DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Pfc. Benjamin B. Bartlett Jr., 25, of Manchester, Ga., died July 15, in Mosul, Iraq, of wounds suffered from a rocket propelled grenade. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Bliss, Texas.
Specialist Benjamin Bartlett Jr.
The small town of Manchester, Georgia, about an hour from Atlanta, mourns its first casualty of the Iraq war.
"Well to start off my name is Trey. I like football and hunting. Also like girls that will watch football with me. I like going to the river and drinking beer and going to the rodeo. Currently I am in the army and stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. Before the army I was going to college at Auburn University in Alabama. WAR EAGLE! " is what Specialist Benjamin Bartlett Jr., 25, said of himself.
He "very quiet, very, kind of shy" kind of guy according to a family friend, Tara Davis, "You had to know him to get him to talk to you.".
He had struggled over the last several years to come to grips with the deaths of his mother, his father and a sister, but in the Army "he found a place, he found a home, he had pride for his country, and that’s what I believe he was meant to do, " Davis said.
Lee Taylor, Specialist Bartlett’s former boss remembers him as "a fine young fellow, he came from a good family in town."
A graduate of the tiny 27 person graduating class of Flint River Academy in 2000, Trey Bartlett had tried to keep in touch with his classmates, encouraging them to write to him in Iraq.
Specialist Bartlett was stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, assigned to the Second Battalion, Seventh Cavalry Regiment, Fourth Brigade combat Team of the First Cavalry Division, as a fire support specialist. June 15th he died in Mosul, Iraq, of injuries suffered from a rocket propelled grenade.
He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.
Tara Davis says she finds comfort in knowing that Trey is in a better place, with the people he loved the most "It's heartbreaking for the rest of us, but his whole family is together now," she said.
The information in this tribute comes with gratitude from:
http://www.flintriveracademy.com/...
http://profile.myspace.com/...
http://www.wtvm.com/...
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Sgt. John R. Massey, 29, of Judsonia, Ark., died July 15 in Balad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations July 14 in Baghdad, Iraq. He was assigned to C Battery, 142nd Fires Brigade, Arkansas Army National Guard, Ozark, Ark.
SGT John R. Massey
"I thank God for you, everything you've done, I loved you, I always had," said Amanda Massey. That is what she would say to her husband, Sgt. John Massey, killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad on July 14th, if he could hear her now.
He was, Mrs. Massey remembered "A prankster, a prankster, he was always joking around.
The Masseys have three children, 11-year-old Monica, 9-year-old Joseph and 7-year-old Emily.
Christy Homsley, Sgt. Massey’s sister said he was devoted to the children: "They were number one in his life."
As an example: A check arrived in the mail on Monday, two days after Massey died, Amanda said. In it was a check for Monica and a note for her to use the money for herself, not on school clothes. The note also said he planned to buy a home for his family when he returned.
Best friend Eugene Guthrie says you won't find anyone in these parts who didn't love John. "It's a shame, he was a good fellow. We would get into it but it would be over in a few days, and then he would be on with what we were doing," said Mr. Guthrie
Those who knew Sgt. Massey well, say he was a country boy, but becoming a country boy wasn't natural, it's something he had to work on. "I had a bunch of chickens, he thought they were gonna get him, bite em, yeah, we would get to laughing, he growed into all this stuff," said Eugene Guthrie.
Sgt Massey was on his second deployment to Iraq, which he had volunteered for, and had just returned to Iraq from a two week R and R visit home June 22nd. He was in the Arkansas National Guard and assigned to C Battery, 142nd Fires Brigade from Ozark. The brigade has more than 300 soldiers deployed.The Arkansas National Guard has more than 1,100 soldiers and airmen deployed.Overall, a count by The Associated Press shows 47 military members from Arkansas have died in the Iraq war. Two Arkansans have died in Afghanistan.
Amanda says her husband, just rededicated his life to the Lord, a huge commitment, that's giving her comfort now. "I feel sort of at peace because I know where he is and that gets my kids through it, too," Massey said. "He's in a better place, I know that in my heart."
The information in this report comes, with gratitude, from:
http://www.fox16.com/...
http://www.thedailycitizen.com/...
For More Information:
The DoD news releases are here.
You can read more about each service member at Honor the Fallen and Spread the Word: Iraq-Nam. Please visit the Iraq Veterans Memorial for a moving look at how a few of their survivors remember them.
If you want to do something more, please visit anysoldier.com, Operation Helmet, and/or Fisher House.
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