Among the recent casualties of the decade-long war in Afghanistan are two Army Captains. We gather tonight to remember their lives and share our good wishes for those who grieve for them:
- Captain Drew E. Russell who was from Tennessee
- Captain Joshua S. Lawrence who was from Michigan
Captain Joshua S. Lawrence
Joshua S. Lawrence was from Tennessee. He grew up in East Nashville and was a 2000 graduate of Hume-Fogg High School. He also attended Austin Peay State University, where he studied Political Science and History. MSNBC spoke with a friend who went to school with Joshua:
The news of another soldier killed in Afghanistan became all too personal for Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity brother Brandon Savage. He said by phone Monday, "This is someone's brother. This is someone's husband. This is someone's child. It really hits close to home. I don't have a memory in college where we weren't laughing or something," Savage said…
Joshua was nicknamed "Twitch" his whole life. He was respected by his fraternity brothers and soon before graduation, sat them down and said he had decided to join the U.S. Army. His brothers were shocked.
"We got to talking about it we asked, why would you do something like that? You got more options. He said, this is kind of something I want to do," Savage explained…
"You know, this is a great loss for our area. There's a world of difference between a nameless face and somebody that you actually know when this happens," Savage said.
Lawrence entered the Army on April 16, 2005 and had previously served two tours in Korea. On May 6, 2011, he was assigned to the1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, which is based at Fort Carson in Colorado.
The Lawrence family has seen a lot of changes the last couple of years. Joshua was recently married and last year his father, Robert "Bobby" Lawrence died.
Captain Lawrence was wounded October 8th, in the Kandahar Province of Afghanistan. He died when enemy forces attacked his unit with a rocket-propelled grenade. He was 29 years old. Also killed in the attack was Captain Drew E. Russell from Michigan.
Among the honors earned by Captain Joshua S. Lawrence were: Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korea Defense Service Medal.
Joshua married his wife, Brittany, three days before he began his deployment to Afghanistan in June of 2011. An article in
The Gazette quotes the newlywed widow:
She has relied heavily this week on the military community that has become her family.
“I had every wife's nightmare happen to me,” she said.
She hasn’t been able to sleep, and is haunted by the thought the man she calls her hero won’t be coming home.
“I thought the day (in June) I had to say good-bye to my soldier was the hardest day of my life,” she said. “I was wrong.”
Lawrence leaves behind his wife, his mother, a brother and a sister. The Lawrence family is asking donations be made to the Fisher House in Dover, Delaware that houses families of injured soldiers. No funeral arrangements have been made yet. Lawrence's remains will be back in Tennessee by the end of the week.
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Captain Drew E. Russell
Drew E. Russell was from Scotts, a community in Kalamazoo County, Michigan. He graduated from Michigan’s Vicksburg High School in 2004. He joined the National Guard at age 17, training over the summer while studying criminal justice and military science.
Russell entered Western Michigan University as an ROTC student, graduating in 2008 with a double major in criminal justice and military science. That year, he joined the Army.
It was no big surprise to anyone that Drew would enter the military. According to The Gazette site:
James Russell remembers the subtle hints that his son wanted to become an Army captain.
He watched as Drew Russell spent much of his childhood positioning platoons of toy soldiers across his Michigan home in mock battles. It wasn’t so much play time as it was practice, James Russell said.
“I always looked at him and wondered if he was (Gen. George) Patton come back to life.”
Russell was assigned to the1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, which is based at Fort Carson in Colorado, in June of 2009.
Russell's first overseas deployment was to Afghanistan, starting June 13. He had recently been promoted to captain of a tank unit.
Captain Drew E. Russell was killed along with a comrade from Tennessee when Afghan insurgents attacked their unit with a rocket-propelled grenade. Russell and Captain Joshua Lawrence from Nashville, died Saturday after enemy forces attacked their unit in Kandahar province, the Defense Department announced Monday. Russell was 25 years old.
According to the
mlive.com site:
He was a wonderful son,” his mother, Patti, 52, said Monday. “He was very loving, and he had a great sense of humor. There’s just an empty hole in my heart that will never be filled again.”
“Drew won’t even be able to have kids,” his father, Jim, said, choking back tears. “What do you say? He had a good future in front of him.”
Capt. Drew E. Russell is survived by his parents; his brother, James; and his girlfriend, Sarah Pfeiffer, of Colorado. Funeral plans have not been announced.
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Helping our troops:
If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider contributing to Fisher House. Donating to Netroots for the Troops provides 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 here. Also, you could visit:
When our veterans come back home, they need jobs. Look at the programs of Hire Heroes USA and Welcome Back Veterans to see if you can help out.
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 is maintained by Sandy on Signal, Monkeybiz, Noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, Twilight Falling, Joyful, SisTwo, Spam Nunn, True Blue Majority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Maggie Jean, Jax Dem, Kestrel 9000, & TheFatLadySings. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but show our community’s respect for those who have died.
Fallen service members whose names have been released by the US Department of Defense will usually be diarized two days after the official announcement on the DoD website. This allows the IGTNT team to cover each person more fully, but still in a timely manner.
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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.