The Department of Defense recently announced the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Inherent Resolve:
photo from his online obituary
Gunner’s Mate Seaman Connor Alan McQuagge, 19, of Utah
His mission is ended and he has earned his rest.
Source 1 (online obituary), Source 2 (Facebook tribute page)
Connor McQuagge was born in Perm, Russia in August 1996 and was "adopted into the excited, waiting, and loving home of Troy Alan McQuagge and his wife Sandra."
Connor had a lot of inspirational quotes and photos on his Facebook page, including this one:
photo from his Facebook tribute page
Hurt people hurt people.
That’s how pain patterns get passed on,
generation after generation.
Break the chain today.
Meet anger with sympathy,
contempt with compassion,
cruelty with kindness.
Greet grimaces with smiles.
Forgive and forget about finding fault.
Love is the weapon of the future.
He also posted the logo of the Coexist Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating understanding and repairing the divides caused by prejudice, hate and violence.
Gunner's Mate Seaman Connor Alan McQuagge died on May 26 of a non-combat related injury while underway in the Red Sea.
He was serving on the USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49), forward deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S. military effort to eliminate ISIS.
The incident is under investigation.
his mother posted this prayer image on Facebook
He is survived by his father Troy McQuagge and his fiancée Randi Stokes, his mother Sandra Jean Dominy and her husband Steven Dominy, his brother Wesley Alan McQuagge, and his paternal grandmother Maris McQuagge.
In lieu of flowers the family requests donations in Connor's name to a program to support youth in crisis, at-risk teens and their families. Donations can be sent via mail to Sky's the Limit Fund, 510A Valley Way, Milpitas, CA 95035. Please be sure to include Connor's name and the "Designated Program" of Wingate Wilderness with your check. Donations can also be made on line here.
He will be buried in a private ceremony with full military honors at DFW National Veterans Cemetery in Dallas.
Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality.
--Emily Dickinson
”I Got the News Today” is a diary series 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. US service members whose names have been released by the US Department of Defense will usually be diaried 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.
Click the IGTNT tag below to see previous diaries in the series, which was begun by i dunno.
The IGTNT tribute team consists of i dunno, Sandy on Signal, Monkeybiz, Noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, SisTwo, Spam Nunn, CalNM, TrueBlueMajority, Wide Awake in Kentucky, maggiejean, Jax Dem, The Fat Lady Sings, Ekaterin, & Joy of Fishes. These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but show our community’s respect for those who have died.
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.
