There are three to honor tonight. All three were extraordinary men and their loss is felt from the Navajo Nation to a rural Minnesota town to a small township in Mississippi. So many communities are left reeling in grief from the loss of these fine men.
August, 2009, has been a tough month in terms of American casualties. As of Wednesday, August 26th, there have been 41 of our servicemen lost in Afghanistan. Since 2001, there have been 804 American troops killed in Afghanistan. Since 2003, there have been 4335 American troops killed in Iraq. Please take a moment to honor their sacrifice.
Thank you, Timroff, for our beautiful logo.
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died Aug. 18 in Arghandab, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near their unit. The soldiers were assigned to 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wash..
Killed were:
Spc. Troy O. Tom, 21, of Shiprock, N.M.
Pfc. Jonathan C. Yanney, 20, of Litchfield, Minn.
President, Joe Shirley, Jr. of the Navajo Nation issued a special proclamation for Spc. Troy Orion Tom ordering all flags shall be flown at half-staff from sunrise on August 26 to August 29, 2009 in honor and remembrance of a fallen Warrior, who gave his life in the service of the United States of America.
President Joe Shirley, Jr. offered this statement:
"It was with great sadness that I heard of the loss of one of our brave Navajo soldiers," Shirley said in a prepared statement. "On behalf of the Navajo Nation, I offer our deepest condolences to the family of the late Army Specialist Troy Tom. We offer our sympathies and prayers to his entire family. We pray they find the strength to carry through this difficult time, knowing that their son's contribution to his country is deeply appreciated and will be remembered."
Specialist Troy Orion Tom was a National Honor Society member. He graduated in the top of his class. Aztec Superintendent Linda Paul, told the Farmington Daily Times that Tom had offers from all around the country for college, but turned them down to enlist in the Army. She said he often quoted Daniel Webster:
"I was born an American; I will live an American."
Paul spoke about how he stood out from others his age:
"I have lunch with the kids," she said. "I ask them about their goals. He was so memorable because he was so clear. He wanted to go to the Army. He was going to go into the Army. He wanted to be a soldier."
Spc. Troy O. Tom is survived by his parents, David and Carolyn Tom, of Beclabito. David Tom serves as a delegate to the Navajo Tribal Council. His father told theFarmington Daily Times:
"We're grateful for Troy's service to our country and we are keeping him and his family in our thoughts and prayers," Paul said.
Seve Tom related how his brother was his best friend and a great Patriot:
"I'm proud of him every day he was there and every day still," said Tom's brother, Seve Tom. "He was a good guy, a good leader. We miss him, but he knew what he was doing and he wanted to do it. He always wanted to serve his country."
His sister, Carrizoe, recalled:
Carrizoe Tom said she will miss her brother's smile, laughter and sense of humor.
"He was a good person. I really miss him and love him," she said. "I wish I could have said good-bye to him, but I know he's in a better place, and he's probably just smiling and laughing."
Tom is also survived by a brother Leon Harvey, 13. Tom is the ninth Navajo soldier lost in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars since 2004. My deepest sympathy to the family, friends and the Navajo people.
Photo of Spc. Tom courtesy of AP.
Jonathan Yanney is being remembered by friends and family as someone who would do anything for someone else. He kept busy, as Yanney described himself: "I don't like sitting around not doing anything." This young man left a lasting impression on those he met. WCCO TV spoke with his former principal at Norwood HIgh School in Missouri.
"Extremely driven," was how his former high school principal, Marcella Swatosh, described Yanney on Monday.
"We knew that he wanted to go into something where he could help people," said Swatosh, the principal of Norwood High School in southern Missouri, which Yanney attended for three years. "He was always very focused on wanting to help people, and it sounds like that's what he was doing.
His father wrote on Yanney's My Space according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune and left this heartbreaking message:
Russell Yanney, wrote, "Sadly, Jonathan was killed in Afghanistan on August 18, 2009. His unit was enroute to assist another unit under fire, and his vehicle struck an IED. He was my first-born son. I loved him very much and he will be greatly missed. His smile and desire to help and learn will always be remembered.
Jonathan Yanney joined the Army in March of 2008. He was with the Stryker Brigade out of Fort Lewis, Washington.
Rest in Peace, Pfc. Jonathan Yanney.
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Sgt. Matthew L. Ingram, 25, of Pearl, Miss., died Aug. 21 in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle, and his unit came under small arms fire from enemy forces. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.
Sgt. Matthew Ingram was a devoted and loving husband. His wife, Holly, told the Colorado Springs Gazette she was given the news about her husband by a military chaplain at Fort Carson on Friday. She said her husband worked hard to support the family. He loved their 10 month old baby girl, Chloe:
“He loved his baby and would do anything for her,” she said. “He was a good man and supported his family and was there for us.”
Matthew Ingram joined the Army in 2003. He served in Iraq in 2004 with the 4th Infantry Division, where he earned an Army Commendation Medal. The young couple married in March of 2006. She told the paper, he called every couple of days from Afghanistan. He told her the work was becoming more dangerous, but did not tell her any specifics.
“He didn’t talk about it, and I respected that,” she said. “I knew what was going on.”
Sgt. Matthew Ingram leaves behind his wife, Holly; daughter, Chloe; parents, Patricia and James; and a brother Jamie. He will be buried in his home state of Mississippi. Funeral arrangements are for August 28, 2009 in Decatur, Mississippi. The Patriot Guard Riders will escort the family.
Rest in Peace, Sgt. Matthew Ingram
We Remember Them
In the rising of the sun and its going down,
We Remember Them.
In the bowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,
We Remember Them.
In the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring.
We Remember Them.
In the blueness of the skies and in the warmth of summer,
We Remember Them.
In the rustling of the leaves and in the beauty of autumn.
We Remember Them.
In the beginning of the year and when it ends,
We Remember Them.
When we are weary and in need of strength,
We Remember Them.
When we are lost and sick of heart,
We Remember Them.
When we have joys and special celebrations we yearn to share,
We Remember Them.
So long as we live, they too shall live, for they are part of us.
We Remember Them.
~From the Jewish Book Of Prayer~
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.
All of the U.S. fatalities can be seen here and here. They all had loved ones, families and friends. The DoD news releases are here. I Got the News Today is intended to honor, respect and remind. Click the IGTNT tags below for previous diaries.
Click the IGTNT tags to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by monkeybiz, noweasels, greenies, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Media Prof, rb137, True Blue Majority, and me, Sandy on Signal. .
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.