I Got The News Today (IGTNT)
IGTNT is one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos, providing members of this community a venue to pay their respects to those who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The IGTNT title is a reminder that nearly every day the family of an active duty service member receives the terrible news that their beloved has died.
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Honoring and remembering the following three soldiers who died Nov. 13 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, when a suicide bomber detonated a vest bomb and struck their unit:
Staff Sgt Juan L. Rivadeneira U.S. Army
Cpl Jacob R. Carver U.S. Army
Spc Jacob C. Carroll U.S. Army
Honoring and remembering also:
Staff Sgt. Kevin M. Pape U.S. Army
Staff Sgt. Javier O. Ortiz Rivera U.S. Marine Corps
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.
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Prayer Of Saint Francis Of Assisi
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.
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Staff Sgt Juan L. Rivadeneira, 27 of Davie, Florida
Staff Sgt Juan L Rivadeneira was an Infantrymen assigned to Company B., 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Juan has been in the Army since May 2003 and was stationed at Fort Campbell in 2009.
His awards and decorations include: Army Commendation Medal; Army Achievement Medal; Valorous Unit Award; Army Good Conduct Medal; National Defense Service Medal; Afghanistan Campaign Medal; Iraq Campaign Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development; Army Service Ribbon; Overseas Service Ribbon; NATO Defense Medal; Combat Infantryman Badge and Expert Infantryman Badge.
The Patriot Guard Riders have Juan on their pending mission list.
Rivadeneira is survived by his wife, Melissa and son, Juan A. Rivadeneira of Germany; and his mother, Yenni S. Rivadeneira of Venezuela.
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Cpl Jacob R. Carver, 20 of Freeman, Missouri
Cpl Jacob R. Carver was assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Jacob graduated from Cass Midway High School in 2008, joined the Army in September 2008 and arrived at Fort Campbell February 2009. He was on his first deployment.
Jake's high school football coach, Larry Burchett said he remembered Jake "as a kid who was very fun loving and outgoing". Coach added that "you read about it in the paper and see it in the news, but until it hits home; it's kind of like it's one of yours. You never really understand it".
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Jacob was due home to visit for two weeks in late December. He leaves behind an extended family and many many friends in Freeman. The link below is to a video in which several of his friends share thoughts about their friend.
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His awards and decorations include: National Defense Service Medal; Afghanistan Campaign Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; and Army Service Ribbon.
The Patriot Guard Riders have Jacob on their confirmed mission list.
Jacob is survived by his mother, Rosa M. Carver, and father, Arthur F. Carver, of Freeman, Mo.
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Spc Jacob C. Carroll, 20 of Archdale, North Carolina
Spc Jacob "Jake" C. Carroll was an Infantrymen assigned to Company B., 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Jake was a graduate of Trinity High School and wore #52 on the football team.
Football coach Alex Mebane said:
"As far as the way he played, he always played hard.". "He was a fierce competitor. That was something I always appreciated about him as a coach is the way that he played and competed."
Lewis Dorsett had Jacob for three years in Carpentry and Construction Tech classes and remembers how enjoyable he was as a student.
"He was always fun. There was never a dull moment with Jake," said Dorsett. "He would come by the shop here and holler at me or something. He was dependable. He was here everyday at school. He was one you could depend on."
The Trinity football team plans to honor Carroll by presenting his family with his framed jersey.
Coach Mebane added this:
"You just always remember kids that you coached, especially the ones that were good players like he was." "Just hate to hear what has happened but this jersey holds a lot of good memories and hopefully there are some good memories that his family can hold onto."
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A candlelight service has been planned for Thursday, Nov. 18 at the gazebo at Creekside Park in Archdale at 6:30 p.m.
Early Monday, Carroll's body was placed in a transfer vehicle upon arrival at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
~ Source
Specialist Jacob C. Carroll's awards and decorations include: National Defense Service Medal; Afghanistan Campaign Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Army Service Ribbon; and Parachutists Badge.
Jacob is survived by his mother, Cole M. Masear of Archdale, N.C.; and father, Jackie C. Carroll of Clemmons, N.C.
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Staff Sgt Kevin M. Pape, 30 of Fort Wayne, Indiana
Staff Sgt Pape died Nov. 16 in Konar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.
Kevin had previously served on three deployments to Iraq, and this was his third deployment to Afghanistan.
Pape was a 1998 graduate of Concordia Lutheran High School and enlisted in the U.S. Army in September 2005 from his hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana. He completed One Station Unit Training at Fort Benning, Georgia, as an infantryman.
