TROOP SCOOP:

Dear Interested Reader,
We are privileged to share 9-11 memorials from Iraq and Afghanistan. I've also included an enlistment story that was made 9-11-08. Our troops know why they are fighting to preserve our freedom and freedom for others. Please share these stories with others, because we must never forget 9-11, and terrorists that are still bent on destroying our way of life.
Joanna
____________________________________

Blackanthem Military News

4th Inf. Div., MND-B Soldiers render honors to nation, fallen brethren

By Pfc. Lyndsey Dransfield
Sep 11, 2008 - 7:15:45 PM

Command Sgt. Maj. John Gioia, kneels down to place a flag that was flown at Ground Zero, in front of a photograph depicting the tragic events at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, during the Patriot Day Observance at div. HQ, Sept. 11.

CAMP LIBERTY - Soldiers from 4th ID, and their fellow service members and civilians gathered in front of MND-B HQ, Sept. 11, to honor and remember the individuals who lost their lives on the horrific day 7 years ago, and the heroes who came forth to protect our country in its time of need.
Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, comm. gen. of MND-B and the 4th ID, was the keynote speaker during the Ironhorse Div.'s Patriot Day Observance. "September 11, 2001 is a day that will live in infamy, just as the attacks on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. These attacks were similar - they awoke our great nation and mobilized America's credentials. It's what brought us here today and is the heart of what we are doing now," Hammond said. "Today, as we remember those we lost on September 11, let's not forget the 89 MND-B Soldiers we've lost since our transition of authority."
Following Hammond's heartfelt words, those gathered silently observed as 3 wreaths were hung beneath large photographs depicting the tragedies at the Pentagon, the World Trade Center and the crash site of United Flight 93, in commemoration of the service members, rescue workers and civilians who lost their lives.
Command Sgt. Maj. John Gioia, the senior enlisted leader of MND-B and the 4th ID, placed an American flag that was flown at Ground Zero in front of the photo of the fallen Twin Towers, and then rendered honors to the same. The flag was presented to the Soldiers and leaders of 4th ID by firemen of Ladder 10, Engine 10, Engine 24 and Ladder 5 of the N.Y.C. Fire Dept. The flag itself is a sobering reminder of the tragic events that day that claimed the lives of all of the firemen from these ladders and engines on that fateful day as they attempted to provide aid to their fellow Americans.
The crowd then stood and solemnly held a salute while a lone bugler from the 4th ID Band poignantly played Taps.
"Today's ceremony was outstanding," said Spc. Clint Baltzly, who serves as a petroleum specialist with Btry C, 2nd Bn, 5th FAR, attached to Division Special Troops Bn., 4th ID. "The mood that was set and delivered was very appropriate. It's important for us to remember and never forget the tragic events of this day so that we don't take things for granted."
The crowd slowly dispersed following the ceremony, some lingering to take photos or talk softly with friends. Each individual who attended was once again reminded of why they are here, in Iraq serving their nation - and the price that is paid, often in lives, to live in a land where freedom rings from coast to coast.

Jason Lucero, a firefighter with Victory Base Fire Dept, renders honors after hanging a wreath.

Soldiers of the 4th ID lower 3 American flags to half staff.

Soldiers from the 4th ID fold the American flag. The event provided those in attendance with an opportunity to reflect on how the events of that day personally affected them.

Firemen from the Victory Base Complex Fire Dept hang a N.Y. Fire Dept flag from the side of their truck.

-30-

Blackanthem Military News

Deployed New York Guardsmen Honor Fallen Firefighters, 9/11 Victims

By Army Lt. Col. Paul Fanning
Sep 11, 2008 - 6:56:17 PM

An empty firefighter's uniform and equipment amid a formation of joint service volunteers from the Camp Phoenix fire dept serves as a tribute to fallen firefighters from 9/11 during a commemoration ceremony at Camp Phoenix, Afghanistan, Sept. 11, 2008.

