Iraq War veteran attends college before heading overseas again
By Jean Cowden Moore
Posted December 3, 2011
It's been years since he served in Iraq, but Andrew Gonzalez still ends emails and texts in military talk, with phrases like "standing by for confirmation" or simply "copy."
"It really does have to do with who I am," said the 41-year-old Moorpark man. "If the Marine Corps told me tomorrow, 'We don't have any space for you,' it would be incredibly hard to take."
Gonzalez enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve when he was 28 after a brief time in college with no real focus, a series of unsuccessful sales jobs and a stint as a personal trainer. Six years after he enlisted, Gonzalez was serving on an air base in Iraq, surrounded by military aircraft and hot, empty desert.
In February 2013, two months after graduating from California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, the reserve staff sergeant will be deployed to Afghanistan.
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Monday, December 5, 2011
Grandmother in Afghanistan helps heal troops
Grandmother in Afghanistan helps heal troops
Published: 12/3/2011
Last Modified: 12/3/2011
COMBAT OUTPOST XIO HAQ, Afghanistan - A sign hanging on the door of the plywood B-Hut reads "The doctor is in." Inside, stretchers are positioned to receive the wounded, but thankfully for Maj. Diane Hughes, they are empty today.
Hughes is a nurse practitioner stationed at Combat Outpost Xio Haq in Afghanistan's Laghman province, the base of operations for the 45th Infantry Brigade's Special Troops Battalion.
At 54, she is the oldest soldier on the outpost, a grandmother of six and the unofficial mother to a lot of Oklahoma soldiers.
"I could be some of these soldiers' mother, and sometimes that's what they need - either a listening word of guidance or sometimes a boxing on the ears," she said jokingly.
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Diane Hughes is a nurse practitioner stationed at Combat Outpost Xio Haq in the Laghman province in Afghanistan. Hughes is the oldest soldier on the outpost and has become an unofficial mother for some Oklahoma soldiers. MIKE BOETTCHER/ University of OklahomaBy MIKE BOETTCHER University of Oklahoma
Published: 12/3/2011
Last Modified: 12/3/2011
"We look at the whole person, and in this case the whole soldier, and these are young men and women who are seeing a lot of horrors," she said. "They're seeing their friends hurt, and sometimes just a listening ear is what they need."
COMBAT OUTPOST XIO HAQ, Afghanistan - A sign hanging on the door of the plywood B-Hut reads "The doctor is in." Inside, stretchers are positioned to receive the wounded, but thankfully for Maj. Diane Hughes, they are empty today.
Hughes is a nurse practitioner stationed at Combat Outpost Xio Haq in Afghanistan's Laghman province, the base of operations for the 45th Infantry Brigade's Special Troops Battalion.
At 54, she is the oldest soldier on the outpost, a grandmother of six and the unofficial mother to a lot of Oklahoma soldiers.
"I could be some of these soldiers' mother, and sometimes that's what they need - either a listening word of guidance or sometimes a boxing on the ears," she said jokingly.
read more here
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Experts say more can be done to prevent PTSD-triggered violence
After Farmington shooting, experts say more can be done to prevent PTSD-triggered violence
By Scott Thistle, Sun Journal
Posted Dec. 04, 2011, at 10:15 a.m.
Last modified Dec. 04, 2011
LEWISTON, Maine — Bruce Morris, an Iraq War combat veteran with 21 years in the Maine National Guard, is a little on edge these days.
So are dozens of his brothers and sisters in arms as they ponder the circumstances that led to the death of Justin Crowley-Smilek, who was shot by a police officer last month in Farmington.
Crowley-Smilek, a U.S. Army Ranger who was disabled in Afghanistan in a 30-foot fall from a helicopter was bipolar and — according to his friends and family — suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
He was shot and killed by Farmington police officer Ryan Rosie on Nov. 19 after Crowley-Smilek confronted Rosie with a knife outside the Farmington police station, police have said.
Morris said he attended group counseling with Crowley-Smilek at the Lewiston Veterans’ Center. Morris considered Crowley-Smilek a friend.
