They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years contemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known;
As the stars are known to the Night;
As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.
~ Laurence Binyon, 1914
Tonight we remember a Marine and a soldier who will never know the simple grace of silvered hair.
Lance Cpl. Kevin E. Oratowski, 23, of Wheaton, Illinois
Lance Cpl. Oratowski died Aug. 18 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.
“He was just a great guy, a great uncle,” his sister said.
Since they were notified of Oratowski's death Wednesday afternoon, his family has hosted a steady stream of well-wishers who have stopped by his parents' Wheaton home, said his older sister, Carrie.
Oratowski's family last spoke with him nearly two weeks ago. He planned to return to Wheaton for a visit in November, Carrie Oratowski said.
(snip)
"My brother was kind of lost after high school, and he didn't really know if he wanted to go to school. He decided to go join Marines and it was probably the best thing for him," she said.
Added Oratowski: "He was just a great guy, a great uncle...He loved the Marines."
Source ~ Chicago Breaking News Center
In the neighborhood where he grew up, Lance Cpl. Oratowski’s friends set out American flags and made food for his grieving family.
The 23-year-old, a Glenbard South graduate, was on his first combat deployment with the Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Pendleton, California.
His parents, Steve and Mary Oratowski, are already on east coast awaiting the arrival of their son's body, said Glenbard South principal Terri Hanrahan.
(snip)
Within hours of the news of Oratowski's passing, neighbors set up American flags in the subdivision he once called home.
"My heart goes out to them," said Joyce Vitagliano. "And we just thank Kevin for serving our country."
Another neighbor, Mary Kay Squires, baked muffins for the Oratowski family.
"No parent should have to go through this. My heart goes out to any one that does," she said.
Oratowski volunteered at a local nursing home.
"That commitment to other people has been a part of Kevin as he grew up," Hanrahan said.
Source ~ NBC Chicago
Video ~ NBC Chicago
Lance Cpl. Oratowski’s alma mater is in mourning.
Lance Cpl. Kevin E. Oratowski's ties to Glenbard South High School remained strong in the five years since he graduated.
His father, Steve, works as an instructional aide in the special education department and is the head coach of the freshman football team.
Through his dad, Oratowski's former teachers stayed in touch with how the 23-year-old Wheaton resident was doing.
They remember finding out about Oratowski enlisting in the Marine Corps on June 23, 2008. And they were among the first to hear the tragic news that he had died during his first combat deployment.
"I am going to miss him," said Pam Neuner, who taught Oratowski for several years at the Glen Ellyn high school. "Just to know that he's gone now is unbelievable."
(snip)
Word of Oratowski's death reached the Glenbard South community on Thursday. On Friday, teachers and friends were joining the family in mourning.
"It's heartbreaking," said Tom Nussbaum, one of Kevin's former teachers. "Kevin attended our school. He had other siblings go through the school. And his parents are highly involved in the school.
"There's just a hole in your heart," Nussbaum added. "I think the school as a whole has that feeling."
(snip)
. . . Oratowski is being remembered as a polite and courteous young man who was proud to be a Marine.
Neuner recalled that Oratowski was quiet during his freshman year of high school. By the time he graduated in 2005, he emerged as a leader who was always willing to help others.
"He was magnetic. He was engaging. He was fun to be around - just full of life," Neuner said.
(snip)
"I can't image the pain that his family is going through," Nussbaum said. "I am certainly honored that he paid the ultimate sacrifice for the things that we take for granted."
Source ~ Chicago Daily Herald
Lance Cpl. Oratowski joined the Marines in June 2008 and was on his first deployment. His awards and decorations include the Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.
Lance Cpl. Oratowski is survived by his parents, Steve and Mary Oratowski, and by two siblings.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Thank you, Lance Cpl. Oratowski. Godspeed. Your mission is done.
* * * *
Sgt. 1st Class Edgar N. Roberts, 39, of Hinesville, Georgia
Sgt. 1st Class Roberts died Aug. 17 at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of wounds sustained June 26 at Sayed Abad, Afghanistan, when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to 810th Engineer Company (SAPPER), Swainsboro, Ga.
