Facing Our Losses - Afgahnistan

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Afghanistan: Operation Enduring Freedom
Began Oct. 7, 2001. In all, more than 915 troops have been killed, 61 of them with ties to Washington. (Updated Nov. 10, 2009)
(Information compiled from military and media.)

898th, 899th, 900th, 901st, 902nd, 903rd, 904th and 905th to die: Oct. 27, 2009 – Seven Fort Lewis Stryker soldiers – Army Pfc. Christopher Ian Walz, 25, of Vancouver; Staff Sgt. Luis M. Gonzalez, 27, of South Ozone Park, N.Y., Sgt. Fernando De La Rosa, 24, of Alamo, Texas, Sgt. Dale R. Griffin, 29, of Terre Haute, Ind., Sgt. Issac B. Jackson, 27, of Plattsburg, Mo., Sgt. Patrick O. Williamson, 24, of Broussard, La., and Spc. Jared D. Stanker, 22, of Evergreen Park, Ill. – were killed when enemy forces attacked their vehicle with an improvised explosive device in the Arghandab Valley, Afghanistan. All were assigned to the 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, at Fort Lewis, and their bodies greeted at Dover Air Force Base by President Obama. In a separate incident, Pfc. Brian R. Bates, 20, of Gretna, La., also a Fort Lewis Stryker soldier, was killed by a roadside bomb in Kandahar. Walz played football at Hudson's Bay High School, where he graduated in 2002 and attended Clark College. "One goal he had was to become a police officer;," recalled ex-teacher Richard Sharp. "He went into the military for that." Said his former wife Katrina, "Everybody loved him. He had lots of friends. I don't know a single person who didn't like him. He got along with everybody." Gonzalez, married, with one child, enlisted in the Army in 2001 and, according to his mother Bienvenida Gonzalez, was a "good boy." Queens Borough President Helen Marshall called Gonzalez "a highly-decorated Green Beret who was the recipient of 23 medals and citations - one of which was the Bronze Star, His death in the line of duty while leading his squad on a patrol in southern Afghanistan defines the word hero." De La Rosa, married, with two children, was on his third tour of duty in the Middle East. "If you look at my brother he was just like our leader....he was leader to other military personnel...to us he was our leader," said brother Rolando de La Rosa. Griffin was the son of a Mormon bishop, a champion wrestler and college student who was struggling to find his way in the world when he turned to the military, his family said. When his body arrived back in the U.S., his parents met with President Obama at Dover AFB. "He was a hard-core kid, and no matter how much you required from him, he was always able to deliver," recalled his prep wrestling coach Steve Joseph. "When everyone else was getting down ... he was [saying], ‘We can do this. Come on.'" Jackson, married, with one child and another on the way, had a troubled childhood, but grew up to become a responsible father and soldiers, his family said. They proudly noted that the Missouri governor ordered state flags flown at half staff in honor of his memory. Williamson's father, Leon "Buddy" Williamson, said his son was the first member of his family to enlist. "At the end of the day, he was doing what he wanted," Williamson said. "He's wanted to join the Army and be in the infantry since fifth grade….Patrick lays claim to a badge of honor that very few people can lay claim to: having served his country honorably and well." Stanker enlisted in 2006, in Chicago, shortly after graduating from Brother Rice High School, and began his training in Fort Benning, Ga. In March 2007, he was assigned to the 5th Stryker Brigade. "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing," Stanker posted on his Facebook page. Bates, married, with two children, "was hard-working, sure of himself," recalled Staff Sgt. David Gutierrez, one of his friends. "He would always accomplish the task at hand." Bates was also remembered as a devoted father and husband. "You could hear the pride in his voice whenever he spoke of his children," Gutierrez said.

896th to die: Oct. 26, 2009 - Army Chief Warrant Officer Niall Lyons, 40, Spokane, was one of seven soldiers killed when the MH-47 helicopter they were aboard crashed in Darreh-ye Bum, Afghanistan. Also killed in the crash were three agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration. Lyons, who had a son, graduated from Shadle Park High School in 1988, then graduated from the Geography Department at Eastern Washington University in 1995. His professors say that he made an impression on most of those he met, which made it even harder for them hearing the news of his passing. "I saw it in this morning's paper and it hit me between the eyes," Dr. Dan Turbeville said. "He was open and easy going, didn't get excited about things. He was just the sort of person that stood out in a classroom no matter how many people were there, you knew Niall was there."