Lingering questions
Those working to manage their own war-related issues have been left questioning how things went so tragically wrong and what can be done going forward to keep other combat veterans from facing similar fates and circumstances, Morris said.
“How is this allowed to happen?” said Morris, 40, a Poland resident and Edward Little High School graduate.
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By Scott Thistle, Sun Journal
Posted Dec. 04, 2011, at 10:15 a.m.
Last modified Dec. 04, 2011
LEWISTON, Maine — Bruce Morris, an Iraq War combat veteran with 21 years in the Maine National Guard, is a little on edge these days.
So are dozens of his brothers and sisters in arms as they ponder the circumstances that led to the death of Justin Crowley-Smilek, who was shot by a police officer last month in Farmington.
Crowley-Smilek, a U.S. Army Ranger who was disabled in Afghanistan in a 30-foot fall from a helicopter was bipolar and — according to his friends and family — suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
He was shot and killed by Farmington police officer Ryan Rosie on Nov. 19 after Crowley-Smilek confronted Rosie with a knife outside the Farmington police station, police have said.
Morris said he attended group counseling with Crowley-Smilek at the Lewiston Veterans’ Center. Morris considered Crowley-Smilek a friend.
Lingering questions
Those working to manage their own war-related issues have been left questioning how things went so tragically wrong and what can be done going forward to keep other combat veterans from facing similar fates and circumstances, Morris said.
“How is this allowed to happen?” said Morris, 40, a Poland resident and Edward Little High School graduate.
read more here
Veterans court proposed for Maine
Veterans court proposed for Maine
By Scott Thistle, Regional Editor
Published on Sunday, Dec 4, 2011
AUGUSTA — In response to Justin Crowley-Smilek's death and at the prompting of U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, state Rep. Maeghan Maloney, D-Augusta, is proposing legislation aimed at helping veterans.
Maloney, a lawyer and former prosecutor for the state, said the court is meant to recognize veterans as uniquely different citizens, but it isn't intended to provide them with any special privilege under the law.
A docket for the day would be set up to hear all veteran cases, she said.
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By Scott Thistle, Regional Editor
Published on Sunday, Dec 4, 2011
AUGUSTA — In response to Justin Crowley-Smilek's death and at the prompting of U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, state Rep. Maeghan Maloney, D-Augusta, is proposing legislation aimed at helping veterans.
"What has blown me away," Maloney said, "is I have heard from so many veterans who want to volunteer to help other veterans.Maloney's bill would set up a new layer in Maine's court system aimed at veterans with mental health and/or substance-abuse issues. The court would be for vets facing criminal charges and would allow a judge via a social worker to have access to a veteran's health and military records. It would also provide the veteran facing charges with a volunteer advocate in another veteran who has similar life experiences and who may be maintaining a treatment regiment.
Maloney, a lawyer and former prosecutor for the state, said the court is meant to recognize veterans as uniquely different citizens, but it isn't intended to provide them with any special privilege under the law.
A docket for the day would be set up to hear all veteran cases, she said.
read more here
Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach's Mom takes on military sexual assault
Mother of Marine killed after rape claim leads training sessions on sexual assault cases
MARY McCARTY
Dayton Daily News
First Posted: December 03, 2011
On Nov. 16, Mary Lauterbach and her attorney, Merle Wilberding, attended the North Carolina Court of Appeals hearing in Raleigh, N.C., and listened as Laurean's attorneys argued that his first-degree murder conviction should be overturned because the judge did not allow jurors to consider a lesser charge of second-degree murder.
"We wanted to make our presence visible, and to remind them that Maria was a real person," Lauterbach said.
"We wanted to be a witness to justice," added Wilberding. "We're glad we went."
Laurean's state-appointed attorney, Ann Peterson, acknowledged that her client killed Lauterbach, but argued that the crime might not have been premeditated. Attorneys for the state countered that the fact that Laurean burned the body and buried Lauterbach in his backyard was proof of premeditation.
Lauterbach, 20, was eight months' pregnant at the time of her murder. Laurean is currently serving a life sentence without parole at the Pasquotank Correctional Institution, a high-security adult male prison in Elizabeth City, N.C.
