thedrifter
09-27-07, 05:15 AM
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 1157-07
September 26, 2007
DoD Identifies Navy Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Petty Officer Second Class Charles Luke Milam, 26, of Littleton, Colo., died September 25, while conducting combat operations in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Milam was a hospital corpsman assigned to 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
For further information related to this release, contact Navy Public Affairs at (703) 697-5342.
Ellie
thedrifter
09-28-07, 07:20 AM
Columbine grad killed on patrol in Afghanistan
By Howard Pankratz
Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 09/28/2007 01:49:57 AM MDT
Luke Milam was not only big and strong but saw himself as the man his Marine Corps brothers could turn to in combat if they were hurt.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Navy petty officer from Littleton was a hospital corpsman trained to care for Marines engaged in special-combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
On Tuesday, Milam, 26, was on patrol with coalition forces in Afghanistan when they apparently were hit by a rocket attack near the town of Musa Qula.
Musa Qula lies in an opium-poppy growing area of Afghanistan where the Taliban has engaged in fierce battles with British and U.S. troops.
Milam, highly decorated in three tours in Iraq, was killed in what Keith Milam, his oldest brother, said appeared to be an ambush.
But Keith Milam, of Nashville, Tenn., said his brother - a 1999 Columbine High School graduate - was doing what he wanted to do.
"Luke loved his job. He was living a dream," Keith Milam said Thursday. "He felt it was his calling ... to help the guys around him."
At the time of his death, Milam was assigned to the 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion.
Keith Milam said his brother was a "real outdoorsy guy" whose life revolved around backpacking, mountain biking, hiking, canoeing, scuba diving and skydiving.
"He loved anything outdoors," said his sister, Jaeme Milam of Denver.
She said her kid brother - the youngest of her three brothers - was following in the military footsteps of brother Keith and grandfather Charles. He was planning to make the military his career, she said.
"He loved what he did. He loved his guys and would have done anything for them," she said.
Luke was awarded the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star, among other commendations.
He is also survived by his parents, Michael and Rita Milam of Seattle, and his brother Andrew of Denver.
Services are expected to be held at Fort Logan National Cemetery next week.
Staff writer Howard Pankratz can be reached at 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
Ellie