I Got The News Today (IGTNT) is one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos. It is a way for our community to pay respect to those who have died as a result of war.
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We face another sad evening remembering a fine soldier lost.
Master Sergeant Pablo A. Ruiz III who was from Florida, was serving in the US Army as a non-commissioned officer in Afghanistan when he died.
Master Sergeant Pablo A. Ruiz III
Pablo A. Ruiz III was from Melbourne, Florida. Ruiz enlisted in the Army in 2003 as a cook. He served in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg for more than eight years, deploying three times to Iraq.
According to a story in the Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall (JBM-HH) publication, the Pentagram:
Ruiz was the senior food operations specialist sergeant for the JBM-HH Dining Facility from June 2012 until this March. As such, Ruiz was the “driving force” behind the dining facility’s recent renovations, according to Maj. Armando Peralta, who supervised Ruiz at JBM-HH.
“He was a go-getter to the core,” he said. “He had an uncommon ability to see the bigger picture beyond his rank.”
Peralta added that in his 23 years of military service, he never had a better platoon sergeant than Ruiz.
Ruiz was also active as a volunteer who helped the families of our fallen soldiers. A section of his memorial at the
Sanctuary of Mary Blogspot tells of his selflessness:
Pablo had volunteered as a mentor with the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS). This is a national organization that assists the grieving families of fallen soldiers. His fellow volunteers there are greatly saddened to hear of Pablo's death. He had been a great asset to the organization.
In 2007 while on deployment a close friend of Pablo's was hit by enemy fire. Pablo was the first to reach him, pull him out of the position, administer first aid, and put him on the medevac helicopter.
An article in the
Army Times describes some of the work Ruiz did for the TAPS organization:
Ruiz was a TAPS Good Grief Mentor since 2013, committed to caring for the children of America's fallen heroes. He had shared that his decision to mentor "was not a difficult one to make," according to the information posted by TAPS.
In an interview with the TAPS Magazine in 2014, he said, "I would want this to be done for my child if something happened to me."
Ruiz, who lost a close friend in combat in 2007, also volunteered for the TAPS Courage Campaign with both the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals. Pablo was recently featured in a PenFed Military Salute at both Wizards and Capitals games for his service in uniform and as a volunteer for TAPS.
More recently, First Sergeant Ruiz was with Forward Support Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He was assigned to 3rd Special Forces Group in April as the NCO in charge of the forward dining facility in Bagram, Afghanistan. The soldier was supporting Operation Freedom's Sentinel and it was his first deployment to Afghanistan.
On May 24th, the 37-year-old was found unresponsive on the base where he was stationed in Bagram, Afghanistan. The death is still being investigated.
Pablo A. Ruiz III was posthumously promoted to master sergeant. His awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal (second award), Army Commendation Medal (fifth award), Army Achievement Medal (fifth award), the Iraq Campaign Medal with three campaign stars, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Combat Action Badge and Ranger Tab.
Ruiz was posthumously awarded his sixth Army Commendation Medal and his third Meritorious Service Medal.
Master Sergeant Pablo A. Ruiz III leaves behind his wife of nearly 19 years and his daughter.
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Helping our troops:
If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider contributing to 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.
About the IGTNT series:
”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 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. Click the IGTNT tag below to see previous diaries in the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is maintained by i dunno, Sandy on Signal, Monkeybiz, Noweasels, Blue Jersey Mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, SisTwo, Spam Nunn, True Blue Majority, CalNM, 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.
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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.