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MARY McCARTY
Dayton Daily News
First Posted: December 03, 2011
FILE - In this undated U.S. Marine Corps photo released by the Onslow County Sheriff's office in North Carolina, Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach is seen. Mary Lauterbach remains a powerful voice for her daughter, Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, nearly four years after she was murdered by fellow Marine Cesar Laurean. On Nov. 16, Mary Lauterbach and her attorney, Merle Wilberding, attended the North Carolina Court of Appeals hearing in Raleigh, N.C., and listened as Laurean's attorneys argued that his first-degree murder conviction should be overturned because the judge did not allow jurors to consider a lesser charge of second-degree murder. AP Photo/Onslow, N.C. Sheriff via U.S. Marine Corps, File)DAYTON, Ohio — Mary Lauterbach of Vandalia remains a powerful voice for her daughter, Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, nearly four years after she was murdered by fellow Marine Cesar Laurean.
On Nov. 16, Mary Lauterbach and her attorney, Merle Wilberding, attended the North Carolina Court of Appeals hearing in Raleigh, N.C., and listened as Laurean's attorneys argued that his first-degree murder conviction should be overturned because the judge did not allow jurors to consider a lesser charge of second-degree murder.
"We wanted to make our presence visible, and to remind them that Maria was a real person," Lauterbach said.
"We wanted to be a witness to justice," added Wilberding. "We're glad we went."
Laurean's state-appointed attorney, Ann Peterson, acknowledged that her client killed Lauterbach, but argued that the crime might not have been premeditated. Attorneys for the state countered that the fact that Laurean burned the body and buried Lauterbach in his backyard was proof of premeditation.
Lauterbach, 20, was eight months' pregnant at the time of her murder. Laurean is currently serving a life sentence without parole at the Pasquotank Correctional Institution, a high-security adult male prison in Elizabeth City, N.C.
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Army’s Sgt. major says U.S. should support vets
Army’s sgt. major says U.S. should support vets
By Kristin M. Hall - The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Dec 3, 2011 15:31:18 EST
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — The Army’s top enlisted soldier said the entire nation has a responsibility to help the tens of thousands of young combat veterans who will be entering the civilian workforce in the coming years.
Sgt. Maj. of the Army Raymond Chandler visited Fort Campbell, Ky., on Friday to hear concerns of soldiers and their families about the coming changes for the Army, including the challenge of reducing the Army by 50,000 soldiers over the next five years and uncertainty about the effects of budget cuts.
Chandler told reporters at the installation on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line that the Army is preparing soldiers to leave the service but noted the American public has an important role in helping those veterans.
With unemployment rates higher for recent veterans than the national average, Chandler said the Army can’t find jobs for all veterans, but can help set the conditions for them to seek employment.
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By Kristin M. Hall - The Associated Press
Posted : Saturday Dec 3, 2011 15:31:18 EST
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — The Army’s top enlisted soldier said the entire nation has a responsibility to help the tens of thousands of young combat veterans who will be entering the civilian workforce in the coming years.
Sgt. Maj. of the Army Raymond Chandler visited Fort Campbell, Ky., on Friday to hear concerns of soldiers and their families about the coming changes for the Army, including the challenge of reducing the Army by 50,000 soldiers over the next five years and uncertainty about the effects of budget cuts.
Chandler told reporters at the installation on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line that the Army is preparing soldiers to leave the service but noted the American public has an important role in helping those veterans.
“Even the president has said we have to do more for our veterans,” he said. “If as a nation, we have said this is important, then all of us have a part to do, even those of us that are in the Army.”
With unemployment rates higher for recent veterans than the national average, Chandler said the Army can’t find jobs for all veterans, but can help set the conditions for them to seek employment.
