It is with great sadness that we pause to remember the lives of some of our US military men. These four now live only in the memories of those who loved them.
When someone you love becomes a memory,
The memory becomes a treasure.
~Author Unknown
- Marine Sergeant Anthony D. Matteoni who was from Michigan
- Army Sergeant First Class Lance H. Vogeler who was from Maryland
- Army Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley, Jr. who was from South Carolina
- Army Specialist Luther W. Rabon Jr. who was from South Carolina
Marine Sergeant Anthony D. Matteoni
Anthony Matteoni grew up in Union City, Michigan. "Tony" was a 2006 graduate of Union City High School. He signed up to be a United States Marine while still a senior at the school.
Tony had spent his senior year living with a family friend when his parents moved to Florida. He wanted to graduate with his class in Michigan. The friend is quoted in an article from the Battlecreek Enquirer:
Tucked away in a closet at Russ Raymond's Union City home is Tony Matteoni's varsity letter jacket from Union City High School, a glistening "U.S.M.C." pin stuck to the jacket's front.
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Tony Matteoni, 22, died Friday in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. On Monday, Raymond said the pin reminded him of the zeal the 2006 Union City graduate had for serving his country.
"He was a patriot," said Raymond, Matteoni's former high school teacher and longtime family friend. "He wanted to serve."
Matteoni was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force which is based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Matteoni was married just this last summer. His wife, Lindsy, is a native of Portage, Michigan. They were expecting a baby girl in February.
The Marine Sergeant shipped to Iraq in mid-summer of this year. He had previously left the states for assignments in Europe, but this was his first tour in the Middle East. Sergeant Anthony D. Matteoni died October 1st while "supporting combat operations" in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. No further details have been given by the military about his death. He was 22 years old.
Among the survivors of Sergeant Anthony D. Matteoni, are his expectant wife, his parents who live in Winter Springs, Florida, and four siblings.
The body of Marine Sergeant Matteoni was flown to Kalamazoo, Michigan on Monday afternoon and services are expected to be held there, but no details have yet been released. However, it is known that the Patriot Guard Riders will be attending.
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Sergeant 1st Class Lance H. Vogeler
Lance Vogeler grew up in Maryland, the son of two deaf parents. Not surprisingly, he was fluent in American Sign Language. Vogeler graduated from Frederick, Maryland’s Gov. Thomas Johnson High School in 1999.
Vogeler enlisted in the US Army in May of 2001. He graduated from the Ranger training program later that year. For nearly nine years he served as a mortar man in 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, which is based at Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia. Battalions of the 75th Ranger Regiment have been continuously deployed to Afghanistan since October 2001.
This year, Vogeler was in Afghanistan on his 12th deployment after seven previous deployments to Afghanistan and four deployments to Iraq.
29-year-old Sergeant 1st Class Lance Herman Vogeler was killed on October 1st in an intense fire fight during combat operations in Afghanistan's Helmand province. A second soldier, Sergeant Zachary Graner, was injured in the attack, but is expected to recover. According to the Washington Post:
"He died doing what he felt called to do," said his parents' pastor, the Rev. Peter C. Myers. "Lance did not love war," Myers said. "But he had a job to do, and he took it extremely seriously."
...Myers said that after serving for a time, Vogeler was given the opportunity to attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point., N.Y. He decided instead to remain with his men.
Myers said that those who served with the sergeant revered him "for his leadership and for the way he embraced" his responsibilities toward them. Vogeler was "a devout Christian," the pastor said, who had obtained a license to conduct marriage ceremonies after many of his men asked that he officiate at their weddings.
Tim and Donna Vogeler traveled to Dover, Delaware on Saturday to see the solemn ceremony for their son's transfer of remains from the military transport. Vogeler was flown alone, and with escort, which Pastor Myers says is a great honor for an Army Ranger.
Arym Sergeant Vogeler was highly decorated, and was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Sergeant 1st Class Lance H. Vogeler is survived by his wife, Melissa Lee Vogeler, who is pregnant; his son, Kyle, who is 10; and his daughter, Madison, who is 11. They lived with him in Savannah, Georgia. Also surviving him are his parents, Timothy and Donna and his brother, Chris, of Frederick, Maryland.
