Always With Us

Images courtesy: Karen Eggleston

Moments after Karen Eggleston learned that her husband had been killed in Afghanistan, the couple's oldest daughter, Molly, returned from a fun day at preschool.

"She said 'Mommy, what's wrong with you?'" Karen told The Unknown Soldiers. "You look like you're going to cry."

Karen's casualty assistance officer knelt down and told Molly, 4, that her father, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Eggleston, wouldn't be coming home from Afghanistan. The terrible news was too much for Karen's little girl to process.

"I said that Daddy was in a car accident, he hit his head, and he's in heaven," Karen painfully recounted. "And she said, 'but that means I'll never see him again.'"

Years before military messengers arrived at her Raeford, N.C., doorstep on April 26, 2012, Karen was drawn to Brandon's outgoing, unwavering personality.

"He was a person that was very determined," she said. "He was always seeking a challenge."

When the young couple began discussing marriage, Brandon told Karen that he was thinking about joining the military. Fearing for his safety, she was "totally against" the idea until Brandon explained his rationale.

"If I'm not willing to fight for this country, I'm not worthy of enjoying its freedoms," he said.

The couple married in 2007. Two years later, Brandon was heading to Afghanistan as a member of the U.S. Army's elite 4th Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), based out of North Carolina's Fort Bragg. While she called the first deployment "very, very difficult," Karen credited fellow Army wives for helping her young family weather the storm.

"Molly wasn't even one year old when he deployed, so I felt like he was just missing out," she said. "(But) we had very good communication."

Brandon's second overseas combat tour was even more challenging.

"I was pregnant with our second child during that deployment, so I was extra emotional," said Karen, noting that the deployment ended happily with the birth of their youngest daughter, Avery. "He came back early in time for our child to be born."

Just before midnight on Jan. 4, 2012, with their two little girls asleep in the back seat, Karen dropped Brandon off at Fort Bragg for his third combat tour, which the couple knew would be the riskiest deployment of all.

"Everyone knew it was going to be a very, very dangerous place where they were going," she said. "He never really got upset too much before he deployed, but this time, he had a hard time going in."

After hugging his precious daughters and beloved wife, Brandon vanished into the darkness. For months, he would be running perilous combat missions to find high-value targets.

"Daddy's got to go over there and get the bad guys so they don't come over here and hurt you," the soldier told his daughters before he left.

Karen talked to Brandon as often as possible during what tragically wound up being the last four months of his life. After one particularly difficult phone call, during which the soldier said how much he missed home, Karen sat down and wrote him a two-page letter.

"It was just telling him exactly how I felt — how proud I was of him — about how the girls were proud of him," she said.

On April 26, 2012, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Eggleston, 29, was killed in Afghanistan's Ghazni province alongside Navy LT Chris Mosko, 28, Army Staff Sgt. Dick Lee Jr., 31, and a military working dog, Fibi. The Pentagon said their vehicle struck an enemy improvised explosive device.

Speaking two years after Brandon left for his final deployment, Karen recalled several poignant moments during the difficult days following his death.

"I met so many people telling me stories," Karen, 30, said. "He just touched so many peoples' lives, and I had no idea."

The day after her father's death, young Molly sat alone in her family's front yard. As relatives tended to her youngest daughter, Karen went outside and asked the 4-year-old how she was coping.

"Mommy, I'm happy," the little girl said, prompting her surprised mother to ask why.

"I'm happy because daddy is in heaven," Molly continued. "He can see everything that we do, and he'll always be with us."

COPYRIGHT 2014 CREATORS.COM

Tom Sileo is a nationally syndicated columnist and author of BROTHERS FOREVER: The Enduring Bond Between a Marine and a Navy SEAL that Transcended Their Ultimate Sacrifice. Written with Col. Tom Manion (Ret.) and published by Da Capo Press, BROTHERS FOREVER will be released in May. To find out more about Tom Sileo, or to read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators website.

More Than One Day

Image courtesy: Sgt. Logan Pierce

Most Americans realize that today marks the one-year anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death at the hands of courageous Navy SEALs. Yet many of the same citizens, conditioned by a national media that pays scant attention to the military's daily sacrifices, probably don't realize that 2012's bloodiest month of fighting in Afghanistan has just concluded.

As this blog and others discussed all month, April was difficult for our troops in Afghanistan and their families at home. According to an unofficial count by icasualties.org, at least 35 U.S. service members were killed in Afghanistan during the month of April. This number doesn't include seriously wounded heroes like Staff Sgt. Travis Mills, who lost his arms and legs in an Apr. 10 terrorist attack.

