Army Spc. Richard C Emmons III
Died May 31, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
22, of North Granby, Conn., assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Polk, La.; died May 31 in Logar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with a rocket propelled grenade.
Army Pfc. Anthony M Nunn
Died May 30, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
19, of Burnet, Texas, assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.; died May 30 in Paktika province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device.
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Fort Campbell soldier killed in Afghanistan
The Associated Press
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — A Fort Campbell soldier from Texas has died in Afghanistan.
The military says 19-year-old Pfc. Anthony M. Nunn of Burnet, Texas, died May 30 in Paktika province after insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
Nunn was an infantryman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. He joined the Army in June and arrived at Fort Campbell in October.
Survivors include his parents, Ted A. Nunn of Gainesville, Texas, and Christina Bennefield of Prosper, Texas; a brother, Matthew A. Nunn of Gainesville; and sister, Savanna R. Nunn of Prosper.
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Posthumously received Bronze Star
The (Clarksville, Tenn.) Leaf-Chronicle
Afghan insurgents killed a Fort Campbell, Ky., soldier on May 30, the Defense Department announced.
Pfc. Anthony M. Nunn, 19, of Burnet, Texas, died in Patika province of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device.
He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.
He joined the Army in June 2010 and arrived at Fort Campbell in October 2010.
His awards and decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Army Service Ribbon.
Nunn was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army Good Conduct Medal and Combat Infantry Badge.
Nunn is survived by his father, Ted A. Nunn of Gainesville, Texas, and his mother, Christina Bennefield of Prosper, Texas; and a brother, Matthew A. Nunn of Gainesville, and a sister, Savanna R. Nunn of Prosper.
Army Spc. Adam S Hamilton
Died May 28, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
22, of Kent, Ohio, assigned to the 4th Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died May 28 in Haji Ruf, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
Army Pfc. John C. Johnson
Died May 27, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
28, of Phoenix, Ariz., assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.; died May 27 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms fire.
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Phoenix soldier killed in Kandahar
By Eddi Trevizo
The (Phoenix) Arizona Republic
PHOENIX — A soldier from Phoenix was killed in Afghanistan on May 27.
Pfc. John C. Johnson, 28, died from wounds he received when insurgents attacked his unit in Kandahar province, according to officials at Fort Drum, N.Y.
Johnson trained at Fort Jackson, S.C., and Fort Benning, Ga. He was assigned to Fort Drum in July 2010.
Johnson was deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in March.
According to Drum officials, Johnson was assigned to 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division.
His awards and decorations include the Army the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
He is survived by his wife, two children, and his mother and father.
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‘He was strong as a bull but soft as a teddy bear’
By Rebekah L. Sanders and Ofelia Madrid
The (Phoenix) Arizona Republic
Pfc. John Corey Johnson, 28, was looking forward to a shave with an electric razor when he last talked to his dad.
Johnson, an affectionate father of two with one on the way, said his camp in Afghanistan had recently gotten power.
Could the family send an electric razor in the next care package?
“I went right down to Walmart and got it,” said his father, John Johnson of Yuma, Ariz. “It’s in the mail. He never got the chance to use it.”
The Phoenix soldier, whom everybody called Corey, died May 27 from wounds he received when insurgents attacked his unit in the Kandahar province in Afghanistan, according to officials at Fort Drum, N.Y.
Corey’s mother, Anita Johnson, said she and her husband were focusing on the good times they had with their son.
“He wanted to make a better life for himself,” Anita said of her son, who could light up a room with his smile. “He’d just gotten married again and had a daughter on the way. I can’t imagine him gone. He’s like a magnet. He’s strong, honest and loving. He surely was one of a kind. I don’t believe it.”
Corey joined the Army in February 2010. After completing training at Fort Jackson, S.C., and Fort Benning, Ga., he was assigned to Fort Drum in July 2010. He was deployed to Afghanistan in March.
According to Drum officials, Corey was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division.
Corey was an experienced hunter and tracker, who grew up fishing and hunting in Arizona’s high country, his father said. Together, they bagged deer, elk and javelina and reeled in catfish, bass and trout. “I took that boy with me everywhere from the time he was old enough to walk,” John said. “He was my partner.”
Corey, who grew up in the Valley, went to Wickenburg High School, worked in a rock mine and oil fields before he joined the Army.
At 16, he dropped out of school to work with his father operating heavy mining equipment, according to John. At 18, Corey moved to Colorado to work in the oil fields.
Corey married and had a daughter, who is now 4. That marriage ended in divorce, Anita said. The young man returned to the Valley to join the military.
“He said, ‘I feel like I need to do this,’ ” his father recalled.
Corey enlisted help from Sen. John McCain to get in to the Army, John said. Then, a few months ago, Corey surprised his family by telling them he had remarried, adopted his wife’s 5-year-old daughter, and they were expecting another girl. Corey’s wife, Jennifer, is four months pregnant and lives in New York, Anita said.
“He found himself someone and was trying to better his life,” she said.
The last time Anita and her husband saw Corey was around Christmastime, she said.
“He’d tease me a lot. We had a good relationship,” Anita said. “He’d come up behind me with that Corey smile. Then he’d lean over my shoulder and say, ‘I sure do love you with all my heart.’ ”
John said his son towered at more than 6 feet tall and 225 pounds. But he was never riled, often putting up with ribbing from one of his seven sisters with nothing but a smile.
“He was strong as a bull but soft as a teddy bear,” John said.
In Afghanistan, Corey made sure to keep his pockets stuffed with candy, which he would give to children, his father said.
In recent months, phone calls from Corey didn’t focus on the war, Anita said.
“He didn’t really talk about the Army. But he would say ‘I’m tired of seeing my buddies go.’ He would have been 29 next month. He sure was one hell of a man,” she said.
