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thedrifter
05-15-04, 05:59 AM
Popaditch returns home injured; his spirit not broken <br />
Submitted by: MCAGCC <br />
Story Identification #: 2004514123036 <br />
Story by Sgt. Jennie Haskamp <br />
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<br />
MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER...

thedrifter
05-15-04, 06:00 AM
He remembers very little about being treated in Fallujah, or being medevaced to Germany, but
what he does remember amazes him.

"I was on a cot, and they were working on me. I was very heavily medicated," he recalled,
taking off the patch covering his right eye and rubbing his hand across his shaved head.
"All of a sudden, they said, 'Gunny, we're being mortared, so we're going to pile these flak
jackets on you', like it was no big deal."

Popaditch said they spread a flak on his legs, one on his torso and one over his head-and
then he lost consciousness until he was on the flight to Germany.

In Germany, he spoke to his wife and parents on the telephone, and after surgery, the
doctors told him his right eye had been unsalvageable.

"I'm sure I left this guy on the floor of that tank," he smiled, gesturing to his swollen
and closed right eyelid, surrounded with fresh pink scars and some small scabs peppered
across his cheeks, mouth and forehead, "but it was nice of them to tell me I'd lost it. This
other one is getting better every day though, and I expect to regain 100 percent of my
vision--in this eye.

Now back at home in the Mojave Desert, Popaditch, who is still on convalescent leave, spends
a few hours every day at the headquarters element of his battalion. The battalion surgeon
asks him from time to time why he isn't convalescing at home.

"I told him, 'I want to wait until I feel good enough to enjoy the leave, sir,' and I just
like being around the battalion, seeing the guys, seeing what I can get into," laughs
Popaditch, who, with the help of his wife of 13 years, April, regularly drives three hours
one-way to see a variety of doctors at Balboa Naval Medical Center, San Diego. "I can't
believe these doctors-I really feel like I've got the greatest doctors in the world. There
are so many of them, all specialists of some sort, and all interested in helping me make a
full recovery."

When asked how he would sum up the whole experience, Popaditch thought for a minute and
smiled.

"This has been the most motivating experience of my life, and it has restored my faith in
the youth of America," he said enthusiastically. "The people I've met along the way are
amazing. Corporal Chambers saved my life that day, the doctors are working to give me the
best quality of life possible, and people across America are coming forward to support not
only me, but all of the guys fighting over there right now."

Along with his eye, Popaditch lost his sense of smell, suffered permanent hearing loss in
his right ear, broke his nose and has undergone several surgeries to remove shrapnel from
his head, eye and face.

His sense of humor escaped unscathed, as did his love of God, Corps and country.

"My friends and my Marines are still there, still fighting," he said softly. "Any Marine in
their right mind would want to be right there with them. All I've really lost is about 10
degrees of peripheral vision-and I'll be OK without that. I'm ready to be with my Marines
again."

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200451413640/$file/atworklow1.jpg

Gunnery Sgt. Nick "Pop" Popaditch spends time at 1st Tank Battalion while he is on convalescent leave. Popaditch, a tank commander who deployed with Charlie Co., lost his right eye in a rocket propelled grenade attack on April 7, in Fallujah, Iraq. A 15 year Corps veteran, Popaditch served in Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom before volunteering to redeploy for OIF 2. Photo by: Sgt Jennie Haskamp

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/B899111AA44A763485256E94005AB15B?opendocument


Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 06:01 AM
Marine recovering from injuries sustained in Iraq
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Lee Bonorden
Austin (Minnesota) Daily Herald
5/14/2004

LYLE, Minnesota -- Operation Iraqi Freedom goes on. The men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces on a mission with duty, honor and country propelling them. They are America's sons and daughters. Reservists and National Guard soldiers, mainly. Only a hiccup away from families, jobs, normalcy. A volunteer army. Some of their comrades disgraced them with the Abu Ghraib military prison incidents of abuse of Iraqi prisoners. Still the rest go about soldiering as they were trained.

