw from Illinois
• Staff Sergeant Jack M. Martin, III from Oklahoma
• Staff Sergeant Alex French, IV from Georgia
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Sergeant 1st Class Christopher D. Shaw
A native of Natchez, Mississippi, Christopher Shaw enlisted in the U.S. Army reserve in November of 1994 while attending Texas Southern University in Houston on a track and field scholarship. In May 1995, he decided to put his education on hold and joined the active-duty Army as a forward observer.
Upon completion of basic training, advanced individual training, and the U.S. Army Airborne School, Shaw was assigned as a fire support specialist to 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Lewis, Washington.
In 1997, Shaw volunteered for the Special Forces Assessment and Selection course and completed the Special Forces Qualification Course in March 1999. Shaw was then assigned to 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Lewis, Washington. He later served as an instructor at the Special Forces Qualification Course at Camp Mackall, North Carolina. and subsequently returned to 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Lewis, Washington.
Shaw was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Wash. and was deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines. This was his second deployment in support of that operation.
On September 29th, Sergeant Shaw was on Jolo Island, Philippines, working with members of the Filipino military on a project to build a school. A homemade bomb exploded by his Humvee. He and another passenger, Staff Sergeant Martin, were both killed in the incident. Shaw was 37 years old at the time. One Filipino soldier was also killed, and two more were wounded.
This exerpt is taken from the Clarion Ledger site:
Shaw was a cross-country track star at Natchez High School. "I think he held the state record at one time," recalled classmate Kareem West. "He was maybe one of the best track stars ever at the school."
He called the news shocking. "He was really a nice guy," West said. "He was well liked."
...The soldiers had been working on a school construction project on Jolo Island, a poor, predominantly Muslim region where Americans have been providing combat training and weapons to Filipino troops battling Abu Sayyaf militants. The Philippine military suspects the group was behind the attack.
Christopher Shaw earned a Bachelor of Science degree in history from Thomas Edison State College in Trenton, New Jersey. His military education includes the U.S. Army Airborne School, U.S. Army Ranger Course, U.S. Army Jumpmaster Course, Basic Instructor Training Course, Advanced Non-commissioned Officer Course, Basic Non-commissioned Officer Course, Warrior Leader Course, Special Operations Target Interdiction Course, Combat Lifesaver Course, Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Course and the Special Forces Qualification Course.
Shaw’s awards and decorations include Meritorious Service Medals, the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medals, Army Good Conduct Medals, National Defense Service Medals, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Non-commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, the Meritorious Unit Citation and the Philippine Presidential Unit citation. Shaw earned the Special Forces tab, Ranger tab and the Parachutist Badge. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
Shaw is survived by his wife Attina and their children Darian Shaw, Erielle Smith, Jalyn Smith, Dante Shaw and Cydney Shaw of Fort Lewis, Washington. He is also survived by his mother and step-father Camille and Willie Felton of Chicago; his father Walter Owens of Port Wentworth, Georgia; two brothers, Orlando Shaw of Chicago, and Maurey Owens of Jackson, Mississippi; and two sisters Kenya Shaw of Chicago, and Gwen Owens of Atlanta, Georgia.
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Staff Sgt. Jack Mayfield Martin III
Jack Martin was born in Maquoketa, Iowa and was the youngest of five children. He grew up in Iowa and Oklahoma. He graduated from high school in Bethany, Oklahoma.
Martin entered military service in 2001 and was selected to attend the Special Forces Qualification Course in 2004. Upon completion of SFQC, he was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Lewis, Washington.
Staff Sergeant Martin was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Washington. and was deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines. This was Martin’s first deployment in support of OEF-P; he was a veteran of Operation Iraq Freedom.
On September 29th, Staff Sergeant Martin was on Jolo Island, Philippines, working on a school construction project. His Humvee struck an improvised explosive device (IED). He and another passenger, Sergeant Shaw, were both killed in the incident. Martin was 26 years old at the time. One Filipino soldier was also killed, and two more were wounded in the incident.
Jack Martin, Jr is quoted in the Des Moines Register:
"Both of his grandfathers served in the Army during World War II," Jack Martin Jr. told the Associated Press. "My father was a medic. ... I think that influenced him. Jack wanted to serve his country."
Staff Sergeant Martin’s military education includes the Basic Airborne Course, Warrior Leader Course, Basic Non-commissioned Officer Course, Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape Course and the Special Forces Qualification Course.
His awards and decorations include Army Achievement Medals, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Non-commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon and the Army Service Ribbon, the Special Forces tab, the Parachutist Badge and the Combat Infantryman Badge. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Martin is survived by his wife Ashley of Tacoma, Washington. He is also survived by his father and mother Jack and Cheryl Martin of Bethany, Oklahoma; and his brother, Abe, and three sisters Mandi, Amber and Abi.
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Staff Sergeant Alex French IV
Alex French, IV was from Georgia. Alex graduated from Baldwin High School in 1996 and enlisted in the Navy. He was honorably discharged in 2000 and took a job at Scott State Prison in Hardwick. In 2003, he started work at the sheriff’s office. He deployed with the 48th Brigade to Iraq from 2005 to 2006.
The Staff Sergeant's sisters are quoted by the Macon.com site:
Latoya French said she’ll always remember her brother telling her "not to sweat the small stuff" and to honor her word.
Even though Basley said she was older than her brother, Alex has always been protective of her and her sister.
"He was a rock," she said.
Both women said they’ll remember their brother’s smile and his way of cracking a joke to lighten a dark moment.
French’s current deployment started in May and took him to Afghanistan as a member of Company A, 1st Battalion, 121st Infantry. Staff Sergeant Alex French was scheduled to return home in May 2010 to his wife and three children.
Staff Sergeant Alex French, IV was killed by an improvised-explosive device (IED) on the morning of September 30th in Khowst, Afghanistan. The American flag at the sheriff's office, where French worked, has been flying at half-staff in his honor.
Sergeant French is survived by his wife, Shanoca. He also leaves behind twin 4-year-old daughters, Shaniya and Madison, and a 1-year-old son, Alex.
The Staff Sergeant’s father and grandfather went to Delaware to identify his body. The family expects his remains to be returned home to Georgia today.
******************************************************************
Helping our troops:
If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider Operation Helmet, or Fisher House. Sponsoring a deployed service member at TroopCarePackage.com can provide letters or care packages that make a real difference in a military person's life. To assist the animal companions of our deployed military, information is available here. Also, you could visit:
When our veterans come back home, they need jobs. Look at the programs of Hire Heroes USA and Welcome Back Veterans to see if you can help out. The new KINship Project has also been of help to our veterans and other Kossacks In Need.
About the IGTNT series:
"I Got the News Today" is a diary series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifice of our US troops. 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, rb137, and TrueBlueMajority. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for them.
Fallen service members whose names have been released by the US 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 person more fully, but still in a timely manner
|
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.