During the year Osama bin Laden was killed, the war in Afghanistan made up just two percent of American news media coverage, according to the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism. If you add in coverage of bin Laden's death in Pakistan, the number is four percent. Based on the media's behavior so far this year, I would not be surprised if the death of Whitney Houston wound up generating just as much news coverage as the Afghanistan conflict in 2012.

On Monday -- the last day of a month in which at least 35 American troops were killed -- I saw a lengthy segment on Fox News about the one-year anniversary of Prince William's marriage to Kate Middleton. Since trivialities like a couple's anniversary are now deemed newsworthy by Fox and its competitors, one should not be surprised at the amount of stories we're seeing today about bin Laden. Today is simply another anniversary for the media to talk about.

Today is not just another day in the mountains of Afghanistan, where thousands of Americans who volunteered to fight for our country are separated from their loved ones. Some of these units have held memorial services for their friends over the past month, while others are thinking about their wounded brothers and sisters hospitalized in Bethesda, Md., and elsewhere.

War is the most serious, sobering reality for a country to face, and the national media, as well as many of us, are turning away.

Since Apr. 24, the following American service members have died as a result of continuing operations in Afghanistan.

Spc. Manuel Vasquez, 22, West Sacramento, California
Spc. Benjamin Neal, 21, Orfordville, Wisconsin
Spc. Jason Edens, 22, Franklin, Tennessee
Lt. Christopher Mosko, 28, Pittsford, New York
Spc. Moises Gonzalez, 29, Huntington, California
Staff Sgt. Brandon Eggleston, 29, Candler, North Carolina
Sgt. Dick Lee Jr., 31, Orange Park, Florida
Staff Sgt. Andrew Brittonmihalo, 25, Simi Valley, California
Master Sgt. Scott Pruitt, 38, Gautier, Mississippi
Pfc. Christian Sannicolas, 20, Anaheim, California
Sgt. Nicholas Dickhut, 23, Rochester, Minnesota

For the families of these fallen heroes, every subsequent day of their lives will be filled with tragic dreams of what could have been. Our thoughts, prayers, and gratitude go out to America's newest Gold Star families, as well as our country's wounded warriors and their loved ones.

The extraordinary sacrifices of the post-9/11 generation are far bigger than the death of one terrorist, and certainly span more than one day. To truly honor this patriotic group of volunteer warriors, we must challenge ourselves to always remember that somewhere, at every moment, a fellow American is fighting for us.

Image courtesy: Cpl. Kenneth Jasik


Note: This post was updated on May 15 at 11:48 a.m. EDT to reflect new casualty information released by the Department of Defense.

The boys of Abbottabad

"Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there. These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. And these are the heroes who helped end a war. Gentlemen, I look at you and I think of the words of Stephen Spender's poem. You are men who in your 'lives fought for life and left the vivid air signed with your honor.'"

On the fortieth anniversary of D-Day, the fortieth President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, looked directly into the eyes of surviving soldiers who climbed Pointe du Hoc's treacherous cliffs.

"Forty summers have passed since the battle that you fought here. You were young the day you took these cliffs; some of you were hardly more than boys, with the deepest joys of life before you. Yet you risked everything here. Why? Why did you do it? What impelled you to put aside the instinct for self-preservation and risk your lives to take these cliffs? What inspired all the men of the armies that met here? We look at you, and somehow we know the answer. It was faith and belief. It was loyalty and love."

While thinking about what our nation has experienced over the past several days, after one of the greatest wartime triumphs since World War II, the words spoken in France almost 27 years ago still resonate, with dramatic parallels. Like the American heroes in Normandy, the Navy SEALs in Afghanistan who helicoptered to Pakistan on May 1 undoubtedly knew that the most important moment of their lives had come. Like the brave men who confronted Adolf Hitler, they took it upon themselves to make sure Osama bin Laden could never kill again.

"The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead, or on the next. It was the deep knowledge -- and pray God we have not lost it -- that there is a profound moral difference between the use of force for liberation and the use of force for conquest. You were here to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt."

While this site is always hesitant to quote politicians and does not endorse any viewpoint other than supporting our troops, veterans, and their families, Reagan's June 6, 1984 address is regarded as one of the finest military-themed speeches ever delivered by an American president. Historian Douglas Brinkley, who wrote an entire book about the speech, finds 'The Boys of Pointe du Hoc' unusually personal for a commander-in-chief, and thus even more powerful.