Back home, parents and other relatives and loved ones anxiously wait. Entire communities waving yellow ribbons of support and flying Old Glory everywhere. At that bastion of patriotism, the hometown veterans club, old soldiers ponder other wars in other far off places while saluting today's military.

Lyle American Legion Post No. 105 is one of those places. "We really hope Matt recovers all right and we want him to know we're all pulling for him back home in Lyle," said Cdr. Galen Holst.

"Matt" is Matthew Wendt, son of Scott and Debbie Wendt, now of Park Rapids. He is a 1999 graduate of Lyle High School. Scott was everybody's favorite Minnesota State Patrol trooper when the family lived in Lyle. Debbie was a popular school secretary.

The war in Iraq stretches endlessly into cities and small towns, rural areas, too, touching everyone when an American soldier is wounded or killed in action.

Matthew Wendt did that.

Here, in the words of his father, Scott, is Matthew's story:

Matthew is a member of the 2nd Marine 2nd division, Fox Company, headquarters platoon. He was on his second tour in Iraq. On April 6 he and his partner were moving from one building to another when a mortar round went off about 5 feet from them. Matthew said the blast sent both of them flying and left them disoriented. Matthew was able to regain his feet, and he and his partner made it back to a safe zone under heavy fire.

Matthew suffered shrapnel wounds to the left side of his body, concentrated mainly in his left arm, buttocks, leg and ankle. His ankle was broken.

From the field he was taken to a field hospital where we were contacted and advised that he was wounded, that his injuries appeared to be non-life-threatening, that he was in X-ray and we would be contacted when they were finished.

The next afternoon we received a call informing us of Matthew's injuries. They first thought he would remain in Iraq, but he had gravel embedded in his bone and was developing an infection because of it. He was flown to Germany and there it was determined to ship him back to the states.

He was at Bethesda hospital in Maryland for a period of time and then on to Camp Lejeune, where he currently is located. He has had to have infection drained from his ankle each day. They have decided to allow the ankle to heal on its own. At first thought they were going to put pins in it.

He has a daily bout with pain: shrapnel working its way out of his body, gravel and other debris. He keeps himself busy taking other Marines to the hospital for their treatments, answering phone calls and spending time on the rifle range.

Debbie and I went to North Carolina two weeks ago to visit. Although still in a great deal of pain and a long row to hoe, he was in good spirits and upbeat.

One of his best friends Michael Spear of the same company was shot and killed in the same battle. Another friend from his platoon was shot through both arms. We consider ourselves very fortunate and blessed that Matthew will make a full recovery.

Matthew also thinks that it is important for people to know that the people of Iraq for the most part are very grateful for what we are doing for them. He told me that the Iraqi people are very warm and friendly, but that they have lived under fear for so long that they sometimes root for the winner of the day, fearful that we are going to pull out and leave them to another dictator.

He also said that all of his combat was against foreign fighters from Iran and Syria, not Iraqi soldiers. He wants everyone to know that he believes in what we are doing for the people of Iraq.

Although there is a small group of anti-Americans in Iraq, the farmers there love us. He toldme that during the night local farmers would notify his company of foreign fighters laying land mines. If the Marines couldn't get out, the farmers grabbed their guns and took care of things. He said one thing that is a constant all over the world today: Farmers are independent, fear nothing and support Marines.

Debbie and I would like to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers and telephone calls supporting us during this time, concluded the father.

Matthew's address is:

CPL Matthew S. Wendt
7360 2-2 Fox Co. H.Q. Platoon
Camp Lejeune, NC 28542

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com

Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 06:02 AM
Fighting Continues in Karbala; Najaf Quiet

By QASSID JABAR

KARBALA, Iraq - American troops fought militiamen loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Saturday in the southern city of Karbala, but the city of Najaf was relatively quiet following intense clashes a day earlier.

Also Saturday, an explosion was heard near the headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition in Baghdad. Sirens wailed briefly, and smoke rose from the area.