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Marine Master Sgt. sings Christmas song for wife from Afghanistan
A Marine's Christmas song
Marine Master Sgt. Robert Allen sings a song he wrote for his wife for Christmas. Allen joins the thousands of men and women deployed this holiday season in support of counterinsurgency efforts in Afghanistan. By Cpl. Brian Adam Jones
Marine Master Sgt. Robert Allen sings a song he wrote for his wife for Christmas. Allen joins the thousands of men and women deployed this holiday season in support of counterinsurgency efforts in Afghanistan. By Cpl. Brian Adam Jones
Deployment takes a toll on an Oklahoma mother serving in Army
Oklahoma Army mom sacrifices for daughters
Deployment takes a toll on an Oklahoma mother serving in Army.
BY LESLIE METZGER
Published: December 4, 2011
It's a day Jj Murphy never will be able to erase out of her memory.
“Those of you with family members here, you have five minutes to say goodbye.”
She recalls falling out of formation from her company, turning around and seeing her husband, Chad, and looking into his eyes as he held their two little girls. She had five short minutes left with her family before boarding the plane to Iraq.
“Shoshoni just started screaming and latched onto me and she wouldn't let go. Everybody in my company turned around and watched. There wasn't a dry eye in the place. Everybody started crying and Chad had to grab Shoshoni. I remember walking away, listening to her say, ‘Don't leave.' I was just looking into her eyes and giving them a kiss and a hug and I said ‘I love you and I'll talk to you soon.' I had to walk away and I remember telling myself, ‘Don't look back.' I couldn't look back and I couldn't see them crying and screaming.”
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Deployment takes a toll on an Oklahoma mother serving in Army.
BY LESLIE METZGER
Published: December 4, 2011
It's a day Jj Murphy never will be able to erase out of her memory.
“Those of you with family members here, you have five minutes to say goodbye.”
She recalls falling out of formation from her company, turning around and seeing her husband, Chad, and looking into his eyes as he held their two little girls. She had five short minutes left with her family before boarding the plane to Iraq.
“Shoshoni just started screaming and latched onto me and she wouldn't let go. Everybody in my company turned around and watched. There wasn't a dry eye in the place. Everybody started crying and Chad had to grab Shoshoni. I remember walking away, listening to her say, ‘Don't leave.' I was just looking into her eyes and giving them a kiss and a hug and I said ‘I love you and I'll talk to you soon.' I had to walk away and I remember telling myself, ‘Don't look back.' I couldn't look back and I couldn't see them crying and screaming.”
read more here
Community Rallies for Iraq Veteran Who Lost Home to Fire
Community Rallies for Iraq Veteran Who Lost Home to Fire
Updated: Dec 03, 2011
A local Iraq war veteran is thanking his community after his neighbors and friends donated thousands of dollars' worth of household goods to get his family back on their feet.
Kyle Betts, his girlfriend, and her three kids lost the Oconto home they were living in to a fire in early November. It happened on the morning of November 7.
Betts and his girlfriend Tina Rigdon stood outside as the house went up in flames.
"I went downstairs and opened the front door, and all I saw was orange coming off the porch -- was just completely orange 'cause of the fire," Betts said.
They escaped the fire without harm, but with only the clothes they were wearing at the time.
"We didn't have anything. We didn't have anywhere to go, we didn't have money put together," Rigdon said.
Right away, the American Red Cross provided them with a motel room.
Donations started coming in.
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Original report
Green Bay Iraq Veterans family lost everything
Updated: Dec 03, 2011
A local Iraq war veteran is thanking his community after his neighbors and friends donated thousands of dollars' worth of household goods to get his family back on their feet.
Kyle Betts, his girlfriend, and her three kids lost the Oconto home they were living in to a fire in early November. It happened on the morning of November 7.
Betts and his girlfriend Tina Rigdon stood outside as the house went up in flames.
"I went downstairs and opened the front door, and all I saw was orange coming off the porch -- was just completely orange 'cause of the fire," Betts said.
They escaped the fire without harm, but with only the clothes they were wearing at the time.
"We didn't have anything. We didn't have anywhere to go, we didn't have money put together," Rigdon said.
Right away, the American Red Cross provided them with a motel room.
