thedrifter
08-15-07, 08:21 AM
Hopatcong Marine gets Bronze Star
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
By ROBERTA FUGATE
rjfugate@njherald.com
On April 11, 2005, insurgents launched an attack against Camp Gannon, the Marine base near the city of Qaim on the border with Syria in Husaybah, Iraq.
Enemy fighters unleashed small-arms fire, grenades and vehicle-borne IEDs, then-Capt. Frank Diorio, of Hopatcong, commander of India Company at Camp Gannon, controlled the situation for the base.
His quick reactions and sound decisions enabled his company to fend off the insurgents, inflicting a high number of casualties on the enemy.
Diorio said there was a large explosion that knocked them (the Marines) to their feet. He thought they took a direct hit. Three suicide vehicles, one of which was a fire truck, exploded during the attack. Miraculously he said, he didn't lose any men. "It was a long three days," Diorio said. "When it's over, you think, 'My God I'm blessed.'"
After the attack, Diorio had improved defenses built to better protect from future attacks. He also led offensive operations that disrupted the enemy in Husaybah. In all, Diorio led his company in more than 275 engagements. On Jan. 31, 2006, Diorio was awarded the Bronze Star with a V for multiple actions taken from March 17 to Sept. 10, 2005
He said during the attack he really didn't think about how dangerous the situation was and whether or not he would make it out alive. He said everything was happening so quickly he just reacted. "In the convoys, when you had time, that's when you would think about things like that," he said.
Diorio said when the Marines got to Iraq foreign fighters were giving money to the Ba'th Party and over time started coming down on the locals. He said they were beheaded if they didn't support them. "I saw evil with my own eyes," he said. "Foreign fighters have no respect for life."
It was then that the Marines told the Iraqi people "we're here to restore the power to you," he said. He didn't realize what an impact that statement had on them until the day he heard a huge fire fight two streets away from the base.
The locals called the base and told them that foreign fighters had come to ambush the Marines and that they had stopped them. In turn, the Marines assured the locals that "we're seeing this through to the end."
He said he will never forget the time a tribal leader came to him and said "my tribe is indebted to the United States Marines for the rest of my life."
Receiving the award is humbling, Diorio said, "it's hard to receive an award, I want to cut it up into 350 pieces and share it with the other Marines." "I'm honored," he said, "but I also know what my marines did over there."
The Bronze Star Medal is awarded to any person who, while serving in any capacity in or with the Army of the United States after Dec. 6, 1941, distinguished himself or herself by heroic or meritorious achievement or service, not involving participation in aerial flight, in connection with military operations against an armed enemy; or while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.
Diorio is being featured in a Department of Defense facilitated program called "Hero of the Week" where American service personnel who've been cited for extraordinary service in Iraq or Afghanistan, are featured during interviews on a series of radio talk shows. The series will feature nine radio stations from across the country and include metropolitan cities such as Denver and Atlanta.
"It gives me a chance to tell and talk about my marines," Diorio said.
"I'm amazed at how many people support us," Diorio said of people in the United States. "People will come up and thank us. I'm touched by what people say," he said.
Diorio said that the Vietnam vets have been the most supportive, "they are awesome, compassionate and supportive." He said many of the vets have said to him, "we're just glad you're not being treated the way we were." "It breaks my heart," he said.
Although he didn't lose any marines in Husaybah incident, "I lost several Marines in other deployments. I think of them and it hurts."
"We do what we're asked to do," he said.
"It is very hard for anyone back here to understand," he said of fighting and what the soldiers have to go through. He hears the stories about soldiers who have "gone bad" and said, "I'm not going to judge. I've been there and sometimes my first response is to judge. But," he said, "it was confusing and chaotic so I don't just jump to conclusions and I think about my reaction. There are moments when nothing makes sense."
He wants to tell people not to be too critical, "unless you've been there," he said. It's important to let the system play itself out, he said.
Currently Diorio is an ROTC instructor at the Virginia Military Institute teaching students to the best of his ability. He said it is important to have the students study history in order to learn about successes and failures.
He said that progress has been made in Iraq and that eventually the conflict will be resolved when the will of the Iraq people completely choose freedom. "That takes time," he said. "It's not easy, war is confusing and violent but I see progress every day."
His parents and five sisters still live in New Jersey. His wife, Charlotte, gave birth to the couple's first child, Talia Rose, two days after his tour of duty in Iraq ended.
"There are moments when I look at my daughter and think about how there are hundreds of thousands of people who have left their families who are protecting my family. Every day 18, 19 and 20-year-olds go out and do the job, it's humbling to see," he said.
Diorio played defensive back on the high school football team in Sparta and wrestled in the 125-pound weight class. He took up intramural boxing in college.
Diorio said the worst thing we (people in the United States) can do is "to turn our backs on men and women in uniform, to forget about them." "I pray they realize what we have."
He said, for now, he appreciates the things he has, like the opportunity to go to football games. He realizes there is still the possibility that he will get called back to Iraq.
Since being there, Diorio said he doesn't look at certain things the same way. Here we have ambulances, fire trucks and police cars for good, he said. In Iraq they were dangerous.
"I try to appreciate waking up and not getting shot at and to thank God for things I've been blessed with — my family and my country," he said.
