Post by Okwes on Oct 26, 2006 14:02:39 GMT -5
'There's nothing like losing a child. Nothing'
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An American flag provides a backdrop for a member of the Marine Honor
Guard at a memorial service for the 11 Hawai'i Marines from 3rd
Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment who were killed in Iraq.
JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
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FALLEN MARINES
3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines killed in Iraq
April 2: Cpl. Andres Aguilar Jr.
April 20: Staff Sgt. Jason C. Ramseyer
April 22: Cpl. Eric R. Lueken
April 28: Sgt. Lea R. Mills (Attached to 3/3)
April 28: Sgt. Edward G. Davis III (Attached to 3/3)
April 28: Cpl. Brandon M. Hardy (Attached to 3/3)
May 12: Lance Cpl. Adam C. Conboy
May 14: Lance Cpl. Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby
May 14: Lance Cpl. Jose S. MarinDominguez Jr.
May 22: Lance Cpl. William J. Leusink
May 22: Sgt. David R. Christoff
June 14: Cpl. Michael A. Estrella
Sept. 14: Lance Cpl. Ryan A. Miller
Sept. 20: Cpl. Yull Estrada Rodriguez
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&e=M1&Date=20061021&Category=NEWS08&ArtNo=610210352&Ref=V2>
Four-year-old Vegas Bell of Oklahoma comforts her mother, Samarrah, who
grieved for her brother, Lance Cpl. Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby. He and
another Hawai'i Marine, Lance Cpl. Jose S. MarinDominguez Jr., were
killed in Iraq on May 14 by a roadside bomb.
JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
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�
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KANE'OHE BAY � Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby, a Choctaw, Creek and
Seminole Native American, cut his hair when he joined another warrior
culture, that of the U.S. Marine Corps.
His father, Justin, cut his hair, too, four days after his son was
killed in Iraq on May 14 by a roadside bomb. Lance Cpl. Jose S.
MarinDominguez Jr. also died in the blast.
The elder Yearby yesterday knelt at a combat memorial with upturned
rifle, helmet and boots, and clutched the dog tags of both Marines as he
grieved and sang to himself his son's warrior song.
A final roll call and memorial was held yesterday for 11 Hawai'i Marines
with the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment killed in Iraq on a recent
deployment, and for their families, it was a chance to meet fellow
Marines and bring spiritual closure to their loss.
"I had to know who these young men were. I had to know who his brothers
were," Justin Yearby said.
Eighty-one family members of the fallen Marines made the trip to Hawai'i
and Kane'ohe Bay for yesterday's memorial. They had come from Oklahoma,
Puerto Rico, California, Texas, South Carolina and New York.
Eight members of Hatak Yearby's family were there from Oklahoma. There
were 14 members of the family of 21-year-old Cpl. Andres Aguilar Jr.,
killed on April 2 when the 7-ton truck he was riding in rolled over in a
flash flood.
The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society paid for the families to come out,
and for all, it was important to be there.
"I buried my son's body, I did not bury his soul. I feel that my son is
with me, and that he is giving us the strength to continue life," said
Wanda Rodriguez.
Her son, Cpl. Yull Estrada Rodriguez of Alegre Lajas, Puerto Rico, was
killed Sept. 20. He was a gunner on a 7-ton truck when it was struck by
a roadside bomb just weeks before the battalion returned home.
The base chapel at Kane'ohe Bay was jammed with thousands of Marines.
Most were from the 3rd Battalion, the last of which returned from
western Iraq on Oct. 5 after a seven-month deployment.
"I had heard the voices of many of (the Marines) by phone, but
personally, I didn't know who they were," Wanda Rodriguez said. It was a
"wonderful" experience meeting them, she said. Her son was important in
Puerto Rico, and meeting the Marines and seeing the turnout showed "he
was something very important here, too."
The emotion of the battalion's 11 losses came flooding back at the close
of the ceremony. Marines mingled with and hugged family members, knelt
at the memorials with a framed photo of each Marine, and touched the
helmet or said a prayer.
There were tears and recollections. Some family members stared blankly
at the photos of fallen Marines, their faces ashen.
