Remembering Navy SEAL Nate Hardy ~ NH Heroes

Remembering Navy SEAL Nate Hardy – KIA February 4, 2008 during Operation Iraqi Freedom against an al Qaeda suicide bomb cell.

The following is from his family:  “As early as 6^th grade, Nate wrote a paper about becoming a Navy SEAL.  Through his years on the soccer and lacrosse fields he discovered and developed the fierce competitiveness and team first mentality that would later serve him well on the road to achieving his goal.  In his senior year, he was selected by the New Hampshire soccer coaches to the all-state second team.  He was elected by his teammates as a co-captain of his high school Boys Lacrosse team.  In November 1997, five months after graduating, he enlisted in the United States Navy and began his SEAL journey.  It included graduation with BUD/S Class 221, 3 deployments with SEAL Team 8, completion of the eighteen month course in Arabic at the Defense Language Institute, successful screening and selection as the ‘number one draft choice” to the elite Naval Special Warfare Development Group (aka Seal Team 6), and a final deployment with DevGru KILO Team.

Nate’s military honors included selection as Distinguished Military Graduate from Quartermaster “A” School, selection as Honorman at tactical entry expert school, two Bronze Stars, Purple Heart, promotion to the rank of Chief Petty Officer and numerous other medals.  He seldom talked about his SEAL deployments.  He kept his first Bronze Star in a locker at his base and dismissively told his father “Dad, it’s not about the medals.  It’s about serving my country and the guys I work with”.

His life was fulfilled in his marriage to Mindi on June 4, 2005 and the birth of their son, Parker on July 16, 2007.

To Honor is to Remember

 

Honoring and remembering SPC Marc Decoteau ~ NH Hero

Honoring and remembering SPC Marc Decoteau, 19
KIA 1-29-10 ~ Operation Enduring Freedom.

6th Psychological Operations Battalion (Airborne), 4th Psychological Operations Group (Airborne), Ft. Bragg, NC. Marc was killed while supporting combat operations in FOB Nunez, Afghanistan.

Marc was a standout student and athlete growing up in New Hampshire. He never got into any kid of trouble and was always there if anyone needed anything. Marc helped lead his high school football team to a state championship and also played lacrosse. He graduated from Plymouth High School in 2008 and immediately entered the Army. His service to his country energized by the words love, life, and honor. He put great emphasis on relationships over personal achievements. Serving his country was a relationship with his idea of what duty was all about. Marc was soft-spoken, had an infectious laugh and smile and never gave up trying task until he got them right.

Marc deployed to Afghanistan in early January 2010. He was killed three weeks later when an interpreter opened fire inside Camp Nunez with an AK-47. Marc would not have wished for people to grieve for him. The life suffering and death he witnessed in Afghanistan was troubling to him, but he felt God sent him a message in the Bible to put what he felt was his duty into perspective. It was from Romans 8:18, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that well be revealed in us.”

Statement from the family…
Marc’s strong faith in God allows us the comfort of knowing that he is with his Savior and that one day we will join him. We are proud of our son and all that he did and aspired to do for his country. Marc was a rare person who knew very early what he wanted to do and focused on attaining his goals. He learned early the meaning of being on a team and working hard for others. Marc took those values he developed in school and sports with him to the military and used them every day of his service. We are also comforted to know that even though he was young, Marc touched so many people in a positive way. It is great to hear and read of the joy and happiness Marc brought with his smile and quick laugh.

To remember is to honor…

 

 

Remembering CPL Timothy Gibson ~ NH Hero

Remembering CPL Timothy Gibson – Operation Iraqi Freedom – 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force. KIA January 26, 2005

Sharing this from his mom, Elaine:

Tim liked people and they certainly adored him. He was never happier than when with friends and family, laughing and having a great time together. Tim was not only a brother to Tom and Patrick but also a good friend. They both looked up to Tim.