There was no immediate report of casualties, and it was unclear whether the explosion occurred in the coalition compound, which is known as the Green Zone, a coalition spokesman said on condition of anonymity.

The fighting in Karbala occurred in the Mukiyam area, and was not as widespread as in previous days, witnesses said. U.S. jets flew over the city.

On Friday afternoon, al-Sadr followers stormed the building of Karbala's quick reaction police force and looted weapons, witnesses said. Four Iraqis were killed and thirteen were injured, according to officials at al-Hussein hospital.

In Najaf, gunmen from al-Sadr's militia, the al-Mahdi Army, remained in control of the heart of the city and they had replaced a special force assigned to protect the Shrine of Imam Ali, one of Shia Islam's holiest sites. Bands of fighters stood at almost every street corner around the shrine.

Hundreds of pilgrims, including Iranians and Indians, were back at the shrine. Most shops around the shrine remained closed for a second day, and many stores in other parts of the city were closed.

Some militiamen patrolled the area in a police pickup truck, one of several commandeered by al-Mahdi Army fighters when they raided police stations in Najaf this week.

At one point, a police car arrived at the militia headquarters near the shrine with a dead body in the back.

In Najaf on Friday, American tanks firing shells and heavy machine guns made their deepest incursion yet into the stronghold of a radical cleric. Apparent gunfire slightly damaged one of Shia Islam's holiest shrines, prompting calls for revenge and even suicide attacks.

Also Saturday, fighting ebbed in the southern city of Nasiriyah, where gunmen believed loyal to al-Sadr had attacked the local headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition, a coalition official said. Two Filipino guards were wounded.

Shooting lasted all night until 6 a.m. around the coalition building, where some international staffers and four Italian journalists were trapped inside, said spokesman Andrea Angeli, who was among those in the building.

Italian forces and Filipino security guards in the compound fought militiamen who fired mortars, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades from the southeast and northeast parts of the city, Angeli said by telephone.

Italian Lt. Col. Giuseppe Perrone, spokesman for the Italian contingent in Nasiriyah, said Saturday morning that calm had returned. "But it's clear there's still a feeling of tension," he said.

"We're still trying to figure out where the militias have shifted to and what their intentions are."

During the fighting two Filipino security guards were hit by shrapnel and were taken to the Italian military hospital in a military convoy about 2 a.m., Angeli said.

The coalition staffers, including Italians, Americans and Britons along with drivers and security guards, and Italian journalists remained inside the building, he said.

The gunbattle erupted about 7 p.m. Friday.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/05/15/ap/Headlines/d82itd780.txt


Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 06:03 AM
Navy reserves answer call
May 13,2004
ERIC STEINKOPFF
DAILY NEWS STAFF

A group of about 200 reserve religious and medical service sailors are reporting to Camp Lejeune this week to prepare for a deployment to Iraq with their Marine counterparts later this year.

Navy Mobilization Processing Site Chief Petty Officer James Stolarczyk, 48, of Deerfield, Ill., was busy making sure there were fresh haircuts, pressed uniforms and that each sailor was properly "pro- cessed" and ready to go over the next week.

"This site has been open for a couple of years, but it's new (that we're) mobilizing the corpsmen about a month prior to joining their Marine units," Stolarczyk said. "They're working on teamwork within the corpsman community."

Petty Officer 3rd Class Manuel Leal, 29, a religious program specialist from Phoenix, Ariz., was among those checking in this week. The Arizona Department of Corrections officer served three years as a reservist and was called to active duty working in the United States when anti-terrorism operations began in Afghanistan.

"Last time I was called, this time I volunteered," Leal said.

During peacetime, a religious program specialist typically coordinates prayer groups, religious ceremonies, musical worship and lay ministers, but Leal's duties will be a little broader during war.

"I'm the chaplain's bodyguard while in the field," Leal said.

