Tonight, we honor a remarkable man and great patriot. Bill Cahir was a Penn State graduate, journalist and a progressive candidate for Congress in PA-05. He was 32 when he joined the Marines, just after the 9-11 terrorists attacks on our country. Almost everyone was outraged after the senseless acts, but Bill made a brave decision to serve and protect our country and enlisted. He served two tours of duty in Iraq, and was on his third tour, when he was killed in the Helmand province of Aghanistan. He is survived by his wife, Rene, who is expecting twins. A memorial fund has been set up for his children.
It was Friday morning, August 14th around 8:30 am, when my mother called and informed me my cousin's brother-in-law had just been killed in Afghanistan. She asked me if IGTNT would write about him. I told her yes, we honor all of the fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan. After our conversation ended, I spoke with Blue Jersey Mom and she told me there was a diary already on the rec list written by Glacial Erratic (let's have a huge shout out to her). The outpouring of sympathy and compassion from this community is deeply touching. Thank you, Kossacks, for honoring and remembering Bill Cahir.
DoD identifies Marine Casualty
Sgt. William J. Cahir, 40, of Washington D.C., died Aug. 13 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 4th Civil Affairs Group, Marine Forces Reserve, based out of Washington D.C.
Chris Matthews from Hard Ball on MSNBC honored Bill Cahir on Tuesday night. It was a beautiful tribute and a worthwhile watch. Yes, Chris and MSNBC, you do not do these often enough. Please do more, it is the least we can do.
My deepest gratitude to Corn Syrup Awareness in providing a link that worked.
From the New York Times:
He wasn’t your typical Marine Corps recruit, this 34-year-old newspaper reporter and former Congressional aide. Doing 84 situps wasn’t enough; he had to talk his way past skeptical recruiters to get an age waiver. But persistence paid off and William J. Cahir joined the Marines in 2003, astounding friends, family, colleagues and the Washington politicians he covered.
Cahir was a Vote Vets endorsed candidate. Fellow Vote Vet candidate, Paul Hackett, told the NYT:
Paul Hackett, a Marine reservist who served with Sergeant Cahir in Fallujah, remembered him as cheerful even after he was nearly knocked unconscious by a roadside bomb. “He could have been an officer given his degree from Penn State, but chose to enlist,” Mr. Hackett said.
He chose to serve. We will not forget his sacrifice. He will be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart on September 13, 2009 in a private ceremony and he will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are pending. Please take a moment to remember and thank him for his service by providing for his unborn daughters at the Bill Cahir Memorial Fund.
My deepest condolences to Rene, his parents, sister, brother, friends and fellow troops. My heart goes out to all who love and miss him.
photo courtesy of AP
Rest in Peace, Sgt. Bill Cahir
Thank you, Timroff, for our beautiful logo.
We Remember Them
In the rising of the sun and its going down,
We Remember Them.
In the bowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,
We Remember Them.
In the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring.
We Remember Them.
In the blueness of the skies and in the warmth of summer,
We Remember Them.
In the rustling of the leaves and in the beauty of autumn.
We Remember Them.
In the beginning of the year and when it ends,
We Remember Them.
When we are weary and in need of strength,
We Remember Them.
When we are lost and sick of heart,
We Remember Them.
When we have joys and special celebrations we yearn to share,
We Remember Them.
Sp long as we live, they too shall live, for they are part of us.
We Remember Them.
~From the Jewish Book Of Prayer~
According to I Casualties there have been 794 Americans killed in Operation Enduring Freedom and 4332 killed in Iraq. Please take a moment to reflect and remember their sacrifice.
I Got the News Today is a diary series intended to honor, respect and remind. Its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one. Diaries about the fallen usually appear two days after their names are officially released, which allows time for the IGTNT team to find and tell their stories.
All of the U.S. fatalities can be seen here and here. They all had loved ones, families and friends. The DoD news releases are here. I Got the News Today is intended to honor, respect and remind. Click the IGTNT tags below for previous diaries.
Click the IGTNT tags to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by monkeybiz, noweasels, greenies, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Media Prof, rb137, True Blue Majority, and me, Sandy on Signal. .
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.
