IGTNT: Going to the Sandbox

I spent the last few hours talking with my best friend, whose companion is headed to Iraq. He’ll ship out in a matter of weeks. My friend told me that she knew in the back of her mind that it was possible... but that she never really believed that the orders would come. She is busy planning trips, experiences, and meals for their last weeks together; they spend part of each day going over legal matters, notification chains, and his final wishes.

It shook me to see my friend of many years talking about the merits of a burial at Arlington versus cremation, but, she says, whatever will help him focus on his mission with a clear mind is what she’s going to do. And because she has phenomenal organizational talents, she’s working to establish a family readiness group where she lives.

"I just never thought I’d be in this club of women with men serving overseas," she said.

More after the flip.

She’s a college-educated feminist and a registered Republican, and comes from a family that includes union members, service members, and die-hard Democrats. She’s fun and funky, and wouldn’t wear camo unless it had a pink motif. But here she is, with body armor, olive-green T-shirts, and camouflage gear strewn all over her apartment as she helps him pack.

"I just don’t think he’s going to get killed," she told me over a salad. "I just don’t think that’s going to happen."

What could I tell her? Every day, I look at the Department of Defense’s news releases – I hear the news out of Iraq – I see pictures of the wounded – and I fear for her companion. I promised I’d write him, and send packages, and that she could call me when things get bad. I’m going to be afraid to look at the list. But then, how many people across the country feel the same way, scared of the list, nervous about the phone, terrified by the doorbell?

Three more families got the news. May they find some comfort in this terrible, terrible time.

I Got the News Today (3/3/2007 Edition). Yesterday, the Department of Defense announced the name of three soldiers killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. According to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count the number of names released by the DoD is now 3,163 and there are 6 more names of the deceased awaiting notification of the next of kin before being publicly released.

DoD News Release

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died Feb. 27 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle. They were assigned to the 2nd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.

Killed were:

Sgt. Richard A. Soukenka, 30, of Oceanside, Calif.

Cpl. Lorne E. Henry, Jr., 21, of Niagara Falls, N.Y.

Spc. Jonathan D. Cadavero, 24, of Takoma Park, Md.

Cpl. Lorne E. Henry, Jr. is remembered by The Buffalo News:

NIAGARA FALLS - The chair where Lorne E. Henry Jr. used to sit in science class at Niagara Falls High School was upside-down on the desk Wednesday.

In the art class, a sketch he did of a classmate was taped on the blackboard next to a photo of Henry, as students bowed their heads in silence.

(snip)

Henry was home on leave two weeks ago and attended a church service, Lindsay added. The young soldier was dating his high school sweetheart and was planning to leave the Army in August.

Wednesday, Niagara Falls Mayor Vince Anello instructed all city buildings to fly flags at half-staff.

"This is really close to home," Anello said. "Our condolences go out to the family."

Each class at Niagara Falls High School began Wednesday morning with a moment of silence in honor of the 2003 graduate. Flags at the school are at half-staff.

When the students filed into the science class and saw the chair repositioned, they didn't know what it was all about, science teacher Ed Maynard said.

"They didn't know Lorne, but I told them what a great guy he was and that he was killed in Iraq," Maynard said. "They hear about other young people dying over there, but when they heard it happened to a kid who sat right at that desk, they became really quiet and listened intently."

Spc. Jonathan D. Cadavero is remembered at the Columbia Union College website:

Sergeant Jonathan Cadavero, a 2004 graduate of Columbia Union College, died Tuesday, February 27, 2007, while serving as a medic in Iraq. He was killed by a roadside bomb while traveling with a convoy. He was 24. He is survived by sister Krista, a 2001 CUC graduate; mother Nadia; and father, David, who serves as the superintendent of schools for the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

(snip)

Jonathan was a tremendous personality on CUC's campus. He was a cum laude graduate, a member of the Phi Eta Sigma academic honor society, Psi Chi psychology honor society, a member of the Dean's List every year, a favorite player on the basketball team, and a Who's Who nominee.

Cadavero was also featured in an article, dated 2/25/07, from the Air Force Times:

For these soldiers, of 1st Platoon, A Company, 2nd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, their job, every day, is to hunt for IEDs planted in the roads of southwest Baghdad. When they find one, they call an explosive ordnance disposal team to destroy the bomb.
"With IEDs, either we find them or they find us," said Spc. Jonathan Cadavero, 24, the platoon medic. "By finding these IEDs, we take away [the enemy’s] primary means of killing soldiers."

(snip)

"It’s kind of crazy," Cadavero said. "Yesterday we went to the power plant [and] nothing happened, but on the way back we had RPG fire, small arms. It’s Iraq, so you’ve got to expect the unexpected. Every time you leave the base, anything could happen. Route clearance can be boring, but it’s Iraq. It doesn’t stay boring for long."

All of the U.S. fatalities can be seen here.  They all had loved ones, families and friends. The DoD news releases are here.

I Got the News Today is a diary series intended to honor, respect and remind. Click here for the previous diary in this series, and here to see the series.

This series is maintained by i dunno; Sandy on Signal, silvercedes, and I are helping out for a while. Please leave a comment below to honor these men who are coming home in such a terrible manner.