Since 2001, 1919 U.S. troops have died while serving in Afghanistan, and since 2003, 4486 U.S. troops have died while serving in Iraq.
The IGTNT (I Got The News Today) series is a reminder that nearly every day, somebody gets the heartbreaking news that a friend, former classmate, or beloved family member will not be coming home from war.
Tonight we remember a soldier who died of
combat wounds from serving in Afghanistan:
Spc. Edward J. Acosta, 21, of Hesperia, California
Please take a moment below to remember him,
and all those who have lost their lives in these wars.
The Department of Defense announced the death of a young Infantry soldier, combat medic, husband, and father, who had been gravely wounded in Wardak province, Afghanistan on December 3, 2011.
Spc. Edward J. Acosta, 21, of Hesperia, California
Spc. Acosta died March 5 in La Jolla, California, where he was being treated for injuries that left him paralyzed. He was the lone survivor of a roadside bomb attack that killed three other First Armored Division soldiers:
Sgt. 1st Class Clark Corley Jr., Spc. Ryan Lumley, and Spc. Thomas Mayberry. I wrote about the three brothers who went before him last December.
The Army awarded each of them Purple Heart medals posthumously. Spc. Acosta also received the Purple Heart medal in a January 6 ceremony at his hospital bedside. Spc. Acosta and the other soldiers were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, based in Fort Bliss, Texas.
Edward Acosta was born in Ventura, California, and lived the first three years of his life in Santa Paula. His father's work as a Fish and Game Warden took the family to the mountains around June Lake, where he learned a love of snowboarding and skiing. Later, the family moved to Hesperia, where Edward graduated from Hesperia High School in 2008.
The second of three siblings, Acosta was a sweet, compassionate man who towered over most people at 6-foot-6. "We called him our gentle giant."
Ventura County Star
His family says Edward wanted to serve in the Army from a young age and he enlisted shortly after graduating. He deployed to Korea in 2009. Wanting to serve his fellow soldiers, Acosta trained as combat medic. Acosta was promoted to corporal in 2010. Spc. Acosta deployed with 3,900 other Fort Bliss soldiers in October 2011, where he received the Combat Medic badge.
His wife, Lindsay, gave birth to their daughter, Emmalyn, while he was in Afghanistan. After being wounded, Acosta was transferred to military hospitals in the United States, where he remained in intensive care. His family said that Edward met his daughter, and could smile, and spoke softly to loved ones at times.
Ventura County Star
Spc. Acosta during Purple Heart award ceremony, with his parents, his wife, and baby daughter, and Gen. Robert W. Cone; at San Antonio Military Medical Center on January 6. from KPBS story
"He was a fighter and gave his life on behalf of our nation," stated Maj. Gen. Dana J.H. Pittard, commanding general of Fort Bliss and the 1st Armored Division.
"We are keeping Spc. Edward Acosta's family, friends and fellow soldiers in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time," Pittard said.
Among those Spc. Acosta leaves behind are his wife and 4-month old baby daughter, his mother and father, three siblings, and his men from Fort Bliss.
Spc. Edward J. Acosta is missed. May he rest in peace.
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Thanks to Timroff for our faithfully lighted candle IGTNT logo;
Other Photos by CalNM and linked Sources
Helping our troops: If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider Operation Helmet, or sponsoring a deployed service member at TroopCarePackage.com. Fisher House provides housing for families of injured troops and veterans who are recovering in hospitals, and Guardian angels for soldierspet assists the animal companions of our deployed military.
When our veterans come back home, they can find support at Welcome Back Veterans. Our recently returned veterans need jobs, and Veterans Green Jobs is now hiring for positions and filling training sessions. VGJ corps retrains veterans as leaders in forest and resource conservation, green construction, and energy efficient upgrades of homes in rural areas. Encourage a Veteran, and see if you can help out.
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About the IGTNT series: I Got the News Today is intended to honor, respect, and remember the fallen, and to remind us that each casualty has family and friends who received the terrible news that their loved one has died at war. 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. The US Department of Defense news releases are found at defense gov/releases. Icasualties lists the names of those killed, and shows the number of wounded. Published AP photos of the returning war fatalities are found on the Dover AFB page. Click the IGTNT tags below for previous diaries in the series which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by monkeybiz, noweasels, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, Proud Mom and Grandma, Sandy on Signal, Wide Awake in Kentucky, Ms Wings, maggiejean, JaxDem, theFatLadySings, Ekaterin, and me, CalNM. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but are an important service to those who have died, and show our community’s respect for our fallen brothers and sisters.
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.