"There have always been others who say, 'Oh, I know how you feel, I lost
my dad,' or, 'I just lost my mother,' " Justin Yearby said. "Well, I've
lost a dad, I've lost a mother, I've lost a grandparent, and there's
nothing like losing a child. Nothing."
The 11 families and others who have lost children to war "are the only
ones who know how we feel," he said.
The Hawai'i battalion's headquarters was at Haditha Dam, northwest of
Baghdad, but Marines were spread throughout the "Triad" of Haditha,
Haqlaniyah and Barwana near the Euphrates River and down to the
Baghdad-Jubbah-Dulab region.
Sunni attacks on U.S. forces have increased with the continuing
occupation and frustration with a Shiite-dominated government.
Eight of the 11 Marines were killed by roadside bombs. One died as a
result of small-arms fire. Aguilar died in the vehicle rollover, and one
Marine was killed in a friendly fire accident, family said. Three other
Marines who were killed were attached to the 3rd Battalion from other
units.
Lance Cpl. Dino Vigliotti, 19, was thrown 150 feet from a Humvee in the
roadside bomb explosion that killed Yearby and MarinDominguez, and
suffered a broken pelvis and collapsed lung, among other injuries.
Vigliotti's mother, Sherry, traveled from Florida to be at Kane'ohe Bay
yesterday.
"I wanted him to have a family member here for the (memorial)," she
said. "He's having a very difficult time."
Staff Sgt. Jeremy Messerschmidt, 28, from Kentucky, remembered Sgt.
David Christoff in particular. Christoff was killed on May 22.
"He was an amazing man," Messerschmidt said. "Everyone looked up to
him."
Cpl. Jory Camille knew Cpl. Michael A. Estrella, 20, of Hemet, Calif.,
from a deployment to Afghanistan. Estrella was killed by small-arms fire
on June 14.
"He was company (radio operator). He taught me how to use the radio and
helped me a lot," Camille said. "When I got back (from Iraq), I saw his
number on my cell phone. It's just like you are never going to see him
again. It snaps you into reality."
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&e=M1&Date=20061021&Category=NEWS08&ArtNo=610210352&Ref=AR>
An American flag provides a backdrop for a member of the Marine Honor
Guard at a memorial service for the 11 Hawai'i Marines from 3rd
Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment who were killed in Iraq.
JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
[spacer] [spacer]
FALLEN MARINES
3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines killed in Iraq
April 2: Cpl. Andres Aguilar Jr.
April 20: Staff Sgt. Jason C. Ramseyer
April 22: Cpl. Eric R. Lueken
April 28: Sgt. Lea R. Mills (Attached to 3/3)
April 28: Sgt. Edward G. Davis III (Attached to 3/3)
April 28: Cpl. Brandon M. Hardy (Attached to 3/3)
May 12: Lance Cpl. Adam C. Conboy
May 14: Lance Cpl. Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby
May 14: Lance Cpl. Jose S. MarinDominguez Jr.
May 22: Lance Cpl. William J. Leusink
May 22: Sgt. David R. Christoff
June 14: Cpl. Michael A. Estrella
Sept. 14: Lance Cpl. Ryan A. Miller
Sept. 20: Cpl. Yull Estrada Rodriguez
[spacer] [spacer]
<http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/misc?url=/misc/zoom.pbs\
&e=M1&Date=20061021&Category=NEWS08&ArtNo=610210352&Ref=V2>
Four-year-old Vegas Bell of Oklahoma comforts her mother, Samarrah, who
grieved for her brother, Lance Cpl. Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby. He and
another Hawai'i Marine, Lance Cpl. Jose S. MarinDominguez Jr., were
killed in Iraq on May 14 by a roadside bomb.
JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
[spacer] [spacer]
�
[spacer] [spacer]
KANE'OHE BAY � Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby, a Choctaw, Creek and
Seminole Native American, cut his hair when he joined another warrior
culture, that of the U.S. Marine Corps.
His father, Justin, cut his hair, too, four days after his son was
killed in Iraq on May 14 by a roadside bomb. Lance Cpl. Jose S.
MarinDominguez Jr. also died in the blast.
