Corpsman.com

Nano-Tech helps stop bleeding

Da-Chief — Tue, 13 May 2008 02:00:45 +0000

A synthetic peptide as discovered by researchers at MIT in the early 90’s. A few years ago they realized this technology could assist with bleeding.. Awesome article, from Technology Review .

Nanohealing Material Heads to Market

A startup is planning human trials for a nanostructured material that quickly stops bleeding.
By Kevin Bullis

A startup based in Cambridge, MA, says that it plans to soon begin clinical trials of a nanostructured material that stops bleeding almost instantly. A startup called Arch Therapeutics has licensed the technology from MIT and is developing manufacturing processes for making it in large amounts.

The new material can be poured over a site and will stop the bleeding almost at once.

The first application, pending Food and Drug Administration approval, will be for use during surgery to quickly stop bleeding and even prevent it in the first place. Floyd Loop, currently an advisor to Arch Therapeutics, and formerly a cardiovascular surgeon and the head of Cleveland Clinic, says that it could be useful in a wide variety of surgeries, including brain, heart, and prostate. For example, he says that when large tumors are removed, “there’s a lot of diffuse bleeding around the site, and you have to spend a lot of time with sponges and cautery stopping it.”

Loops says that in addition to saving time, which can improve the outcome of a surgery, the material could decrease the need for transfusions and reoperations to control bleeding. What’s more, it could reduce the risk of infection. It could be used, for instance, to prevent leakage after bowel-repair surgery. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” Loop says.

Eventually, the material could be used by first responders to stop bleeding at accident sites and on the battlefield. It has a long shelf life, which makes it attractive for use in first-aid kits. It’s also easily broken down by the body, so it doesn’t have to be removed, unlike other agents for stopping blood flow. However, Loop cautions that further tests are needed to confirm that the material will work in nonsurgical applications.

The material, a synthetic peptide, was discovered at MIT in the early 1990s. But it wasn’t until a few years ago that its potential for stopping bleeding was discovered. Rutledge Ellis-Behnke, a researcher at MIT’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, was exploring its potential use to promote the healing of brain injuries. When he applied a liquid containing the synthetic peptides to a wound site in animal experiments, bleeding in the area stopped within a few seconds. Arch Therapeutics was founded in mid-2006 to develop the material for commercial use. The company made its first public appearance late last month when it announced a finalized licensing agreement for the new technology.

Several other compounds have recently been developed to stop bleeding. Fibrin-based products are used in emergency rooms and dental applications, for example, but the new material is faster and more effective, says Steve Yerid, an emergency-room physician at St. Vincent Hospital, in Worcester, MA. Other approaches to stopping bleeding are too slow, can lead to tissue damage, or must be removed from the wound because they don’t readily break down. Conversely, the new material is easy to apply, doesn’t cause damage, and can be left on the wound, even if it’s a deep wound that’s eventually sewn up.

The material consists of naturally occurring amino acids that have been engineered to form peptides that spontaneously cluster together to create long fibers when exposed to salty, aqueous environments, such as those found in the body. The fibers form a mesh that serves as a physical barrier to blood and other fluids.

So far, Arch Therapeutics has been focused on developing new processes for making the materials in large amounts and on developing a better understanding of the mechanisms at work in stopping blood flow. It is preparing to do clinical trials, but is first doing further animal tests. Based on the fact that the material works as a physical barrier, the founders expect that it will qualify as a medical device rather than a drug, which could speed the approval process

MARINES having success in Afghanistan, but being spread thin

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 21:30:10 +0000

This is from MSNBC. The Marines have suffered no casualties since they took on the Taliban in Afghanistan. Unfortunately no one from NATO wants to setup to secure the areas the Marines take. What a mess. Would someone please tell me when Iraq struck the US??? Why are over 85% of our combat forces there rather in Afghanistan?

Anyways. here is the video.

This is for my daughter Mikki and our Editor DeeDee.. Happy Monday..

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:17:33 +0000

Instant Hit!! I see Academy awards!! We will need translators!!
D/C

Master Sergeant Brendon O’Connor receives Distinguished Service Cross

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:00:40 +0000

Medic gets Distinguished Service Cross

Master Sgt. Brendan O’Connor on Wednesday received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army’s second-highest valor award, for his actions during a 17-hour battle in Afghanistan.