The remains of Sergeant 1st Class Lance H. Vogeler will arrive in Savannah on Thursday October 7th. Funeral services will be Saturday at St John’s Cathedral. His final resting place will be Bonaventure Cemetery in Georgia and the Patriot Guard Riders will be attending.
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Army Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley Jr.
Willie Harley, Jr. was from Aiken, South Carolina. He played football while at Aiken High School. His love of football led him to coach at the local elementary school for more than 15 years.
After Harley graduated from high school in 1981, he immediately joined the National Guard. He served three tours, including Afghanistan and Iraq.
Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley, Jr. was assigned to the 1221 Engineer Clearance Company of the South Carolina Army National Guard with units stationed in Graniteville and Batesburg, South Carolina. The company's mission is to clear roadways for military convoys. The 1221st deployed to Afghanistan in July of 2010 and is scheduled to return to South Carolina next summer.
While in the Paktika province of Afghanistan, Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley Jr. died on October 1st. The vehicle, in which he was riding, struck an insurgents’ improvised explosive device (IED) and Harley was fatally wounded. He was 48 years old. The Aiken Standard News tells of one of his last calls home:
The sister of Staff Sgt. Willie Harley Jr. sat in her living room, trying to fight back tears and clutching a tissue as she described the last conversation she had with her brother on Sept. 26.
Harley made his usual call to his sister, Barbara Glover, to tell her he was doing OK. That day, they talked about what she was going to make him for dinner when he came home: butter beans, ham hocks, rice and chocolate cake.
"I was going to cook him a good meal," she said, tears welling up in her eyes, adding that they exchanged their last spoken "I love you" on the phone that day
The Staff Sergeant was one of two South Carolina National Guardsmen who died due to the explosion of the IED. Army Specialist Luther Rabon of Lexington, was also killed in that incident.
Army Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley, Jr. is survived by his seven children - Christopher Fuller, Allison, Calvin, Desmond, Willie III, Richard and Messiah. His oldest son, Christopher, was serving his first deployment in the same unit as Harley and is on his way home from Afghanistan with his father.
Funeral arrangements for Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley, Jr, have not been announced.
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Specialist Luther W. Rabon Jr.
Luther Rabon was from Lexington, South Carolina. He enlisted in the Army and was assigned to the 1221 Engineer Clearance Company of the South Carolina Army National Guard with units stationed in Graniteville and Batesburg, South Carolina. The 1221st deployed to Afghanistan in July of 2010.
The local TV station, WLTX covered the story of the farewell of the families when the unit shipped out on July 9th. There are touching pictures of Rabon’s loved ones seeing him for the final time before he left. A recent story at the WLTX News site says:
Around town flags are at half staff and memories are shared.
"We had a couple ceremonies for them before they left. The guys were gracious. They were happy. It's amazing the way the guys acted when they knew they were going into harm's way."
Back in July, Rabon's mother opened up about her son's mission.
"He's really got a lot to leave behind, but he's willing to do that for our freedom, and defend our country and I'm very proud of him."
"I don't think words can express how much the community appreciates them. The county, the state and even the united states appreciates these guys that go out and do this for us," says Wiszowaty.
On October 1st, Specialist Luther W. Rabon, Jr. died in the Paktika province of Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when his vehicle struck an insurgents’ improvised explosive device (IED). He was 32 years old.
The 1221 Engineer Clearance Company clears roadways for military convoys. The unit also lost Staff Sergeant Willie J. Harley Jr with Rabon, to the same incident. The surviving Guard members are scheduled to return to South Carolina next summer.
Specialist Luther W. Rabon, Jr. is survived by his parents and four young children, three girls and a boy. The oldest is six and the youngest is nine months
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Helping our troops:
If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider Operation Helmet, or 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. The KINship Project has also been of help to our veterans and other Kossacks In Need.
Stop-loss pay is available for veterans. The deadline for this program is October 21. The compensation is also available to survivors.
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, monkeybiz, noweasels, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, a girl in MI, JeNoCo, Mediaprof, TrueBlueMajority, JanosNation, Proud Mom and Grandma, Ministry of Truth, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Ms Wings, maggiejean, racheltracks, JaxDem, and kestrel9000. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for them.
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.