Sgt. 1st Class Roberts, a Gulf War veteran, had been injured in December, when his vehicle flipped over. In June, while on patrol, his vehicle hit a roadside bomb. He had been transferred to the National Naval Medical Center; and it was there that he died.
Roberts, a Thornton Township High School grad, was proud to serve -- first in the regular Army, now in the National Guard -- though a recent email to (his sister) Robyn admitted he was lucky to be alive.
Awarded a Purple Heart after a 200-pound bomb exploded beneath his combat vehicle last December, he returned to duty, sending home emails, pictures and a box full of beanie babies when he learned his sister Robyn had given birth to Christopher this past June. Late that month, he suffered injuries from a second roadside bomb.
Source ~ CBS2 Chicago
Video ~ CBS2 Chicago
Flags in Georgia have been lowered to half-staff in honor of Sgt. 1st Class Roberts.
Upon word of Roberts’ death, Governor Sonny Perdue said, "The news of Sergeant Roberts' passing is heart wrenching. We prayed fervently for his recovery; now our thoughts and prayers turn to his family and friends. We offer what comfort we can give knowing that Sergeant Roberts died a hero, laying down his life so others may know freedom."
“Each notice received about the death of one of our brave Georgia Soldiers brings with it renewed sadness throughout the Georgia National Guard family,” said Maj. Gen. Terry Nesbitt, the Adjutant General of Georgia.
(snip)
“Sergeant 1st Class Roberts was a combat veteran, having faced the enemy before in Iraq. Regardless, he showed no hesitancy when called again to serve his state and nation in Afghanistan. We extend to his family our deepest sympathy on their loss, as well as praise for the patriotism and valor of Sgt. 1st Class Roberts.”
Source ~ WSAV
Sgt. 1st Class Roberts is survived by his wife, Jannett, and by their five children, all of Hainesville, Georgia; by his mother, of Park Forest, Illinois, by his father, of Belize, and by several sisters.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Thank you, Sgt. 1st Class Roberts. Godspeed. Your mission is done.
_____________________________________________________________________
Remember them. Honor their sacrifice.
To date, 4416 members of the United States military have lost their lives in Iraq. The death toll thus far in 2010 is 46. More than 40,000 members of the military have been wounded, many grievously. The Department of Defense Press Releases, from which the information at the start of each entry in this diary was drawn, can be seen here. The death toll among Iraqis is unknown, but is at least 200,000 and quite probably many times that number.
To date, 1237 members of the United States military have lost their lives in Afghanistan. The death toll thus far for 2010 is 290. 778 members of the military from other countries have also lost their lives.
Assisting our military: Supporting our troops is the RIGHT THING to do.
You can contribute:
You can send a care package. Please consider brightening the day of a soldier with a care package.
You can write letters.
You can send a cup of organic coffee.
You can find other ways to give at anysoldier.com or Fisher House. If you have frequent flyer miles you would like to donate to hospitalized veterans or their families, please see Fisher House’s Hero Miles program.
You can help the left-behind animal companions of our troops. See how here.
And don’t forget them when they get home! Read welcomebackveterans.org to learn what you can do. Visit VoteVets and IAVA.
About the IGTNT series:
(Our beautiful logo was created by kossack Timroff. Thank you, Timroff.)
The purpose of the I Got the News Today series is 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. It is one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is currently maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, Proud Mom and Grandma, CalNM, Wide Awake in KY, maggiejean, racheltracks and me, noweasels.
(A special welcome tonight to new diarist racheltracks.)
If you would like to contribute to the series, even once a month, please contact Sandy on Signal, or me, noweasels.
To see what these tributes mean to those who have lost a loved one in Iraq or Afghanistan, please read Sandy on Signal’s story about meeting the father of a soldier at NN10.
As you read this diary, please consider that the families and friends of those profiled here also may read it and that many members of our community have served in Iraq or Afghanistan or have loved ones currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. As the very proud daughter of a Navy pilot, and the granddaughter of a Marine pilot and a submariner ~ all of whom rest beneath our nation‘s flag ~ I hope that the comments tonight will demonstrate our respect for the sacrifices of our fallen military and our compassion for their families. Please reserve political and other comments for appropriate diaries; this is not one of them.