Later this month, Leal will probably be headed to Marine Wing Support Squadron 476 based in Willow Grove, Pa. The squadron will be involved in a mobilization for a deployment to Iraq later this year, Marine Forces Reserve spokesman Capt. Patrick Kerr said.

Many of the other corpsmen and religious program specialists will be assigned to a pair of reserve 4th Marine Division infantry battalions: 1st Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment headquartered in Houston Texas or 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment in Chicago, Ill., Stolarczyk said.

Kerr said both units have received their warning orders to be prepared to mobilize to Iraq.

"They have not yet been officially activated, but they anticipate coming on line the first of June," Kerr said.

About 25,000 active duty and reserve Marines and sailors have been scheduled to deploy to Iraq by this summer or early fall to relieve their counterparts and elements of some Army units, about 20,000 Marines are expected from the East Coast and about 5,000 from the West Coast.

The Marine forces headed to Iraq are normally under the command of the West Coast's I Marine Expeditionary Force and typically train at the southern California Marine bases of Camp Pendleton or 29 Palms before they deploy.


Contact Eric Steinkopff at estein kopff@jdnews.com or at 353-1171, Ext. 236.


http://www.jdnews.com/SiteProcessor.cfm?Template=/GlobalTemplates/Details.cfm&StoryID=22574&Section=News


Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 06:04 AM
Local Iraqi starts independent newspaper <br />
Submitted by: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing <br />
Story Identification #: 2004514111914 <br />
Story by Staff Sgt. A.C. Mink <br />
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<br />
<br />
Al Asad, Iraq (May 14, 2004) -- Ammar...

thedrifter
05-15-04, 10:42 AM
Officer goes above, beyond call of duty, receives Bronze Star
Submitted by: MCAS Beaufort
Story Identification #: 200451411431
Story by Lance Cpl. Justin V. Eckersley



MARINE CORPS AIR STATION BEAUFORT, SC(May 14, 2004) -- A rocket explodes next to an officer and other Marines, knocking them to the ground. The first thing he sees after lifting his head are the legs of a 17-year-old Marine shaking under the power of the machine gun in his hands.

While in Iraq, Capt. Shawn M. Basco, pilot, Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 115 servedas a forward air controller, calling in airstrikes and fire support for the Marines of Company B, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. During the fight to control Saddam Hussein’s presidential palace on April 10, 2003, Basco’s unit came under heavy fire, and Basco himself was wounded in the leg by a rocket attack.

“The first one up after that rocket attack was a 17-year-old Marine who had just received his driver’s license the year before,” Basco said. “He got up right away and started returning fire, his range of view only as far as the illumination of the muzzle flare, shooting at the oncoming Iraqis. That’s a real hero.”

During the fight, Basco set up a medical evacuation point for the wounded Marines. Despite his own injuries, Basco refused to leave the site and continued to move about, organizing Marines and relaying information about the situation to battalion command.

“I was losing so much blood, but I wanted to stay,” Basco said. “The hardest thing wasn’t going or staying in Iraq, but leaving. The hardest part was knowing there were thousands of Marines down there, and leaving them.”

Because of his courageous actions, 21 Marines were evacuated from the fight to receive immediate medical care.

On May 5, Basco received a bronze star with the combat distinguishing device.
“It’s not about the medals,” Basco said. “It’s about the mettle that makes the man. The medal could have never shown up, it was the opportunity that brought the medal up that matters to me.”

Before his experience in Iraq, Basco was unsure of his intention to stay in the Marine Corps. Afterwards, however, his outlook on the Corps changed dramatically.

Much of the Marines’ motivation came from the support of the American public, according to Basco. With the love of his wife and the backing of the American people, the Marines were an unstoppable force.

“I have found the reason I have been put upon the Earth—the reason for my life,” Basco said. “I could have died of my wounds out there, and I wouldn’t regret it.”