The 47-year-old Special Forces medical sergeant spoke with humor and humility after the medal was pinned on his uniform in a ceremony at Bank Hall on Fort Bragg.

“My word!” O’Connor said, reacting to praise by a three-star Army general and a four-star Navy admiral. “My name is Brendan O’Connor, and I didn’t fully approve that message.”

In his self-effacing remarks, O’Connor apologized to his children for missing birthdays and thanked his wife, Margaret, for what she has done in raising their family in his absence.

Margaret O’Connor writes a Home Front column for The Fayetteville Observer.

Master Sgt. O’Connor, who resigned his commission as an officer and then took the rigorous training to become a Special Forces medical sergeant, said his “momentary courage” pales in comparison to people who cope courageously with difficult situations daily, such as Capt. Ivan Castro, who is blind, and Harry Hubbard, a friend who suffered a stroke in his mid-30s.

The audience included former U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy, a friend of the O’Connor family, and former 7th Group commanders.

The heroism of O’Connor and his team in the face of an attack by 300 Taliban fighters received national attention April 20 in a segment on the CBS news show “60 Minutes.”

Adm. Eric Olson, the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command at Tampa, Fla., pinned the award on O’Connor’s uniform.

Olson hailed the contributions of the Green Berets and said the demand for Special Forces may grow as conventional forces are reduced overseas.

“Master Sgt. Brendan O’Connor exemplifies the spirit of these warriors,” Olson said.

The admiral wore his white Navy dress uniform. O’Connor was in his green Army dress uniform.

O’Connor led a quick reaction force June 24, 2006, in Kandahar province’s Panjwai District, described by Special Forces as one of the most hotly contested areas of southern Afghanistan.

He maneuvered his force through Taliban positions and crawled alone through enemy machine-gun fire to reach two wounded soldiers, the citation said. He tied a signal cloth to his back to identify himself to aircraft overhead. While under fire, he provided medical care and carried a wounded soldier more than 150 yards across open ground. He climbed over a wall three times under enemy fire to help wounded soldiers seek cover. Then he took over as the operations sergeant and rallied, motivated and led his team.

“Thank God for men like Master Sgt. O’Connor,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Wagner, commander of U.S. Army Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg.

Maj. Sheffield Ford said after the ceremony that O’Connor picked up Sgt. Joseph Fuerst and carried him over his shoulder and ran while under fire.

“Knowing that bullets were coming in all around him, he didn’t hesitate,” Ford said. “He continued to get up and move because he knew he had to get Joe back if he was going to have a chance to try to save him.” Fuerst died, and Staff Sgt. Matthew Binney survived, Ford said.

Former Sgt. 1st Class Abram Hernandez received the Silver Star, the Army’s third-highest award for valor, on April 17 on Fort Bragg for his actions in the same battle. Master Sgt. Thomas Maholic was killed in the fighting and received the Silver Star posthumously Nov. 15.

During training, Special Forces medics, who have extensive training and upon whom the entire team depends, are told to wait for others to bring the wounded to them, but O’Connor realized the soldiers needed immediate help and the battle was not going to stop, Ford said.

Staff Sgt. Charles Lyles said O’Connor paused before going out on the mission to make sure he was taking everything he would need.

“The seconds he took to make sure he had everything ready, I believe, made the difference,” Lyles said.

Staff Sgt. Brandon Pechette remembers O’Connor being “calm and cool and very intelligently funny while we were there, keeping the morale high, which is very important because we were such a small force against overwhelming odds.”

The award came 40 years after O’Connor’s father was killed in Vietnam.

The last time soldiers of the 7th Special Forces Group received Distinguished Service Crosses was in July 1964, Wagner said. Capt. Roger Donlon received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest valor award, for his actions in the same battle, he said. He was the first Medal of Honor recipient of the Vietnam War.

Care Costs Rise as Veterans Population Declines.

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:00:23 +0000

All of our heroes from WWII and Korea are dying due to age. The VA is not receiving the savings they thought they would due to the Injured Vets from IRAQ & Afghanistan.