The elder Yearby yesterday knelt at a combat memorial with upturned
rifle, helmet and boots, and clutched the dog tags of both Marines as he
grieved and sang to himself his son's warrior song.
A final roll call and memorial was held yesterday for 11 Hawai'i Marines
with the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment killed in Iraq on a recent
deployment, and for their families, it was a chance to meet fellow
Marines and bring spiritual closure to their loss.
"I had to know who these young men were. I had to know who his brothers
were," Justin Yearby said.
Eighty-one family members of the fallen Marines made the trip to Hawai'i
and Kane'ohe Bay for yesterday's memorial. They had come from Oklahoma,
Puerto Rico, California, Texas, South Carolina and New York.
Eight members of Hatak Yearby's family were there from Oklahoma. There
were 14 members of the family of 21-year-old Cpl. Andres Aguilar Jr.,
killed on April 2 when the 7-ton truck he was riding in rolled over in a
flash flood.
The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society paid for the families to come out,
and for all, it was important to be there.
"I buried my son's body, I did not bury his soul. I feel that my son is
with me, and that he is giving us the strength to continue life," said
Wanda Rodriguez.
Her son, Cpl. Yull Estrada Rodriguez of Alegre Lajas, Puerto Rico, was
killed Sept. 20. He was a gunner on a 7-ton truck when it was struck by
a roadside bomb just weeks before the battalion returned home.
The base chapel at Kane'ohe Bay was jammed with thousands of Marines.
Most were from the 3rd Battalion, the last of which returned from
western Iraq on Oct. 5 after a seven-month deployment.
"I had heard the voices of many of (the Marines) by phone, but
personally, I didn't know who they were," Wanda Rodriguez said. It was a
"wonderful" experience meeting them, she said. Her son was important in
Puerto Rico, and meeting the Marines and seeing the turnout showed "he
was something very important here, too."
The emotion of the battalion's 11 losses came flooding back at the close
of the ceremony. Marines mingled with and hugged family members, knelt
at the memorials with a framed photo of each Marine, and touched the
helmet or said a prayer.
There were tears and recollections. Some family members stared blankly
at the photos of fallen Marines, their faces ashen.
"There have always been others who say, 'Oh, I know how you feel, I lost
my dad,' or, 'I just lost my mother,' " Justin Yearby said. "Well, I've
lost a dad, I've lost a mother, I've lost a grandparent, and there's
nothing like losing a child. Nothing."
The 11 families and others who have lost children to war "are the only
ones who know how we feel," he said.
The Hawai'i battalion's headquarters was at Haditha Dam, northwest of
Baghdad, but Marines were spread throughout the "Triad" of Haditha,
Haqlaniyah and Barwana near the Euphrates River and down to the
Baghdad-Jubbah-Dulab region.
Sunni attacks on U.S. forces have increased with the continuing
occupation and frustration with a Shiite-dominated government.
Eight of the 11 Marines were killed by roadside bombs. One died as a
result of small-arms fire. Aguilar died in the vehicle rollover, and one
Marine was killed in a friendly fire accident, family said. Three other
Marines who were killed were attached to the 3rd Battalion from other
units.
Lance Cpl. Dino Vigliotti, 19, was thrown 150 feet from a Humvee in the
roadside bomb explosion that killed Yearby and MarinDominguez, and
suffered a broken pelvis and collapsed lung, among other injuries.
Vigliotti's mother, Sherry, traveled from Florida to be at Kane'ohe Bay
yesterday.
"I wanted him to have a family member here for the (memorial)," she
said. "He's having a very difficult time."
Staff Sgt. Jeremy Messerschmidt, 28, from Kentucky, remembered Sgt.
David Christoff in particular. Christoff was killed on May 22.
"He was an amazing man," Messerschmidt said. "Everyone looked up to
him."
Cpl. Jory Camille knew Cpl. Michael A. Estrella, 20, of Hemet, Calif.,
from a deployment to Afghanistan. Estrella was killed by small-arms fire
on June 14.
"He was company (radio operator). He taught me how to use the radio and
helped me a lot," Camille said. "When I got back (from Iraq), I saw his
number on my cell phone. It's just like you are never going to see him
again. It snaps you into reality."