We Shall Keep the Faith
Oh! you who sleep in Flanders Fields,
Sleep sweet - to rise anew!
We caught the torch you threw
And holding high, we keep the Faith
With All who died.
We cherish, too, the poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led;
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies,
But lends a lustre to the red
Of the flower that blooms above the dead
In Flanders Fields.
And now the Torch and Poppy Red
We wear in honor of our dead.Fear not that ye have died for naught;
We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought
In Flanders Fields.
by Moina Michael, November 1918
Tonight we remember a Marine and a Soldier, both of whom lost their lives in Afghanistan. Rest in peace Lance Cpl. Daniel J. Geary and Pfc. Adam J. Hardt.
Lance Cpl. Daniel J. Geary
From the Department of Defense:
Lance Cpl. Daniel J. Geary, 22, of Rome, N.Y., died March 20 while supporting combat operations in Farah province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
From the Marine Corps Times:
Geary was a high school dropout, but the drive to become a Marine — which he did in September 2006 — compelled him to return to Rome Free Academy and complete his studies, his father, Michael Geary, told local media. Just a few months later, in July 2007, Daniel Geary was off to Iraq, where he spent about seven months, according to the Corps.
From The Rome Sentinel:
"He was a good son. He wanted to join the Marines. He was going to re-enlist," Michael Geary said of Daniel, who had about 1 1/2 years remaining on his initial Marine commitment.
Geary was engaged to Rachel Patterson, who lives in North Carolina where he was based, said his father. Geary was hoping to get married to her when he was due back in the states in late May or early June, his father said. The immediate timing of the wedding would have been a surprise, Pray noted.
...
In 1995, as an 8-year-old, Geary pulled his 4-year-old sister from a burning bedroom and awakened his father when a fire began in their apartment at Wright Park Manor, according to a Daily Sentinel account from March 1, 1995. Smoke from the fire activated a detector, alerting Daniel Geary who reacted quickly, the account said.
"He was definitely family-oriented" and also was a "dedicated friend" who could always be counted on, said Pray. "He loved helping people.
From Syracuse.com:
The middle child of seven in his family, Geary was remembered by people who knew him as very outgoing and fun-loving, but also responsible and family oriented.
"We're very proud off him," said John Conners, Geary's godfather and commander of Rome's Henry P. Smith American Legion Post. "He saw his duty and he did it, and he paid the cost."
Family friend Della Pray, who got to know him when she served as his Air Force Jr. ROTC instructor at Rome Free Academy, said Geary had many friends.
"Quiet wasn't in his vocabulary," she said. "He was a prankster. We were always playing jokes on each other."
Pfc. Adam J. Hardt
From the Department of Defense:
Pfc. Adam J. Hardt, 19, of Avondale, Ariz., died March 22, at Forward Operating Base Airborne in Wardak Province, of injuries suffered from a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.
From The Arizona Republic:
The Army is investigating the circumstances surrounding his death, which is attributed to "non-combat-related injuries," said Julie Cupernall, spokeswoman for Fort Drum, N.Y., where Hardt was assigned.
"Non-combat is really truly anything that happens outside of enemy combat, so it is not safe to assume anything as far as a non-combat-related injury except to understand that this did not happen at the hands of enemy action," Cupernall said. "It is important to note that this is a soldier who died while in service to his country."
From News OK:
(Pfc. Hardt's father Dudley) Pearson said his son grew up in Oklahoma and Arizona.
Other family members could not be reached.
Hardt joined the Army in 2007 and trained at Fort Benning and Fort Gordon, Ga., before being assigned to Fort Drum, N.Y., in April....
His awards and decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terror Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.
legacy.com has a guest book for Pfc. Hardt.
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What You Can Do
There are a number of wonderful organizations out there which could use your help:
* Anysoldier.com
* Operation Helmet
* Fisher House
* Books for Soldiers
* Operation Ensuring Christmas
(big thanks to timroff for the beautiful logo)
About "I Got the News Today" (IGTNT)
I Got the News Today is a diary series intended to honor, respect and remind.; 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, JeNoCo, mediaprof, and me, a girl in MI. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but, we believe, an important service to those Americans who have died, and to our community’s respect for and remembrance of them.
If you are interested in volunteering for the series please contact me, a girl in MI, at a_girl_in_mi_101 AT yahoo DOT com
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. We treat these diaries as a place to remember and reflect. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.