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Lest We Forget


Michael Eastes

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An old soldier friend passed away today.

 

Norman William Cromie June 18th,1921- December 27th, 2011 , 48th Highlander. 1939 enlisted and survived the full war through to its end to come home to raise a family and live a very long and full life. Goodbye my friend. I'm sure going to miss our emails exchanges ... you've earned your rest ...

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Co-worker of mine, and a fine representative of the United States Marine Corps died last night. He was found unresponsive in an apparent diabetic crisis two days ago. During his time on Active Duty he travelled with the Marine Corps Band and was on the White House Security Detail under Reagan and Bush Sr. We are all kind of scrambling to catch all the eggs he was juggling around the office. He is survived by two teenaged sons.

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12-22-2011

 

UK

 

Jennings,Tom

 

Captain

 

29

 

Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack Kabul Kabul (south of)

 

British Royal Marine

 

Not reported yet Not reported yet

 

Special Boat Service Poole, Dorset

Edited by Sardaukar
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12-22-2011

 

UK

 

Jennings,Tom

 

Captain

 

29

 

Hostile - hostile fire - IED attack Kabul Kabul (south of)

 

British Royal Marine

 

Not reported yet Not reported yet

 

Special Boat Service Poole, Dorset

 

 

RIP

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  • 1 month later...

One of the last of the "Band of Brothers", of book and HBO movie fame, has passed:

 

http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-lynn-compton-20120228,0,356555.story

 

R.I.P., "Buck" Compton. I had the pleasure of meeting him last year.

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  • 5 weeks later...

While doing geneology searches I came across this interesting old obituary from 1956 of this Canadian born soldier and VC winner, Brig. Sinton, R.I.P.

 

 

*Obit VC (Victoria Cross) recipient Brig. SINTON 1956 WFP

 

Obit WFP March 27, 1956 page 14

 

Canadian-Born Brig. Sinton V. C. Dies In Ireland

COOKSTOWN. Northern Ireland (Reuters) –

Brigadier John Alexander Sinton, distinguished Canadian-born

soldier-doctor who won the Victoria Cross during the First World War,

died at his home here Sunday. He was 71.

Brig. Sinton who was born in British Columbia and was taken

to Northern Ireland at the age of six, won his VC as a captain in

Mesopotamia in 1916.

In 1946 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society,

select body of leading British scientists.

Edited by Dame Karmen
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Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2012 20:53:52 -0400

Subject: Fwd: PRAYER REQUEST

 

We are asking everyone to say a prayer for " Dark horse" 3rd

Battalion 5th Marines and their families They are fighting it out

in Afghanistan & they have lost 9 marines in 4 days. IT WOULD BE NICE TO

SEE the message spread if more could pass it on. Nothing in the media about

these guys.

 

Justin Allen, 23, Brett Linley, 29, Matthew Weikert, 29, Justus Bartett, 27, Dave Santos, 21, Chase Stanley, 21 Jesse Reed, 26, Matthew Johnson, 21, Zachary Fisher, 24, Brandon King, 23, Christopher Goeke, 23, Sheldon Tate, 27.

 

All are Marines that gave their lives for YOU this week.

Please Honor THEM by forwarding this.

 

I just did.

Edited by Michael Eastes
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  • 4 weeks later...

George Vujnovich, leader of WWII air rescue, dead at 96.

 

 

 

One of the unsung heroes of WW2.

 

George Vujnovich, an American intelligence agent who led the largest air rescue of Americans behind enemy lines during World War II, died last week at the age of 96, according to media reports.

 

http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/george-vujnovich-leader-of-wwii-air-rescue-dead-at-96-1.176117?localLinksEnabled=false

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Not a wartime hero, but he served as a young sailor in WW2. An inspiring bloke that you would not have heard of, but someone I would like to mention here.

 

The story can be found here. The comments are worth reading as well.

 

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/death-of-the-angel-of-the-gap-the-man-who-saved-the-suicidal-from-themselves-20120514-1ymle.html

Death of the Angel of The Gap: the man who saved the suicidal from themselves

 

Glenda Kwek

May 15, 2012 - 11:30AM

 

 

For almost half a century, Don Ritchie would approach people contemplating suicide at the edge of The Gap, just 50 metres from his home in Watsons Bay, his palms facing up.

 

Mr Ritchie told his daughter Sue Ritchie Bereny he would smile and say: "Is there something I could do to help you?"

 

"And that was all that was often needed to turn people around, and he would say not to underestimate the power of a kind word and a smile," said Ms Ritchie Bereny.

 

Mr Ritchie, sometimes known as the angel or watchman of The Gap, is acknowledged to have stopped about 160 people from jumping to their deaths.

 

He died at St Vincent's Hospital on Sunday, surrounded by his wife Moya, 85, daughters Jan, Donna and Sue, and four grandchildren, who travelled from across Australia and from Indonesia to Sydney to see him. He was 86.

 

Mr Ritchie was born on June 9, 1925 in Vaucluse, and studied at Vaucluse Public School and Scots College.

When World War II broke out, he served in the Royal Australian Navy on HMAS Hobart, and was on the ship in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese surrendered in 1945.

 

From his 30s to his 60s, Mr Ritchie worked for a multinational firm and built up a significant career in the corporate world, Ms Ritchie Bereny said.

 

In 1964, the former life insurance salesman moved into a house on Old South Head Road across the road from Jacobs Ladder at the southern end of the Gap Park. It was his home till the end.