"You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One's country is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your countries were behind you."

Upon hearing their orders to storm the Abbottabad, Pakistan, compound where the world's most wanted terrorist was believed to be hiding, Navy SEALs who would carry out the dangerous mission reportedly cheered. Think about that for a moment. When told that they must conduct a perilous mission, and possibly die, they cheered. That says so much about the fighting spirit of a SEAL, and our entire volunteer force. Even while fighting in the desolation of anonymity, they never gave up, and never will. These warriors of all races, religions, and backgrounds know their country is behind them. They might not always see it, but they feel it.

"The Americans who fought here that morning knew word of the invasion was spreading through the darkness back home. They fought -- or felt in their hearts, though they couldn't know in fact, that in Georgia they were filling the churches at 4:00 a.m. In Kansas they were kneeling on their porches and praying. And in Philadelphia they were ringing the Liberty Bell."

This time in Philadelphia, they were chanting 'U-S-A' during a nationally-televised baseball game. The images and sounds of that patriotic outburst will endure for many years to come.

The SEALs who killed Osama bin Laden trained exhaustively to earn the opportunity of a lifetime, and they did not waste it. Many will risk their lives again in combat, and perhaps some already have. As they know better than any of us, danger has not passed, and true evil still exists.

"We will pray forever that someday that changing will come. But for now, particularly today, it is good and fitting to renew our commitment to each other, to our freedom, and to the alliance that protects it."

There is a long, deadly struggle ahead for our military in Afghanistan, and danger for our troops still in Iraq. As someone who hasn't served in the military, all I can do is pray for the safety of our men and women in harm's way. I will also pray for families of the the fallen, and especially loved ones of so many American heroes killed and wounded in April, who are suffering at this very moment.

"Here, in this place where the West held together, let us make a vow to our dead. Let us show them by our actions that we understand what they died for. Let our actions say to them the words for which Matthew Ridgway listened: 'I will not fail thee nor forsake thee.'"

We do not know the names of the Navy SEALs who rid the world of Osama bin Laden. For grave, serious security reasons, I hope those names are not revealed anytime soon. Should any journalist uncover even one name before the military is ready to identify these heroes, they must do the patriotic thing. Wait.

Perhaps on May 1, 2051, an American president will be able to look these fine men in the eye, just like the commander-in-chief who addressed the boys of Pointe du Hoc 40 years after their date with destiny. He or she can thank them for an achievement that helped define a generation, and make sure that all of us, even children, always remember why we are living in freedom. But to me, it seems fitting that these Navy SEALs, who take pride in owning the night, are superheroes in silence.

"Strengthened by their courage and heartened by their valor and borne by their memory, let us continue to stand for the ideals for which they lived and died."

Somewhere in the moonlight, the men who changed the world are together, bound forever by an extraordinary mission that will always be inside them. As part of a legendary brotherhood of selflessness, these volunteer warriors personify the call of another commander-in-chief, John F. Kennedy. The SEALs asked not what their country could do for them, but what they could do for their country.

These are the boys of Abbottabad.

We will not tire

Images courtesy: Sgt. Randall Clinton

Many of us, including me, are exhausted from the raw emotion of Sunday night's momentous events. Yet imagine if you were sitting on a remote Forward Operating Base in the desolate wilderness of Afghanistan. For our troops in harm's way, who are coming off one of the deadliest months of the entire war in Afghanistan and an increased month of violence in Iraq, there is no champagne. There is only constant danger, camaraderie, and focus.

Mostly, though, our heroes in faraway lands simply miss their families and friends. They wish they could share this moment with them without having to make a phone call, send an e-mail, or contact them over Facebook or Skype. Yet our brave warriors need to know that they are still here with us at this hour. No patriotic American would dare forget all the sacrifices that were made, and will continue to be made, to make the elimination of the world's most wanted terrorists a reality.

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are not over. As Americans, it is our duty to ensure that a reawakened public does not forget the nearly 200,000 U.S. troops still facing serious danger overseas. In the perilous days to come, we must also lend a hand to military families at home, as well as our troops and veterans who have returned from battle.

Just 24 hours before a group of heroic special operations warriors brought the mastermind of 9/11 and countless other terrorist attacks to justice, Americans were being inundated with non-stop media coverage about a royal wedding in London. We cannot afford to return to that mindset, especially as the fear of reprisal attacks grip the spouses, children, and relatives of U.S. service members still deployed overseas.