John said eight men in his family have served, from World War I to today, and nearly all were injured. Now his son has paid “the ultimate price.”
“I’m not saying my family has done any more than anyone else’s, but we dang sure have pulled our weight,” he said. “I would like to say to Mr. McCain or Mr. Obama, ‘Stay the course. Finish the job. Don’t let these servicemen go in vain.’ ”
Corey’s awards and decorations include the Army National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
Corey is survived by his wife and children, and his mother and father.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Joseph J. Hamski
Died May 26, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
28, of Ottumwa, Iowa, assigned to the 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany; died May 26 in the Shorabak district of Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Tech. Sgt. Kristoffer M. Solesbee was also killed.
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Iowa airman killed in Afghanistan
By Daniel P. Finney
The Des Moines Register
An Ottumwa native was killed in Afghanistan Thursday while serving in the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Department of Defence announced Friday night.
Staff Sgt. Joseph J. Hamski, 28, died when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
A second airman, Tech Sgt. Kristoffer M. Solebee, 32, of Citrus Heights, Calif, also died in the attack, officials said.
The incident occurred in the Shorabak district of Kandahar province.
Hamski graduated from Ottumwa High School in 2001. He briefly attended Iowa State University before joining the Air Force, said his grandfather, Ray Hamski, 83, of Duluth, Minn.
“He really found himself in the Air Force — he just blossomed into a super young man,” Ray Hamski said. “He was kind of a free spirit in high school and he just wasn’t a college man. But he really shaped up in the Air Force. It’s a devastating loss.”
Hamski was assigned to the 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, at the time of his death.
He previously served at Elgin Air Force Base, Cannon Air Force Base and Kusan Air Base. Hamski worked as an explosives and demolitions engineer and trained others how to detect and deactivate bombs.
“You can be thankful for all the lives he saved,” said Jennifer Hensley, Hamski’s sister. “We just sorry he was gone so soon.”
Hamski was the 82nd person with ties to Iowa to have died in Iraq, Afghanistan or elsewhere from combat, illness or accident since the Iraq war began in March 2003.
Hamski is survived by his wife, Air Force Staff Sgt. Maria Christina Hamski, Spangdahlem, Germany; mother, Mary Ellen Winston, a sixth-grade teacher in Ottumwa; sisters Jennifer Hensley of Shakopee, Minn., and Nicole Friedman of Blakesburg; and his brother Thomas Hamski of Nevada.
Hamski graduated from Ottumwa High School in 2001 and briefly attended Iowa State University before joining the Air Force.
He is survived by his wife, Air Force Staff Sgt. Maria Christina Hamski, his mother, two sisters and a brother.
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Hundreds turn out for funeral
The Associated Press
OTTUMWA, Iowa — Hundreds of people lined the streets outside an Ottumwa church on June 4 to show their support for an airman killed last month in Afghanistan.
The mourners and well-wishers — many of them holding American flags — crowded the intersection where St. Mary of the Visitation Catholic Church is located.
Inside, family members of Air Force Staff Sgt. Joseph Hamski attended a funeral Mass for the 28-year-old Ottumwa man, The Ottumwa Courier reported.
Hamski graduated from Ottumwa High School in 2001 and briefly attended Iowa State University before joining the Air Force.
“Joe was a good kid in school,” said Debbie Carnahan Coleman, who stood between the church and City Hall, holding a flag. “He never got into any trouble.”
Coleman, a teacher’s aide back then, said Hamski was always respectful in how he dealt with others and deserves that same respect. Plus, she said as an airman he “made the ultimate sacrifice.”
Hamski was killed May 26 when enemy forces attacked and a bomb exploded. The attack happened in the Shorabak district of Kandahar province. Tech. Sgt. Kristoffer Solesbee of Citrus Heights, Calif., also was killed.
The crowd began lining the streets nearly two hours before Hamski’s funeral. After the service ended, the well-wishers quietly watched the funeral procession. Some saluted the hearse carrying Hamski’s remains as it drove past them en route to Ottumwa Cemetery, where he was to be buried.
“We’re here to say ‘Thank you,’ to show the family we appreciate their sacrifice, and the sacrifice [made] by their loved one,” said another supporter, Janice Bailey.
Hamski is survived by his wife, Air�Force Staff Sgt. Maria Christina Hamski, his mother, two sisters and a brother.
Air Force Tech. Sgt. Kristoffer M. Solesbee
Died May 26, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
32, of Citrus Heights, Calif., assigned to the 775th Civil Engineer Squadron, Hill Air Force Base, Utah; died May 26 in the Shorabak district of Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Staff Sgt. Joseph J. Hamski was also killed.
Army Staff Sgt. Kristofferson B. Lorenzo
Died May 23, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
33, of Chula Vista, Calif.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii;� died May 23, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pfc. William S. Blevins, Pvt. Andrew M. Krippner and Pvt. Thomas C. Allers.
Army Pfc. William S. Blevins
Died May 23, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
21, of Sardinia, Ohio; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; died May 23, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Staff Sgt. Kristofferson B. Lorenzo, Pvt. Andrew M. Krippner and Pvt. Thomas C. Allers.
Army Pvt. Andrew M. Krippner
Died May 23, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
20, Garland, Texas; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; died May 23, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pvt. Thomas C. Allers, Pfc. William S. Blevins and Staff Sgt. Kristofferson B. Lorenzo.
Army Pvt. Thomas C. Allers
Died May 23, 2011 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom
23, of Plainwell, Mich.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; died May 23, in Kunar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Also killed were Pvt. Andrew M. Krippner, Pfc. William S. Blevins and Staff Sgt. Kristofferson B. Lorenzo.
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