 

From that time, Mr Ritchie started to rescue suicidal strangers.

 

"Things were different way back then. It was before there were police rescue vans, before there were more sophisticated mechanisms like hotlines. In those days, he got a bravery medal for saving somebody at the cliff - he actually tackled somebody on the edge of the cliff," Ms Ritchie Bereny said.

 

"He is famous for bringing people back to the house for tea or breakfast."

 

In 2006 Mr Ritchie was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his rescues.

His actions touched so many hearts that, in 2010, he and his wife were named Woollahra Council's citizens of the year.

Last year, he was given the Local Hero Award for Australia by the National Australia Day Council.

 

"In a situation where most would turn a blind eye, Don has taken action ... With such simple actions Don has saved an extraordinary number of lives," the National Australia Day Council said.

Today, Woollahra Council and the National Australia Day Council praised Mr Ritchie for his dedication.

 

"Don's story touched the hearts of all Australians and challenged each of us to rethink what it means to be a good neighbour," the acting chief executive of the National Australia Day Council, Tam Johnston, said in a statement.

"Don was a true gentleman with a smile that could light up the room."

The mayor of Woollahra, Susan Wynne, called Mr Ritchie a great man whose "courage delivered small miracles".

Mr Ritchie had joined mental health advisers and the federal Liberal member for Wentworth Malcolm Turnbull in supporting the funding of suicide prevention measures at The Gap.

Mr Turnbull also praised Mr Ritchie.

 

"His work lives on forever not just in the lives of those he saved but in his heroism and example of public service," he said in a statement.

 

Ms Ritchie Bereny said her father was the best role model she could think of for her grandson.

"When the school that my grandson goes to asked me for input about what sort of child they might produce, I used him as a role model because there are lots of strong people in the world - but I think strength with compassion is what we should strive for."

Last year, when he was involved in the launch to promote the Australian of the Year awards for 2012, he was asked to take one letter of the word Australia and pin to it a story that inspired him, Ms Ritchie Bereny said.

 

Mr Ritchie chose the story of Simpson and his donkey.

 

"I think that epitomises him. It's about an everyday person who did an extraordinary thing for many people that saved lives, without any want of recognition."

 

A service for Mr Ritchie will be held at the Naval Memorial Chapel at HMAS Watson, Watsons Bay at 1.30pm on Friday. There will be a celebration of his life after the service at the Rose Bay RSL.

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  • 1 month later...

Is this respect for captain Travis Patriquin?

http://smallwarsjour...ravis-patriquin

 

No sir

 

In this photo, Mohammad Sherrif, District Governor for Sangin, salutes the battlefield cross for U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Ralph E. Pate Jr., an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician with 8th Engineer Support Battalion in support of 1st Battalion, 5th Marines. (photo by Cpl Logan Pierce)

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  • 5 weeks later...

Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, dies at what now seems to me to be a very young age. R.I.P., She inspired an awful lot of people.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/23/sally-ride-dead-dies_n_1696459.html

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Gen. William W. Momyer, Celebrated Pilot, Dies at 95

 

 

He is the greatest tactical air technician and knows more about the operations of tactical air forces than anyone the Air Force has ever produced.”

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/03/us/gen-william-w-momyer-celebrated-pilot-dies-at-95.html

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Charles Durning, noted character actor, died on Christmas Eve, 2012. He was a veteran of the Normandy invasion, the fighting across France, and the Battle of the Bulge ( in which he was captured for a short time, but survived and escaped from a mass shooting of US prisoners by SS troops - not the Malmedy Massacre, but a smaller, similar episode ). He finished the war in an Army hospital, recovering from wounds received after his escape. He was awarded the Silver and Bronze Stars, as well as three Purple Hearts and various campaign ribbons and battle stars. Wikipedia has a pretty good article, but my computer has somehow lost the ability to cut and paste, so I can't include it here.

Edited by Michael Eastes
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This Marine was a friend of my brothers and served with him in Iraq. He was severely injured in a suicide bombing. It hits very close to home because my brother was originally supposed to go out on that patrol, but at the last minute my brother was taken out and his friend put in his place.

 

RIP.

 

http://www.pjstar.com/news/x459330231/Hundreds-pay-final-respects-to-Iraq-War-veteran-Tyler-Ziegel

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This Marine was a friend of my brothers and served with him in Iraq. He was severely injured in a suicide bombing. It hits very close to home because my brother was originally supposed to go out on that patrol, but at the last minute my brother was taken out and his friend put in his place.

 

RIP.

 

http://www.pjstar.co...an-Tyler-Ziegel

 

That has to be tough for your brother. This sort of circumstance is a time when faith helps; all things work to God's purposes. Your brother may be slated to do something very important in his life, and that may be why he was spared. Understandably, he may not yet be able to see it that way.

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  • 1 month later...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Millet

 

Never met the man, to my regret.

 

Walked many a time up and down the hill he led a bayonet charge to take, while I was in Korea. I embarrass myself that I had no idea of the history the ground I was treading on then. Hope to at-least partially-redress my embarrassed ignorance, and more-importantly to honor the man, by this post.

 

 

 

Shot

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  • 2 months later...

http://www.oregon.gov/gov/pages/soldier/ong.aspx

 

The link takes you to a memorial page for those service members from Oregon who have given the ultimate sacrifice in the hostilities in Iraq and Afghanistan.

 

Bless them all, and may God grant them and their families peace.

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