Unable are the loved to die. For love is immortality. ~Emily Dickinson
I Got the News Today (IGTNT) is a diary series intended to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one.
The beautiful forget-me-nots were created by llbear.
Since 2003 there have been 4486 US casualties in Iraq and since 2001 there have been 2122 US casualties in Afghanistan. Source.
The Department of Defense announced on September 21 the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Sgt. Jason M. Swindle, 24, of Cabot, Ark., died Sept. 20, in Panjwa, Afghanistan, of injuries suffered when he encountered enemy, small arms fire.
Swindle was assigned to 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.
Sgt. Swindle went straight into the Army after high school following in the footsteps of his older brother Sam. He signed up in 2005 and graduated high school in 2006.
According to Sam:
He was proud, very proud of his job. I just wish I could tell him how proud I was.
The Arkansas football team is what Jason loved a lot.
He looked like a Razorback.
His twin brother John also went into the Army. Remembering his twin, John said:
"He was never afraid. He was a better twin than I was. He was fearless. I really looked up to my brother."
Sgt. Swindle went through two tours of duty in Iraq and was on his third in Afghanistan when he died.
But now, his brothers say his life will live on through his wife Chelsey, their 1-year-old son Paxton, and their second son on the way.
He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.
Swindle's family has not yet made funeral arrangements.
Source Source
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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.
The IGTNT logo was created by Timroff.
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.