Pape graduated from the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program and was then assigned to Co. C, 1st Bn., 75th Ranger Regiment in April 2006, where he served as a machine gunner, team leader and squad leader.
Lt. Col. Mike Foster, commander of 1st Ranger Bn., 75th Ranger Regiment said this about Pape:
Staff Sgt. Pape was killed in action while leading his Rangers against known enemies of the United States. He is a hero to his family, the 75th Ranger Regiment and the Nation.
Col. Michael E. Kurilla, commander, 75th Ranger Regiment added this comment:
Staff Sgt. Kevin Pape had two priorities in his life – his family and the Rangers he led. Kevin was literally the lead Ranger in a heavy firefight against a large number of Taliban in some of the most rugged and extreme terrain in Afghanistan. By the manner in which he lived his life, Staff Sgt. Pape defined sacrifice, dedication, and selfless service.
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His awards and decorations include the Ranger tab, the Expert Infantry Badge, the Combat Infantry Badge and the Parachutist Badge. He has also been awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Arrowhead, Iraq Campaign Medal with Arrowhead, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.
He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart and the Meritorious Service Medal.
The Patriot Guard Riders have Staff Sgt. Pape on their confirmed mission list.
Kevin is survived by his wife Amelia Rose Pape, his daughter Anneka Sue both of Savannah, Ga., and his father Marc Dennis Pape of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
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Staff Sgt Javier O. Ortiz-Rivera, 26 of Rochester, New York
Staff Sgt Javier O. Ortiz-Rivera died on November 16th in Afghanistan when he was struck by an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Born in Puerto Rico, Javier came to Rochester in 1991 with his parents, brother Orlando and sister Glory.
Javier Ortiz-Rivera was raised in Rochester and is a graduate of School of Imaging and Information Technology at Edison. He joined the Marines right out of high school in 2002.
His first of three tours of duty was in Iraq in 2003. He was deployed to Afghanistan in 2005 and again in September. He was due to return home from his deployment in August.
Javier’s father, Orlando Ortiz, Sr. said this about his son:
He was a good son. He always respected me and his mother and he always wanted to be a Marine.
Ortiz says Javier talked of serving his country since he was a young boy. Ortiz believes Javier's service is something that should be admired by other young men and women.
This is a good example for all the other youth and young people that are joining the services. This is a decision that they make and if they like to do it they should.
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The Patriot Guard Riders have Sgt. Ortiz-Rivera on their pending mission list.
Sgt. Ortiz-Rivera is survived by his wife, Veronica, a seven year old daughter, a five year old son and a three year old son. He also leaves behind his mother, Gloria Rivera, father, Orlando, brother Orlando and sister Glory. And many cousins and other relatives.
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About the IGTNT series:
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"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, noweasels, monkeybiz, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, a girl in MI, JeNoCo, Mediaprof, TrueBlueMajority, JanosNation, Proud Mom and Grandma, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Ms Wings, maggiejean, racheltracks, and me, JaxDem. 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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POW/MIA: Afghanistan & Iraq
Two U.S. soldiers are currently listed as captured or Duty Status -- Whereabouts Unknown as of December 1, 2009.
Spc. Ahmed K. Altaie 41
and
Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl 23
Never forgotten - please keep good thoughts and prayers for these two men.
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Retroactive Stop Loss Benefits submission deadline extended to December 3rd. Details available here.
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Helping Our Troops
There would be no finer way to honor the fallen than to contribute to programs that assist our active duty military. Here are a few suggestions:
Any Soldier - provides "contacts" for you to send greetings, care packages, etc. to any Soldier, Airman, Marine, Sailor or Coast Guardman.
Books for Soldiers - purchases and ships books to our troops deployed in war zones.
Fisher House - Provides a "home away from home" for military families to be close to a loved one during hospitilization for an illness, disease or injury.
Guardian Angels for Soldiers' Pets - establishing a network of foster families providing a loving and healthy home environment for the pet(s)of deployed military personnel until they can be reunited with their owner.
Netroots For The Troops - raises money for the assembly, mailing and delivery of care packages to American military in war zones, and to provide assistance to military families in the United States.
Welcome Back Veterans - created to inspire Americans to give back to our returning veterans and their families and assist in particular with PTSD.
Wounded Warrior Project - To raise awareness and enlist the public’s aid for the needs of injured service service members, to help injured service members aid and assist each other and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of injured service members.