Tim always took care of those not able to stick up for themselves, being the protector to many youngsters in school. He once tot in trouble for ‘physical contact’ in grade school. When the principal found that Tim was defending a friend who being picked on, Time was exonerated. In middle school, some boys took a baseball cap from a special needs student and Tim waded right in there and took it back. In high school, a friend and Tim saved a young girl who was trying to commit suicide.

Tim excelled in sports, being the quarterback for three years and captain of the football team his senior year. He also was the centerfielder and captain of the baseball team. Tim led those athletes on and off the field. He always stopped to help the underclassmen who were struggling on the field and kept them true to their pledge of conduct.

Tim was a friend to all – teachers, coaches, athletes, non-athletes, parents of his friends—everyone had a soft spot for him. He was hard to resist with the grin of his and those blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

In the Marines, his men also looked up to him and the letters we have received from him Marine brothers speaks of a leader, serious in his duty, a good man who never had a bad word to say about anyone. His officers sent wonderful letters telling of a “Squared Away Marine”. “The Marine Corps does not build character, the Corps reveals it.” Tim’s heart was the Marines.

 

Remembering Army Sgt. Randy Scott Rosenberg ~ NH Hero

The NH Chapter of Honor and Remember is in need of your support for SB212

The NH Chapter of Honor and Remember is in need of your support to have 2014 be the year that the Honor and Remember Flag is adopted here in New Hampshire.

Senator David Boutin sponsored, along with many others, SB212. We are grateful for Senator Boutin and the other Senators and Reps that stand in support of SB212. As some of you know, the past two attempts have been unsuccessful in the State-Federal Relations and Veterans Committee.

The reason that it has not passed is from misinformation. We addressed the misinformation about the Honor and Remember Flag replacing the American Flag, and other objections have been corrected.

We do not know the reasons behind the objections and we realize that not everyone will like all things, but it grieves us to see such disrespect for our Fallen, their families, friends and other Veterans and organizations that have shown support of the Honor and Remember Flag.

We  have attached the SB212 and ask that you contact your State Senators and Representatives with a note asking them to support SB212.  We have many petitions that have been signed and letters of support that have been submitted, but we need you to come to the hearings…it is only with you there and your voices that the Honor and Remember Flag will be adopted.

Please go to http://www.honorandremember.org for additional information. Together we can see NH become the 18th State to adopt the flag!!!

SB0212

To Honor is to Remember….

 

Honor and Remember Army Maj. Brian M. Mescall ~ NH Hero

Honor and Remember Army Maj. Brian M. Mescall

Age 33, died January 9, 2009 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom,
in Jaldak, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device
detonated near his vehicle.  Assigned to the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, Hohenfels, Germany.

Honor and Remember Pfc. Juctin P. McDaniel ~ NH Hero

Army Pfc. Juctin P. McDaniel, 19 years old, of Andover, N.H; died Dec. 17, 2007 in Baghdad of injuries sustained from a non-combat-related incident in Taji, Iraq

He was assigned to the 524th Combat Service Support Battalion, 45th Sustainment Brigade, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, Fort Shafter, Hawaii;

Juctin is remembered by his friends as a young man with a strong desire to serve in the military. It appeared to be his purpose in life to serve his country and support our troops. He went out of his way to help others. He was a friend to all in school, no matter how different they were from him. He loved to make people laugh and smile and would always make light of difficult situations. He was deeply loyal to his family and friends.

Juctin met his wife, Alicia, while they were both in the Army and they married in 2006. They were expecting their first child. He could hardly wait for his child to be born. To his regret, he would be in Iraq when his wife delivered.

May God be with his family and friends, especially today and give them comfort.

To remember is to honor…

Honor and Remember Cpl Matthew J. Stanley ~ a New Hampshire Hero

Honor and Remember Cpl Matthew J. Stanley

Date of birth: Dec 26, 1983
Date of passing: Dec 16, 2006
Matt was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas

Following is written by his Mom, Lynn:

Matt was a fun loving guy. Sometimes I think Matt’s whole purpose on this earth was to make people smile. He himself always had a smile on his face. Everyone who knew Matt will tell you about that smile.

