The "I Got The News Today" (IGTNT) series recognizes American service members killed at war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and highlights the human cost of war.
War headlines are dominated by talk from Washington of Generals changing posts, and it is easy to forget about the soldiers and marines on the ground, carrying out the decisions made by our leaders at home.
Dear readers, we see by these nightly memorials with multiple names, photos, and stories of young people who will not be coming home, that sadly, June has been a terrible month for war casualties.
Tonight we remember two more fallen marines
lost to all who love them:
Cpl. Kevin A. Cueto, 23, of San Jose, California
Cpl. Joshua R. Dumaw, 23, of Spokane Valley, Washington
Please take a moment below to remember them.
Since 2001, there have been 1139 American troops killed in Afghanistan, and since 2003, 4408 American troops killed in Iraq. For all those precious lives lost, there are some ten more who have been wounded. These young war veterans will never be the same as before they went to war. Many will require a lifetime of aid from a loved one, nurse or caregiver. Please lend an understanding hand to our returning veterans and their families.
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Special Thanks to SisTwo, who wrote the following tribute:
Marine Corporal Kevin A. Cueto
Kevin Cueto grew up in the suburbs of San Jose in the Silicon Valley, near the San Francisco Bay. He graduated in 2005 from Westmont High School in Campbell, California. Cueto enlisted in the Marine Corps in August of 2005. He was on his second combat deployment since he joined the Marines. He had served in Iraq in 2009.
His aunt said, in the Mercury News, that Cueto had wanted to join the military since he was in middle school:
"He was a good student," she said. "He was a good kid. He always made us laugh."
She said her nephew loved to sing and dance, and was just an "all-around happy kid" with a really "good heart."
Cueto had recently starting seeing someone, a young woman in the Marine Reserves whom he met while on leave during Christmas at a karaoke restaurant where his cousin worked.
Corporal Cueto was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, IMarine Expeditionary Force, based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. He was working as a rifleman in Afghanistan's Helmand province.
Marine Corporal Kevin A. Cueto died June 22 from the blast of an explosive device in the Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was 23 years old. Also killed that day, from the same unit, was Corporal Claudio Patino IV.
Cueto's personal service awards include the Purple Heart, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
Amongst those surviving Kevin Cueto, are his parents, and Kevin's 19-year-old brother, Tim.
No funeral plans have been announced. The Patriot Guard Riders have him on their "Watch List" and are ready to attend his services if the family requests it. In the meantime, many of the members have left memorial comments. One rather wry one from a fellow Marine reads in part:
Please rest assured that Kevin has now reported to his new duty station and, as the last verse of the Marine Corps Hymn says, is now "Guarding The Streets of Heaven".
If the Army and the Navy ever look on Heaven's scenes,
they will find the streets are guarded by United States Marines.
Rest in eternal peace my Marine brother.
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The Department of Defense announced that
Marine Corporal Joshua R. Dumaw, 23
was killed in action June 22 while supporting combat operations in the southwestern part of Afghanistan. Cpl. Dumaw worked as a military policeman assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina.
Cpl. Dumaw was on his second combat tour with the Marines. He was previously deployed in Iraq in 2008-2009. He will be awarded the Purple Heart medal.
KREM 2 News reports:
According to family members, Dumaw and his platoon were "in an area that was unoccupied by the U.S. and had not been swept, when they came across and I.E.D." Family members say Dumaw's friend was by his side before encountering the IED, and Dumaw was "laughing and joking...before he left us."
Family members have requested that instead of flowers, letters and supplies be sent to Dumaw's platoon in Afghanistan in his name.
Cpl. Dumaw was married less than a year, and his wife Kailyn is pregnant with their first child, a son they planned to name named "Bode."
A story in enc today reports:
"She just sparkled when she looked at him and he did, too," she said. "They were in love. They had decided to spend their life together and have a family and they were very excited together to be having a baby. He anticipated being home for the birth of his son."
Joshua Dumaw grew up in Spokane Valley and graduated from West Valley High School. He enlisted in the US Marine Corps in June of 2007.
Dumaw was an avid snowboarder, liked to play basketball and went on frequent camping trips with family and friends.
"He was a great kid," she said. "He was always smiling and happy. Josh was like the older of all the kids.
"The thing about Josh was he was always looking out after the little kids, taking them camping. We would all camp together, and Josh would never let any of the little kids feel left out."
A memorial will be at the Cherry Point Air Station Chapel on Monday.
Among those Cpl. Joshua Dumaw leaves behind are his wife and child due in September, his mother, father and family.
Cpl. Joshua R. Dumaw is missed. REST IN PEACE.
RIP Marine
written by Horace Lorenzo Trim
Fading light dims the sight
And a star gems the sky, gleaming bright
From afar drawing nigh,
Falls the night.
Day is done, gone the sun
From the lakes, from the hills, from the run
All is well, safely rest;
God is nigh.
Then goodnight, peaceful night;
Till the light of the dawn shineth bright.
God is near, do not fear,
Friend, goodnight.
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Photos Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Thanks to Timroff for our faithfully lighted candle IGTNT logo;
and Thanks to llbear for our beautiful forget-me-nots IGTNT logo.
Other Photos by CalNM
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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 at guardian angels for soldierspet.
When our veterans come back home, they need jobs. Look at the programs of Veterans Green Jobs and Welcome Back Veterans. Encourage a Vet, and see if you can help out.
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About the IGTNT series: I Got the News Today is intended to honor, respect, and remember the fallen, and to remind us that each casualty has family and friends who received the terrible news that their loved one has died at war.
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. The US Department of Defense news releases are found at defense gov/releases. Icasualties lists the names of those killed, and shows the number of wounded. Published AP photos of the returning war fatalities are found on the Dover AFB page.
Click the IGTNT tags below for previous diaries in the series which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by monkeybiz, noweasels, 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, Sandy on Signal, Wide Awake in Kentucky, and me, CalNM. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for our fallen brothers and sisters.
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.