Tonight, we honor a young Marine from Chesapeake, Virginia, who leaves behind a heartbroken family and fiance. Since 2001, there have been 1242 American troops killed in Afghanistan. Since 2003, there have been 4416 American troops killed in Iraq. Please take a moment to honor their sacrifice.
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.
DoD Identifies Marine Casualty
Lance Cpl. Cody S. Childers, 19, of Chesapeake, Va., died Aug. 20 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, IIMarine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Lance Cpl. Cody Childers had only been in Afghanistan for a couple of months, but in that short period of time, he survived one IED explosion which gave him a concussion and dislocated shoulder. This didn't stop the brave Marine, who was determined to go back into combat; thus, he was only out of commission for four days. That incident was one month ago. Last Friday, Cody Childers while out on another mission was hit by enemy fire in the arm and leg. This time it was fatal.
Since he was 12, he wanted to be a Marine. He enlisted in September of 2008, and graduated from Grassfield High School in May of 2009 . In August 2009, Childers was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. He was a machine gunner.
Childers planned to marry his sweetheart Megan Smithdeal in May of 2011. He enjoyed fishing, hunting and his old Ford pick-up truck affectionately known as "Old Red and White". Megan's mother, Laurie Smithdeal, told the Virginia Pilot how Cody loved to fish:
“He’d stand there all day long,” she said.
“He died because he loved his country and he wanted to make a difference,” aunt Jayme Montague of Chesapeake said Saturday.
Peggy Ewell, Cody's grandmother, told the Washington Post:
"Our hearts are broken," said Peggy Ewell, the Marine's grandmother. "He'll be so missed."
and
Ewell shared the thoughts of her daughter, Wendy Childers, the Marine's mother: "She wanted him to be honored as a young man that loved the Marines, that loved his country . . . and was doing what he loved," she said.
His mother told the television station WVEC, he connected with the children in Afghanistan. He asked his mother to send crayons and coloring books for the Afghan children. Please watch the video below from WVEC on Lance Corporal Cody Childers.
Semper Fi, Lance Corporal Cody Childers.
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, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Ms Wings, Maggie Jean, 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.