I watched Matt mature from a young boy into a brave young man. His courage and bravery still astonishes me. He had a great love for his family and his country and a great zest for life. In my attempts to honor Matt, I remember to keep his fun loving spirit alive, his joy for life and his love.

In 2002, Matt graduated from Kingswood Regional High School where he was well known and well liked by his peer and teachers. He was outgoing and deeply proud and personal about his two tours of duty in Iraq. He always had a good circle of friends.

He was the type of kid that everybody wanted for a friend Matt had been married less than a year Matt married his beautiful wife Amy on December 31, 2005. Such a wonderful time for the whole family to be together. Little did we know that Matt would be gone before his first anniversary.

He was killed along with four others by an IED when the hummer he was in ran over it. That year he missed his birthday on December 26 and his anniversary. Matt is dearly missed by his family and be everyone who knew him.

 

 

Marine PFC Matthew L. Bertolino Flag Presentation

 

 

Joyce Bertolino  and family with their Honor and Remember flag for her son, Marine PFC Matthew L. Bertolino.

Presented Nov. 11, 2013 by Gold Star Families Jim and Lynn Savage and Jean Durgin

 Marine PFC Matthew L. Bertolino – 09-February- 2006 – Afghanistan

Remembering LCpl Ryan McCaughn

Remembering LCpl Ryan McCaughn – KIA on 11/7/06 while conducting combat operations in Anbar Province, Iraq. Ryan, 19, was less than two months into his deployment.

Ryan was born in Jacksonville N.C., the home of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. He spent his early years in North Carolina and Missouri and ultimately settled in Manchester, New Hampshire. There he was raised by his mother Nicole and his stepfather Raymond. Even as a child, friends said that Ryan was clear in his military ambitions. Both of his parents were former servicemen; his mother served briefly in the U.S. Army and his father, Thomas McCaughn was a Marine. His older brother Chris served in the Air Force and his brother Sean Merlin served in the Navy.

Friends described Ryan as an irrepressible comedian who used to torment his school bus driver and sometimes splashed around in puddles just for laughs. He performed on stage with Maskers, his high-school drama club, and wasn’t afraid to dress up as a woman if the part demanded it.

As a high schooler, Ryan took culinary classes at the Manchester School of Technology. He and his friends, Kyle Schmidt and Greg Lake, talked of one day opening a restaurant and bar. Ryan, they said, was going to take business classes so he could be the manager.

Mostly, though, friends and relatives said Ryan spoke of joining the military and, later, becoming a police officer. He worked extra hard during his senior year to complete the requirements necessary for enrolling in the Marines, at one point taking three English classes in a single semester.

At 17, he asked his mother to help him sign up for duty. “He said he was going to sign up anyway when he was 18,” Schmidt said, “but he would feel better if it was with her consent.” He left for boot camp at Parris Island one week after graduating in June 2005 and was then stationed in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

Although he wasn’t allowed to divulge most details of his mission, friends and family members said they knew he was living in Ramadi, the southwestern point of the Sunni Triangle and that he patrolled the region with a grenade launcher and M16 rifle. “He said he needed to do this” his mother recalled. “He said if he could keep one dad from going to Iraq and he could take his place instead, then he’ll feel like he’s accomplished something.”

Ryan occasionally returned to Central High School after graduating. Once, he came to talk to students about life in the Marines. Later, he came as a recruiter.

Ryan is remembered fondly for his sense of humor and serious commitment to the Marines and to his country. His creative writing teacher in high school shared a poem that Ryan had written entitled “Solider”

Soldier

“Many soldiers have had to experience the ultimate Sacrifice”
“Even in death, a soldier will show Pride.
All you can do is hope that they finally found Peace.”

Fellow soldier and friend Cpt Brian Krenzeli was in boot camp with Ryan and “considered his a great friend. He was one the guys there that really made the time go by faster especially with his humor. I don’t thinks there was a single day we spent on Parris Island that he didn’t get me quarter decked for laughing. He was an outstanding Marine and a great friend and he will be missed.”

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