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/200451411919/$file/BronzeStar(1)JMN_low.jpg

Major Gen. John G. Castellaw, commanding general, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, presents Capt. Shawn M. Basco, pilot, Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 115, with a Bronze Star, May 5. Photo by: Cpl. Jeff M. Nagan

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/D7B63819FA2FED1385256E940052CFB6?opendocument


Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 01:40 PM
Marine's donated kilt starts journey
Piper asked to lead Celtic Classic parade.
Friday, May 14, 2004

By JIMMY P. MILLER
The Express-Times

BETHLEHEM -- Each morning, a Marine from Detroit gets out of bed in Fallujah, Iraq, puts on a pair of trousers and plays the bagpipes for his unit.

The only thing out of place there is the pants.

But that's changing.

The Celtic Cultural Alliance on Thursday presented a desert camouflage kilt to Marines from the Marine Reserve Center in Allentown. The kilt will be shipped by the Pentagon to 1st Sgt. Dwayne Farr, who is stationed in the northern Iraqi city where American troops have been fiercely fighting insurgents in recent weeks.

The alliance, formerly known as Celtic Fest Inc., decided to help Farr after reading about him in an Associated Press story. Since then, Celtic Cultural Alliance Executive Director Micki Gorman has been in contact with Farr via e-mail every couple days.

"If I don't get an e-mail from him, I get worried," she said.

Since Farr's story appeared in The Express-Times April 22, support has been pouring in from across the Lehigh Valley, Gorman said.

"I did not realize at the time the outpouring of generosity that would come from the Lehigh Valley," Gorman said.

The kilt, made and donated by the Philadelphia-area company Amerikilt, retails for about $150, according to Neville Gardner, owner of Donegal Square, a Celtic imports store on Bethlehem's Main Street.

The alliance is also giving Farr a traditional Scottish kilt in U.S. Marine Corps tartan, which retails for about $700, a sporran -- the purse that hangs over the front of a kilt -- and some belts and hose to complete the outfit. Gardner, the Celtic Cultural Alliance and several private donors teamed up to pay for the items, which along with the Amerikilt have a combined value of about $1,200.

Everything but the camouflage kilt will be shipped to Farr's home in Detroit, Gorman said.

The alliance learned about Farr when the group's events manager, Heather McArthur, read about him on the Internet. In the story, 36-year-old Farr said he was looking for a desert camouflage kilt to wear during combat.

McArthur played in a pipe and drum band herself up until last year, so she thought it would be a good idea to help, she said.

Farr has been asked to lead the Celtic Classic parade this year in downtown Bethlehem, Gorman said. Celtic Classic, the Celtic Cultural Alliance's signature event, is three days of Celtic music, food, culture, education, vendors and beer in downtown Bethlehem every fall. It is scheduled for Sept. 24-26 this year.

If Farr is not back in the United States in time for this year's parade, he will lead the 2005 parade, Gorman said.

"Our mission is to promote the Celtic culture, both in the Lehigh Valley and nationally," Gorman said.

http://www.nj.com/news/expresstimes/pa/index.ssf?/base/news-11/108452559841000.xml


Ellie

thedrifter
05-15-04, 04:54 PM
HMM-764 provides 'Combat Bus' in Iraq
Submitted by: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing
Story Identification #: 200451452858
Story by Sgt. Nathan K. LaForte



AL ASAD, Iraq (May 14, 2004) -- Day or night, rain or shine, sandstorms, wind, small arms fire and rockets, it doesn't matter what obstacles are in the way, the Marines of Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 764, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, accomplish their mission of moving troops and supplies to the furthest reaches of Western Iraq.

HMM-764 is a reserve CH-46E Sea Knight squadron based out of Edwards Air Force Base, Texas. The squadron is part of Marine Aircraft Group 46, 4th Marine Aircraft Wing but is in Iraq attached to MAG-16, augmenting the 3rd MAW deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

While here, the "phrog" squadron, nicknamed the "Moonlighters," is one of the helicopter squadrons tasked with transporting troops and cargo throughout the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force area of responsibility, which is the Al Anbar province of Iraq.