Donations started coming in.
read more here
Original report
Green Bay Iraq Veterans family lost everything
Iraq war vet still critical following hit and run October
Iraq war vet still critical following hit and run
12:16 AM, Dec 4, 2011
Written by
Jay Olstad
MINNEAPOLIS - If home is where the heart is, then Amy Byro has been home for the last 37 days.
"The staff has been joking about changing my address to his room," said Byro.
She hasn't strayed too far from her brother's side at the Hennepin County Medical Center.
Her brother, 29-year old Iraq War veteran John Byro, is in critical condition after a driver crashed into him while he was riding his motorcycle.
It happened in small southern Minnesota town of Gaylord back in October. The driver took off and hasn't been heard from since.
"I don't understand how they cannot turn themselves in," she said.
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Original report
Iraq War Vet critically injured in hit and run
12:16 AM, Dec 4, 2011
Written by
Jay Olstad
MINNEAPOLIS - If home is where the heart is, then Amy Byro has been home for the last 37 days.
"The staff has been joking about changing my address to his room," said Byro.
She hasn't strayed too far from her brother's side at the Hennepin County Medical Center.
Her brother, 29-year old Iraq War veteran John Byro, is in critical condition after a driver crashed into him while he was riding his motorcycle.
It happened in small southern Minnesota town of Gaylord back in October. The driver took off and hasn't been heard from since.
"I don't understand how they cannot turn themselves in," she said.
read more here
Original report
Iraq War Vet critically injured in hit and run
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Fallen soldier's father dies in car crash
Father of slain soldier dies in crash
12:37 PM, Dec. 3, 2011
WATKINS GLEN — A man killed in a crash Friday was identified today as the father of a soldier who was killed in Afghanistan in September.
Kenneth M. Scott, 42, of Tyrone, Schuyler County, was having a medical emergency as he was driving at North Decatur and 8th streets in Watkins Glen at 5 p.m. Friday, police said.
The car went off the road and hit a utility pole, bringing down power lines.
12:37 PM, Dec. 3, 2011
WATKINS GLEN — A man killed in a crash Friday was identified today as the father of a soldier who was killed in Afghanistan in September.
Kenneth M. Scott, 42, of Tyrone, Schuyler County, was having a medical emergency as he was driving at North Decatur and 8th streets in Watkins Glen at 5 p.m. Friday, police said.
The car went off the road and hit a utility pole, bringing down power lines.
Scott is the father of Army Spc. Christopher J. Scott, who was killed Sept. 3 in Afghanistanread more here
Fort Campbell BOSS Looking Out for the Single Soldier
BOSS Looking Out for the Single Soldier
Steven Willis Reporting
swillis@clarksvillenow.com
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. – Every Thursday the Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers, (BOSS) stands before a room full of anywhere from 150 to 400 newcomers to Fort Campbell to inform the men and women how to get involved in the program, but who is BOSS and what do they do for the Fort Campbell community?
Over 30,000 men and women are stationed at Fort Campbell. Each soldier is more than an individual who has headed the call to serve their nation. The soldiers are still just men and women often times hundreds of miles away from their family and friends.
A little more than 16,000 of the Ft. Campbell soldiers, approximately 52 percent, are single and in their early twenties. In any industry or business, happy employees are healthy and productive employees. The Army is no different. A young, single soldier who is miles away from loved ones in an unfamiliar city can quickly become overwhelmed by loneliness and boredom.
This is where Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers comes in.
Soldiers do not have to sign up for or pay a fee to be a member of BOSS. As a single soldier each person is already a member and all they have to do is take part whenever or in whatever the program has planned.
At Fort Campbell, Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers has been established to help keep a soldier’s moral up and make them feel more a part of the community they are stationed in. The program is designed to make sure the overall quality of life for a single Soldier is the best it can be while stationed at Ft. Campbell.
read more here
Steven Willis Reporting
swillis@clarksvillenow.com
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. – Every Thursday the Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers, (BOSS) stands before a room full of anywhere from 150 to 400 newcomers to Fort Campbell to inform the men and women how to get involved in the program, but who is BOSS and what do they do for the Fort Campbell community?