Ellie
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
By ROBERTA FUGATE
rjfugate@njherald.com
On April 11, 2005, insurgents launched an attack against Camp Gannon, the Marine base near the city of Qaim on the border with Syria in Husaybah, Iraq.
Enemy fighters unleashed small-arms fire, grenades and vehicle-borne IEDs, then-Capt. Frank Diorio, of Hopatcong, commander of India Company at Camp Gannon, controlled the situation for the base.
His quick reactions and sound decisions enabled his company to fend off the insurgents, inflicting a high number of casualties on the enemy.
Diorio said there was a large explosion that knocked them (the Marines) to their feet. He thought they took a direct hit. Three suicide vehicles, one of which was a fire truck, exploded during the attack. Miraculously he said, he didn't lose any men. "It was a long three days," Diorio said. "When it's over, you think, 'My God I'm blessed.'"
After the attack, Diorio had improved defenses built to better protect from future attacks. He also led offensive operations that disrupted the enemy in Husaybah. In all, Diorio led his company in more than 275 engagements. On Jan. 31, 2006, Diorio was awarded the Bronze Star with a V for multiple actions taken from March 17 to Sept. 10, 2005
He said during the attack he really didn't think about how dangerous the situation was and whether or not he would make it out alive. He said everything was happening so quickly he just reacted. "In the convoys, when you had time, that's when you would think about things like that," he said.
Diorio said when the Marines got to Iraq foreign fighters were giving money to the Ba'th Party and over time started coming down on the locals. He said they were beheaded if they didn't support them. "I saw evil with my own eyes," he said. "Foreign fighters have no respect for life."
It was then that the Marines told the Iraqi people "we're here to restore the power to you," he said. He didn't realize what an impact that statement had on them until the day he heard a huge fire fight two streets away from the base.
The locals called the base and told them that foreign fighters had come to ambush the Marines and that they had stopped them. In turn, the Marines assured the locals that "we're seeing this through to the end."
He said he will never forget the time a tribal leader came to him and said "my tribe is indebted to the United States Marines for the rest of my life."
Receiving the award is humbling, Diorio said, "it's hard to receive an award, I want to cut it up into 350 pieces and share it with the other Marines." "I'm honored," he said, "but I also know what my marines did over there."
The Bronze Star Medal is awarded to any person who, while serving in any capacity in or with the Army of the United States after Dec. 6, 1941, distinguished himself or herself by heroic or meritorious achievement or service, not involving participation in aerial flight, in connection with military operations against an armed enemy; or while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.
Diorio is being featured in a Department of Defense facilitated program called "Hero of the Week" where American service personnel who've been cited for extraordinary service in Iraq or Afghanistan, are featured during interviews on a series of radio talk shows. The series will feature nine radio stations from across the country and include metropolitan cities such as Denver and Atlanta.
"It gives me a chance to tell and talk about my marines," Diorio said.
"I'm amazed at how many people support us," Diorio said of people in the United States. "People will come up and thank us. I'm touched by what people say," he said.
Diorio said that the Vietnam vets have been the most supportive, "they are awesome, compassionate and supportive." He said many of the vets have said to him, "we're just glad you're not being treated the way we were." "It breaks my heart," he said.
Although he didn't lose any marines in Husaybah incident, "I lost several Marines in other deployments. I think of them and it hurts."
"We do what we're asked to do," he said.
"It is very hard for anyone back here to understand," he said of fighting and what the soldiers have to go through. He hears the stories about soldiers who have "gone bad" and said, "I'm not going to judge. I've been there and sometimes my first response is to judge. But," he said, "it was confusing and chaotic so I don't just jump to conclusions and I think about my reaction. There are moments when nothing makes sense."
He wants to tell people not to be too critical, "unless you've been there," he said. It's important to let the system play itself out, he said.
Currently Diorio is an ROTC instructor at the Virginia Military Institute teaching students to the best of his ability. He said it is important to have the students study history in order to learn about successes and failures.
He said that progress has been made in Iraq and that eventually the conflict will be resolved when the will of the Iraq people completely choose freedom. "That takes time," he said. "It's not easy, war is confusing and violent but I see progress every day."
His parents and five sisters still live in New Jersey. His wife, Charlotte, gave birth to the couple's first child, Talia Rose, two days after his tour of duty in Iraq ended.
"There are moments when I look at my daughter and think about how there are hundreds of thousands of people who have left their families who are protecting my family. Every day 18, 19 and 20-year-olds go out and do the job, it's humbling to see," he said.
Diorio played defensive back on the high school football team in Sparta and wrestled in the 125-pound weight class. He took up intramural boxing in college.
Diorio said the worst thing we (people in the United States) can do is "to turn our backs on men and women in uniform, to forget about them." "I pray they realize what we have."
He said, for now, he appreciates the things he has, like the opportunity to go to football games. He realizes there is still the possibility that he will get called back to Iraq.
Since being there, Diorio said he doesn't look at certain things the same way. Here we have ambulances, fire trucks and police cars for good, he said. In Iraq they were dangerous.
"I try to appreciate waking up and not getting shot at and to thank God for things I've been blessed with — my family and my country," he said.
Ellie