KABUL, Afghanistan - Victims of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, were remembered in an emotional ceremony at Camp Phoenix here today. The ceremony began at 5:16 p.m. local time with the sounding of a siren from the Camp Phoenix fire truck to match the time in New York City when the first plane struck the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m. Afghanistan time is eight and a half hours ahead of the U.S. East Coast.
The formation of troops in Patriot Square included soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines and the Camp Phoenix-based French and Romanian detachments of Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix. The task force is led by the N.Y. National Guard's 27th Inf BCT, which had many of its soldiers serve at the World Trade Center site immediately following the attacks and has since deployed hundreds of troops for homeland defense missions and for combat service in Iraq. They now serve in Afghanistan as trainers and mentors for the Afghan national SF.
Today's ceremony was especially poignant to the citizen-soldiers of the 27th because for many, the service that began at Ground Zero has now come full-circle to the land from which the terrorists plotted and then launched their attacks.
"Seven years later, we are left with vivid memories that include sorrow, anger and pride in the courage and determination shown by ordinary people and especially by emergency responders who sacrificed themselves for others," said Army Col. Brian K. Balfe, cmdr. of CJTF Phoenix and N.Y.'s 27th IBCT. "The images of that day will never leave us. But what also stands out is what we discovered about ourselves. In the face of so much terror, so many Americans rose above their fears. Their call to duty that day was to risk their own lives, to save others," he said.
Army Maj. Dennis Bates, a volunteer fireman from Rochester, N.Y., now serving at Camp Phoenix, paid tribute to the firefighters who responded to the terror attacks. "The fire service is made up of a unique group of individuals. It takes a special person to go running into a burning building when everyone else is running out," he said. "It is not easy for people to understand and not easy for us to explain. It is something we are, not something we do."
Five serving members of the N.Y. National Guard were lost when the World Trade Center towers collapsed, including 3 soldiers and 2 airmen. They were firemen, police officers, emergency services personnel, a security guard and an employee of Windows on the World restaurant.
N.Y. National Guard soldiers served for months in New York City at Ground Zero, bridges, tunnels, train stations and airports. They also provided security at nuclear power plants and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
At the conclusion of the ceremony, 12 soldiers took their service oath, having recently re-enlisted in the National Guard.

Three candles are lit in a memorial to the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the crash of United Flight 93, by Army Spc. Jeremy Bell of the South Carolina Army National Guard, Army Spc. Angelia Taylor and Army Capt. Juan Bravo of the N.Y. Army National Guard.

Army Col. Brian K. Balfe leads a dozen National Guard soldiers in the oath of service as they re-enlist following a 9/11 commemoration ceremony.

-30-

Blackanthem Military News

Recruits Mark 9/11 Anniversary Entering Military Service

By Donna Miles
Sep 11, 2008 - 6:53:47 PM

Anthony Larson, left, and Patrick Downs chat as they await inprocessing into the Army at the Baltimore Military Entrance Processing Station on Sept. 11, 2008.

FORT MEADE, Md. - Several dozen young men and women spent the 7th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks at the Baltimore Military Entrance Processing Station here, preparing to enter a military that is fighting the war those attacks launched.
By the day's end, all would leave as new members of the armed forces who had signed their military contracts and taken the oath of enlistment. About 50 of them would ship directly to basic training or boot camp - a relatively slow day at one of the country's busiest MEPS facilities.
The significance of processing into the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard on the 9/11 anniversary wasn't lost on the applicants. Most were middle-school or high-school students when the Twin Towers crumbled, the Pentagon belched ugly black smoke and a reclaimed minefield in western Pennsylvania turned into a killing field. Eighteen-year-old Jesse Holbrook remembered sitting in a 7th grade English class in Hartford County, Md., not understanding why frantic parents poured into the school to retrieve their children. Only when he got home did his parents explain that the U.S. had come under attack. Seven years later to the day, Holbrook was shipping off to boot camp at Naval Training Center, Great Lakes, Ill. "This is something I am going to be proud to do," he said. "I remember seeing a sign, 'Freedom Doesn't Come Free,' and I guess that's really true."
Patrick Downs, 24, remembered his teacher flicking on the TV on Sept. 11, 2001, so the students could watch news of the attacks. He was a high school senior at the time, headed to college at Maryland's Salisbury University to play footfall. The attacks, and the global war on terror that followed, deepened a sense of patriotism Downs said he always felt, but later felt compelled to act on by joining the Army. "The attacks made it all more real. It made it personal," he said. "You don't think something like this is going to happen to your generation until it happens."
Anthony Larson, 21, recalled being escorted out of high school freshman English class after the 9/11 attacks. He had no idea at the time that he'd be getting sworn into the Army 7 years later before starting basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. In fact, it wasn't until just a couple of months ago, when he got rear-ended in a parking lot, that Larson decided to enlist. The vehicle that backed into him had a bumper sticker that read, "I Don't Support Our Troops." The more Larson thought about the bumper sticker and his outrage over it, the more resolved he became to join the Army. "I guess I basically believe that everyone should fight for their country. You are supposed to earn what you have, and I think too many people don't take that responsibility seriously. And the bottom line is, this is our war. Our parents can't step in and do this for us. It hits you so quick: It's grown-up time."
Station Cmdr. Army Lt. Col. Robert Larsen was assigned to the MEPS in Atlanta on 9/11, and he watched the recruiting rush that followed, as young people flocked to join the military in response. But seven years later, he said, he's concerned that many Americans have forgotten the threat that still remains, and he said the country still needs committed young people to defend against that threat.
Everyone has heard the old sayings, "Remember the Maine" and "Remember the Alamo," and it's hard to find someone who can't recount the story of the Pearl Harbor attack, he said. "But it seems so soon that too much of the population is not saying, 'Remember the Pentagon.' 'Remember the World Trade Center.' 'Remember Pennsylvania.' 'Remember 9/11,'" he said. "It's a mindset, and I'm afraid that a lot of the American population has lost that mindset."
Larson said the military makes no secret of the fact that many of the young people it recruits could find themselves in combat, and praised those who step up to serve when the country needs them most. "As a U.S. citizen, you have to ask, 'If not them, then who?" he said. "And if not them, then the next question is, 'When will the next attack occur? When will we face another 3,000 casualties to wake us up from the slumber we've fallen into?"

