Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell
Honoring & Remembering
Spc. Dennis James Jr.
Pfc. Jesse W. Dietrich
Pfc. Brandon S. Mullins
I Got The News Today (IGTNT) , which began in April of 2004 making it one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos, provides members of this community a venue to pay their respects to those who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The IGTNT title is a reminder that nearly every day the family of an active duty service member receives the terrible news that their beloved has died.
Since 2003 we have suffered the loss of 4474 American lives and a total of 4792 Coalition Forces in Iraq.
Since 2001 we have suffered the loss of 1756 American lives and a total of 2701 Coalition Forces in Afghanistan.
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Spc. Dennis James Jr., 21 of Deltona, Florida
Spc. Dennis James Jr., 21 of Deltona, Fla., died Aug. 31 from wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device in Wardak province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Polk, La. ~ DoD News Release
Dennis James graduated from Pine Ridge High School where he was a member of the basketball, football and track teams.
Former teammate, Adam Coniglio knew Dennis to be a hard worker from their days on the football team.
What can you say about someone who gave his life for his country? I'm very proud to have known him.
Dean of Students, Madsen Cange said James was very popular among classmates and was a good student in the classroom. Cange had lost contact with Dennis about three years ago and often wondered what he was doing with his life.
It's a very sad day. I found out this week he was in the Armed Forces ... but in the same sentence, I had found out he had been killed.
Spc Dennis James, Jr. enlisted in the Army in June of 2008. He arrived at Fort Polk in November of 2009 and deployed with his unit to Afghanistan in October of 2010.
His aunt and guardian, Rhonda Williams said:
He was going to make his career in the Army.
Rhonda Williams recalled her nephew as a generous and kind man with a sense of humor, who loved to play basketball with his much taller cousins.
You couldn't tell him that he wasn't the big dog of the group. When he wasn't driving to the hoop, he was working on his car — the Dodge Magnum with the big wheels.
Spc James' awards include the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and a Combat Action Badge.
Specialist Dennis James, Jr. is survived by his aunt, an uncle, six siblings including an older brother Michael who is currently serving in Afghanistan and many cousins.
No funeral services have been announced.
~ Source ~ Source
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Pfc. Jesse W. Dietrich, 20, of Venus, Texas
Pfc. Jesse W. Dietrich, 20, of Venus, Texas, died Aug. 25 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y. ~ DoD News Release
Jesse Dietrich was raised by his Aunt, Auneta Southern in Venus, Texas, a town south of Dallas/Ft. Worth with less than 2,500 residents. She reports that Jesse once pulled his drowning sister from the bottom of a pool. Jesse had a baby boy to support and Auneta says that providing a secure future for his son was the impetus for Jesse's enlistment two years ago. He once told her that he had to believe that what he was doing was making a difference.
Pfc. Dietrich’s father, Paul, who also serves in the Army and was in Iraq at the time of Jesse's death said:
I’m very proud of him for following through, doing this. This is not something that most people, you know most people take it pretty lightly about serving their country. He was very adamant about it and wanted to do it.
Jesse gave his funeral wishes to his Aunt Auneta. He wanted his headstone to read:
"Life is a game, but sometimes you got to lose."
His Aunt Auneta said:
I will follow his wishes... but that's real hard," she said, "because it's so much more serious than a game.
Pfc. Dietrich's awards and decorations include the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
~Source ~ Source ~ Source
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Pfc. Brandon S. Mullins, 21, of Owensboro, Kentucky
Pfc. Brandon S. Mullins, 21, of Owensboro, Ky., died Aug. 25 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Wainwright, Alaska. ~ DoD News Release
Brandon Mullins, a 2008 graduate of Apollo High School, was an athlete who participated in the hockey and youth football programs.
Pfc Mullins enlisted in the Army in 2010 and was immediately stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska. According to his mother, Catherine Mullins, Brandon was thrilled to be stationed in an area where he could enjoy hunting, fishing and hockey. Ms. Mullins adds that her son had plans on re-enlisting:
We’re very comforted by that.
The 4,000 member Stryker brigade began it's one year tour in April. Pfc Mullins is the ninth soldier to die since deployment.
Pfc Brandon S. Mullins' funeral service will be held on September 11th at 3 pm at Good Shepard Church with burial in Owensboro Memorial Gardens.
Brandon Mullins is survived by his father, Thomas; mother, Catherine; brother, Pfc Shaun Erik Mullins; sister, Bethany and many aunts, uncles and cousins.
~ Source ~ Source ~ Source
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About the IGTNT series:
"I Got the News Today" is a diary series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifice of our US troops. Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by Sandy on Signal, noweasels, monkeybiz, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, SisTwo, SpamNunn, TrueBlueMajority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, maggiejean, Kestrel9000, TheFatLadySings, Ekaterin and me, JaxDem. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for them.
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.
If you would like to contribute to the series, even once a month, please contact Sandy on Signal.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.