Over 30,000 men and women are stationed at Fort Campbell. Each soldier is more than an individual who has headed the call to serve their nation. The soldiers are still just men and women often times hundreds of miles away from their family and friends.
A little more than 16,000 of the Ft. Campbell soldiers, approximately 52 percent, are single and in their early twenties. In any industry or business, happy employees are healthy and productive employees. The Army is no different. A young, single soldier who is miles away from loved ones in an unfamiliar city can quickly become overwhelmed by loneliness and boredom.
This is where Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers comes in.
Soldiers do not have to sign up for or pay a fee to be a member of BOSS. As a single soldier each person is already a member and all they have to do is take part whenever or in whatever the program has planned.
At Fort Campbell, Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers has been established to help keep a soldier’s moral up and make them feel more a part of the community they are stationed in. The program is designed to make sure the overall quality of life for a single Soldier is the best it can be while stationed at Ft. Campbell.
read more here
Kentucky soldiers and their families know the war is far from over
Conflicts have deep impact on culture
Posted: December 3, 2011
MCT News Wire
LONDON, Ky. — On Veterans Day 2011, Timothy Jackson, a former sailor in the U.S. Navy and the son of a man who was the same, visited a small, unfinished gravesite on a hilltop alongside a winding road. It belonged to Timothy Matthew Jackson, who went by Matt and had himself been a Marine.
And in three generations of Jackson men to serve, Matt was the first to die in combat. He was 22.
It’s been a wrenching year for the Jackson family. And for the communities in and around London, it’s been a wrenching decade. A decade ago in October, America went to war — first in Afghanistan and then in Iraq. At 10 years, the war on terror is almost as long as World War I, World War II and the Korean War combined.
Now, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are nearing their end, as President Barack Obama has plans to bring U.S. troops back from Iraq by the end of this month and reduce forces in Afghanistan — still a hot zone — by the middle of 2012.
But for the soldiers of Kentucky and their families, the war is far from over.
To understand the impact of these wars on the American fabric, McClatchy Newspapers reviewed reams of reports and records from the Department of Veterans Affairs. It settled on London — a typical small American town that, when it comes to matters of war, is anything but typical.
In the past decade, nearly 200 men and women from these parts have left the service and are now collecting disability payments for the injuries they sustained during military service. Three soldiers from London were killed outright, a higher number than most small towns and many larger ones.
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Posted: December 3, 2011
MCT News Wire
LONDON, Ky. — On Veterans Day 2011, Timothy Jackson, a former sailor in the U.S. Navy and the son of a man who was the same, visited a small, unfinished gravesite on a hilltop alongside a winding road. It belonged to Timothy Matthew Jackson, who went by Matt and had himself been a Marine.
And in three generations of Jackson men to serve, Matt was the first to die in combat. He was 22.
It’s been a wrenching year for the Jackson family. And for the communities in and around London, it’s been a wrenching decade. A decade ago in October, America went to war — first in Afghanistan and then in Iraq. At 10 years, the war on terror is almost as long as World War I, World War II and the Korean War combined.
Now, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are nearing their end, as President Barack Obama has plans to bring U.S. troops back from Iraq by the end of this month and reduce forces in Afghanistan — still a hot zone — by the middle of 2012.
But for the soldiers of Kentucky and their families, the war is far from over.
To understand the impact of these wars on the American fabric, McClatchy Newspapers reviewed reams of reports and records from the Department of Veterans Affairs. It settled on London — a typical small American town that, when it comes to matters of war, is anything but typical.
In the past decade, nearly 200 men and women from these parts have left the service and are now collecting disability payments for the injuries they sustained during military service. Three soldiers from London were killed outright, a higher number than most small towns and many larger ones.
read more here
Remaining U.S. Troops Prepare to Leave Iraq
Remaining U.S. Troops Prepare to Leave Iraq
Published on Dec 2, 2011 by AssociatedPress
The last 13,000 U.S. Military Personnel in Iraq are preparing to leave. There were 170,000 troops in Iraq at the height of the war. The last forces must be out of Iraq by December 31st. (Dec. 2)
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