New recruits chat in the hallway about how the 9/11 attacks shaped their decisions to enlist in the military. The recruits, from left, are Aaron Shindledecker, joining the Navy; Maria Carrasco, joining the Army; and Jesse Holbrook, joining the Navy.

-30-

Blackanthem Military News

Troops, Civilians From Various Nations Commemorate 9/11 at Bagram

By Army Spc. Mary L. Gonzalez
Sep 11, 2008 - 6:36:30 PM

Army Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, cmdr. of Combined Joint Task Force 101, along with Army Command Sgt. Maj. Vincent Camacho, the task force's command sgt major, lay a wreath at a ceremony at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Sept. 11, 2008.
Army photo by Spc. Scott Davis

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Soldiers and civilians from several nations affected by the war on terror gathered beneath the towering flagpoles at the Combined Joint Task Force 101 HQ here today to remember Sept. 11, 2001.
"Today is a day of remembrance, but it's also a day, especially for us here, of recommitment," said Army Gen. David D. McKiernan, cmdr. of NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
In the entryway of the task force HQ hangs a picture of 2 smouldering towers, one engulfed by a fireball, the other billowing clouds of black smoke. This picture reminds all who come inside that they are here to keep that day from ever happening again.
"Since this day 7 years ago, the world has transformed," McKiernan said. "And because of the brave men and women willing to fight this tough battle, we know that the ideals of human dignity will prevail against evil."
Army Chaplain (Maj.) Karen Meeker, dep. chaplain for Combined Joint Task Force 101, offered a prayer for those in attendance and those who were there on that day. "Bless the souls of the thousands of citizens from over 90 countries and the hundreds of emergency responders who were killed 7 years ago today," Meeker said. Crumbling New York towers, billowing smoke from the Pentagon and a gaping hole in a Shanksville, Pa., field will forever scar memories, she said, but she called on all nations that recognize that freedom is the right of every human being to solidify into an unstoppable force and to not let this fight be passed to the next generation. "We remember the legacy of our fallen heroes in the war on terror -- warriors who answered the call of duty that made the ultimate sacrifice," McKiernan said. "We recognize that we are still in a fight to secure a future free from oppression, and we know we must succeed in this mission."

Coalition and NATO troops, along with contractors and employees on Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, gather for a 9/11 commemoration ceremony, Sept. 11, 2008.

Army Gen. David D. McKiernan speaks during a 9/11 commemoration ceremony.

Soldiers salute during a 9/11 commemoration ceremony.

-30-

Blackanthem Military News

Troops at Camp Eggers Remember 9/11

By Navy Seaman Timothy Newborn
Sep 11, 2008 - 6:31:19 PM

KABUL, Afghanistan - More than 300 soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and civilians gathered today at Camp Eggers here to remember the thousands of victims who lost their lives during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks against America. Navy Chaplain (Cmdr.) Patrick McCormick, CSTC Afghanistan's command chaplain, gave the invocation commencing the remembrance ceremony. The invocation was followed by the national anthem and the reading of a timeline of the attacks.
Army Maj. Gen. Robert W. Cone, CSTC Afghanistan cmdr., and the acting command sgt. major, Army Sgt. Maj. Gregory Valcin, performed a ceremonial wreath-laying to honor those lost. "We all remember the exact moment we heard the news, where we were, and how we experienced that painful day unfold," Cone said. "Today, we remember and honor our fellow citizens who perished that day. As we know, freedom has a price. We as a nation have paid a high price for the freedom we enjoy," the general continued. "Eighty-nine CSTC-A soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have made the ultimate sacrifice." Cone said the command's men and women continue their presence in Afghanistan, joining their allies and the Afghan govt and citizens to defeat their common enemies.
"CSTC-A is making progress in training, mentoring and equipping the Afghan National Army and police to provide the necessary security for Afghanistan," Cone said.
Army Maj. Wesley Cox, an embedded training team mentor for the Afghan National Army, experienced the Sept. 11 attacks firsthand. He was at the Pentagon when a plane hit the building. "Being in Afghanistan actually provides a degree of closure," he said. "The people of this war-torn nation deserve peace, security and freedom."
The ceremony concluded with a moment of silence followed by the playing of "Taps."