In the days to come, you can depend on The Unknown Soldiers to bring you the personal stories of brave volunteer warriors who never quit. As I said in Sunday night's post, they've lived every day of the past nine and a half years like its September 12, 2001. Our challenge as a nation, which is finally displaying the same sense of unity we all took part in after we were attacked, will be to live every day of the next decade like it's May 2, 2011.

OUR FINEST HOUR

At 11:35 p.m. eastern time, an announcement by the President of the United States allowed us all to say five words that we have yearned to shout into the sky since September 11, 2001.

"OSAMA BIN LADEN IS DEAD."

Tonight is for every American murdered in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania on that horrific September day. Tonight is for their families. Tonight is for all the innocent people around the world that al Qaeda has butchered and enslaved.

But tonight is also for every man and woman who, before and after that terrible September day, volunteered to defend this nation from evil, which Osama bin Laden personified during his despicable life. You, the brave soldiers, sailors, coast guardsmen, airmen, and Marines of the United States Armed Forces, are our heroes.

I am particularly emotional thinking about the families of so many fallen heroes you have read about on this blog. When I've asked family members and friends of our departed warriors why their loved ones volunteered to serve, I can't tell you how many times I've gotten a simple response: September 11, 2001. The sacrifices of those brave brothers and sisters in arms were undoubtedly on the minds of the valiant Americans who stormed the terrorist compound in Pakistan, and ultimately brought Osama bin Laden to justice.

Through nine and a half years of victory, defeat, struggle, and sacrifice, the men and women of our military never quit. Often with little fanfare, they stayed focused on the mission to make this world safer for our children. While the mission isn't over, tonight is as close to V-E Day and V-J Day as our generation will likely ever experience.

On September 11, 2001, New York firefighters heard screams for help as ashes and bodies fell from the gigantic twin towers looming above them. Rather than run for cover as fires burned and the buildings buckled, they ran inside, trying to save as many lives as possible, regardless of the consequences to their own.

On September 11, 2001, service members and civilians at the Pentagon were just getting into work when a plane slammed into the headquarters of our nation's defense. So many people who dedicated their lives to service were murdered at the Pentagon that day, robbing their spouses and children of precious time that they would have cherished.

On September 11, 2001, the passengers of United Flight 93 stormed the plane's cockpit and gave America its first victory of the war on terrorism. With no regard for their own lives, they spared the lives of even more Americans on the ground in our nation's capital.

The men and women of the United States military refused to let their fellow Americans down. To these brave volunteer warriors, as well as their friends in the intelligence and homeland security communities, every day of the past nine and a half years has been September 12, 2001.

Inspired to serve, hundreds of thousands of American heroes boarded planes and ships and went wherever they were ordered to fight. Thank you to every single American service member, veteran, and military family member for your selfless dedication during this epic struggle against the darkness of evil. Because of you, there is light, and we are free.

Image courtesy: Spc. Anthony Jones

U.S. soldiers killed in Pakistan identified

The Pentagon is identifying the three American troops killed on Wednesday in Timagara, Pakistan.

Sgt. 1st Class David Hartman, 27, of Okinawa, Japan.

Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Sluss-Tiller, 35, of Callettsburg, Kentucky.

Staff Sgt. Mark Stets, 39, of El Cajon, California.

According to officials, the special operations forces were training Pakistan's Frontier Corps when terrorists detonated a remote control bomb, destroying their vehicle. The convoy was on its way to the reopening of a girls school, which had previously been destroyed by al Qaeda. We mourn the loss of these three gifted American patriots, who were serving a noble cause in a dangerous land.

3 U.S. troops killed in Pakistan

According to various media reports, three American soldiers were killed in a terrorist attack today in northwest Pakistan. Four Pakistanis were killed in the savage bombing, including children, and at least 120 were wounded.

The U.S. troops, who were in Pakistan in a training capacity, were helping local forces on a convoy to a reopened school that had been previously blown up by terrorists. Pakistani police say the bomb was remotely detonated.

"The United States condemns this vicious terrorist bombing," the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said in a written statement. "We express our condolences to the families of the deceased and our sympathy and support to the wounded."

The Unknown Soldiers will be following this story in the coming days and weeks. The names of the U.S. troops killed will be released by the Pentagon after families of the fallen have been notified.