First Marine dies in hostile fire in Afghanistan

[thedrifter]

First Marine dies in hostile fire in Afghanistan

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

May 9, 2004


KABUL, Afghanistan - One U.S. Marine was killed and another injured in an overnight attack on a patrol southwest of the capital, the military said yesterday. It was the Marines' first loss to hostile fire in Afghanistan.

The soldiers were fired on by militants south of Tirin Kot, about 250 miles from Kabul in Uruzgan province, said military spokesman Lt. Col. Tucker Mansager. Spokeswoman Capt. Cindy Beam said the soldiers were attacked during a patrol through Uruzgan and Kandahar provinces. She gave no further details of the clash and did not identify the victims, but said the injured Marine underwent surgery at the U.S. military base near Kandahar city for "multiple gunshot wounds to the lower extremities."

A 2,000-strong Marine force was deployed recently in Uruzgan to bolster the fight against resurgent Taliban-led militants. It was unclear if the two were part of that force. Marines also are operating in eastern Kunar province and guard facilities including the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.

The troops from the special operations-capable 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, based in Camp Lejeune, N.C., began arriving in Afghanistan in late March and have set up a new base near Tirin Kot, the Uruzgan provincial capital.

Mansager said the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan had swelled to 20,000 - up from about 11,000 late last year. Part of the increase was down to "overlap" during a routine rotation of units, he said, and he declined to say how many would remain once the switch is complete.

Despite the extra forces, Taliban-led militants have carried out a fresh wave of attacks, killing dozens of Afghan troops. A Taliban spokesman claimed its fighters on Wednesday killed two British security consultants helping the United Nations organize elections due in September.

Nine other Marines have died in Afghanistan due to helicopter and airplane problems. Four U.S. Army soldiers have been killed in action.
Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc.

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Ellie


Rest In Peace

[thedrifter]

Published Tuesday, May 11, 2004
THE PRICE OF FREEDOM

Lakeland Marine Killed In Action in Afghanistan
Cpl. Ron Payne Jr., 23, dies in a grenade attack during his second tour of combat.

By Diane Lacey Allen
The Ledger
diane.allen@theledger.com

LAKELAND -- Ron Payne, a center on Mulberry High's basketball team who grew to be 6-feet 7-inches, was a seasoned Marine by the time he arrived in Afghanistan in late March.

He survived the first phase of the war in Iraq, serving as a scout and calming influence for younger Marines as they worked their way through the hot spots of Nasiriyah and Tikrit.

War made Payne wiser than most his age, his father said.

The 23-year-old told his family he might not return to Lakeland from his second tour of combat.

"He said, `No, Dad, it's different this time,' " Ron Payne said.

Cpl. Ronald R. Payne Jr. was killed Friday in what the Department of Defense described as "hostile action in the vicinity of Tawara, Afghanistan."

He is survived by his mother, Kathy Seymour, his father and stepmother, Ron and Aileen Payne, and sisters Valerie Payne, Rachel Ascione, Heather Seymour and brother Keith Seymour. All live in the Lakeland area.

His mother could not be reached for comment Monday.

The Pentagon said the first death of a Marine in Afghanistan since 2002 occurred last week, but didn't confirm the Marine was Payne.

The Department of Defense said Payne was part of the 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., which has been in Afghanistan since the end of March.

Payne's father said that from what he's pieced together, his son was most likely killed by shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade that struck Payne outside his body armor, and which also injured three others.

The senior Payne, who like other family members also served in the Marines, said he was told his son continued to fight and help his men after he was hit.

"He gave his life for my life and yours and everybody in this nation," Payne said.

Cpl. Payne is the sixth person with Polk County ties who has been killed in Iraq, Afghanistan or Saudi Arabia while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Petty Officer Ron Ginther, 37, of Auburndale, a Navy reservist stationed in Iraq, was killed May 2 when a mortar shell was fired into a camp near Ramadi. His funeral is today.

Stephen "Scott" Helvenston, 38, a graduate of Winter Haven High School, was a civilian contractor killed in Fallujah on March 31.

In November, Army Spec. Jeremiah DiGiovanni, the 21-year-old son of Laurie Brock of Lakeland, was killed when two Black Hawk helicopters collided. He attended Lakeland High.

Todd Bair, a former Army captain who was working as a civilian military instructor, was killed in a suicide bomb attack in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in May 2003. He was a 1984 graduate of Lake Wales High School.

Marine Pvt. Nolen Hutchings, 20, died March 23, 2003, in the city of Nasiriyah. His father, Edward "Buddy" Brown, lives in Lakeland. Hutchings attended Crystal Lake Middle School in the early 1990s.

Family members said Payne was not comfortable with fanfare, which was why they asked not to be photographed Monday night. They said they wanted to honor their son without his death becoming a political symbol.

Ron Payne works at Calvary Baptist Church in Lakeland and the family is devout. They attributed their ability to deal with the death to their faith, support from their congregation and the kindness of friends.

On Monday, friends flowed through the front door of the home near Shepherd Road and carried a steady stream of casserole dishes. Payne's parents played a videotape of his talk to church members nearly a year ago in which he thanked them for their prayers and care packages.

"Every morning when you wake up, you think of the price of freedom because it's paid in blood," Payne had told the gathering at the church.

Ron and Aileen Payne took comfort in those words.

They remembered a likeable boy who dressed in camouflage and could slam dunk a basketball. Payne was a 1999 graduate of Mulberry High who also played football for the school.

The family will put a gold star in their front window -- the symbol that denotes those who have lost a loved one to war.

"Aileen and I are not angry at God. We're not angry at the government or at the president," said Ron Payne, 47.

"He was doing what he wanted to do."

"He was where he wanted to be," added Aileen Payne, 41.

Ron Payne said officials told him his son will be nominated for a commendation for his leadership under fire.

Funeral arrangements were not complete Monday night, but his family plans to bury Payne in Polk County so they can visit his grave frequently.

"Heaven is much closer now," said Ron Payne. "And one day, we're gonna see him again."

Diane Lacey Allen can be reached at diane.allen@theledger.com or 863-802-7514.

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Ellie