Because of their mission, a few of the Moonlighters have started jokingly referring to their helicopters as the "Combat Bus," according to Sgt. Scott E. Daingerfield, aerial observer, HMM-764.

"We do troop lifts and small cargo movements," the Netcong, N.J., native said. "Because of that, everyone makes the joke of calling us a 'combat bus.' It's not as glamorous as (other missions), but we try to have a blast doing whatever we do."

Although some of the Marines claim that their job here is not as "sexy" as some of group's other squadrons, they still get satisfaction from it, according to Sgt. Jared S. Watson, Sea Knight crew chief, HMM-764.

"It's not a bad job at all," the East St. Louis native said. "It doesn't look glamorous because you're not in the fight, shooting (at the bad guys). However, you feel good when you get to haul supplies, like food and water, that people really need."

For now, the 24-year-old sergeant believes the missions are good for the squadron.

"They are good missions for us because it is our first time being deployed (as a squadron)," he noted. "A select few (Marines) have (deployed), but for the most part, not many have."

The lack of combat experience may have seemed to be an obstacle when the squadron arrived in theater, but those problems have long since been overcome, stated Daingerfield.

"We had a rough start because most of the squadron had never deployed," the 25-year-old Marine claimed. "We're falling into the groove, and it'll just get better (with time)."

The reserve Marines' performance is evident despite their lack of combat experience before this deployment and other problems that are popping up, noted Watson.

"There seems to be a lot of maintenance and that is all part of our job," he realized. "I think we're doing really well and the Marines are learning very quickly."

Along with maintenance, the aircrew is responsible for the internal configuration of seats, which determines the amount of cargo and passengers the helicopter can carry. The crew is usually kept on their toes and running around, because of last minute additions on their flights, he noted.

"It can be a pain in the butt sometimes because you get last minute changes of cargo," he noted. "(Someone) will add a pallet with 500-pounds of gear and you'll be carrying five people."

Daingerfield was quick to add that their hard work does not go unnoticed.

"I have never had a bad experience transporting people," the Marine said of his past six-years in the Marine Corps. "(Our passengers) will pat us on the back and tell us we're doing a good job and we're just dropping them off."

"They are going out and getting in (gunfights)," he added, "and they'll thank us, which makes us feel good."

The passengers aren't the only people to give thanks to the Marines, Watson added.

"Sometimes I think we miss out on our (importance) out here," he said. "So our (commanding officer) and sergeant major are constantly reminding us of that."

Regardless of whether or not they get praise for their work, it doesn't matter to most of the Marines, claimed Staff Sgt. David M. Schnack, quality assurance Marine and Sea Knight crew chief, HMM-764.

"It just feels good being out here after being in the Reserves for so long," the Los Angeles native said. "It's a chance to do my job, which is why I stayed in, to do my job.

"It's not glamorous, but we get people from here to there," Schnack concluded. "(Some people) don't see our importance. I mean there's never going to be a movie like 'Top Gun' made on 46's, but it's still an important job."

With no feature motion picture debut in the future for the "Combat Bus" aircrews, they continue to do their job, Schnack said, which is to keep moving throughout the day or night, rain or shine....

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/image1.nsf/Lookup/20045145356/$file/1transport-lr.jpg

Sgt. Jared S. Watson (front) and Sgt. Scott E. Daingerfield (rear) set-up a bench seat inside a CH-46E Sea Knight, at Al Asad, Iraq, April 23. The two crewmembers from Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 764, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, are configuring their helicopter to transport some Marines to a Forward Operating Base in Western Iraq. Watson, from East St. Louis, and Daingerfield, from Netcong, N.J., are not only responsible for setting up the aircraft to carry troops and cargo, but also for the safety of those inside the aircraft. HMM-764 is part of MAG-46, 4th MAW, but is currently augmenting MAG-16 and 3rd MAW in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Photo by: Sgt. Nathan K. LaForte

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/D66FF00870BB2B0A85256E9400341757?opendocument


Ellie