Care costs rise as veteran population declines

Increase in wounded from Iraq, Afghanistan wars, severity of injuries among reasons

By Jennifer C. Kerr - The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday May 11, 2008 13:48:49 EDT

WASHINGTON — Increasing numbers of U.S. troops have left the military with damaged bodies and minds, an ever-larger pool of disabled veterans that will cost the country billions of dollars for decades to come — even as the total population of America’s veterans has begun to shrink.

Despite the decline in the total number of veterans — as soldiers from World War II and Korea die — the government expects to be spending $59 billion a year to compensate injured warriors in 25 years, up from today’s $29 billion, according to internal documents obtained by The Associated Press. And the Veterans Affairs Department concedes the bill could be much higher.

Why?

Worse wounds. More disabilities. More vets aware of the benefits and quicker to file for them.

Also, ironically, advanced medical care. Troops come home with devastating injuries that might well have killed them in earlier wars.

Time is also a factor when it comes to disability compensation costs. Payments tend to go up as veterans age, and an increasing number of soldiers from the Vietnam War will be getting bigger payments as they get older and are less able to work around their disabilities.

The number of disabled veterans has jumped by 25 percent since 2001 — to 2.9 million — and the cause really is no mystery.

“This is a cost of war,” says Steve Smithson, a deputy director at the American Legion. “We’re still producing veterans. We’ve been in a war in Iraq for five years now, and the war on terror since 9/11.”

VA and Census Bureau figures show the previous six-year period, before hostilities in Afghanistan and Iraq, saw a more modest increase of 4 percent in the number of disabled vets. Veterans can make claims for disability benefits long after their military service has ended.

Today’s veterans — disabled or not — number nearly 24 million. That population is projected by the VA to fall under 15 million by 2033, mostly because of dying World War II and Korean War vets. But costs are expected to rise.

Inflation accounts for a big chunk of the increase. But even when the VA factors out inflation, the compensation for disabled veterans would still grow from $29 billion to $33 billion in today’s dollars — a more than 10 percent increase. And the department acknowledges the estimate could rise by 30 percent.

VA officials were not eager to talk about reasons for the increases. They declined several requests for interviews. In a written response to a handful of questions, the agency noted a few factors at play in the rising costs, such as the aging veterans population, an increase in the number of disabilities claimed and the severity of injuries sustained.

Outside experts provided more insight.

The American Legion’s Smithson says the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are resulting in more severe injuries — amputations and traumatic burns — the kind of injuries that troops in Vietnam and earlier wars would not have survived.

Smithson says today’s veterans also are filing claims for more disabilities.

“People are more aware of the benefits they are able to file for (because of) better outreach,” Smithson said. “It’s not like the WWII generation and Korean war generation where they weren’t aware of what they could file for, and they were also reluctant to file if they didn’t think they needed it.”

Iraq veteran Christopher Bain filed for about 10 disabilities after his tour in 2004. Bain came under mortar fire outside Baghdad and was hit several times. He successfully fought doctors who wanted to amputate his left arm. But 10 operations later, he still needs help getting dressed each day. An electrical stimulator implanted in his upper buttocks helps dull the pain from his injuries.

“It’s hard, you go through certain periods of remorse,” said Bain. “I am never going to be the man I once was.”

Bain suffers from tinnitus, post-traumatic stress disorder and serious injuries to his arms. He receives a check each month for $2,618 that helps the former Army staff sergeant pay the mortgage, food and clothing costs for his family of five in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Bain is one of about 755,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Of that group, the VA says more than 181,000 are collecting disability benefits.

Another factor driving up costs and the overall number of disabled veterans is Vietnam. Veterans from that era make up the biggest group of vets today receiving disability compensation. At the end of 2006, more than 947,000 Vietnam vets were getting monthly checks.

“You see an awful lot of Vietnam veterans over the course of the years have gone from a 30 percent to 40 percent disability rating up to 100 percent when their employment years start to wane a little bit,” said David Gorman, a Vietnam War veteran who is executive director at the Washington headquarters of Disabled American Veterans.

Conditions, such as a bad back or knee, can worsen with age and draw higher payments. A big concern for Vietnam vets is diabetes. Last year, more than 271,000 veterans were receiving disability benefits for diabetes. Most of the disabilities — 236,000 of them — were linked to Agent Orange exposure.

Veterans who are approved for disability receive monthly checks for injuries or illnesses sustained or aggravated while on active duty. Ratings are scaled from 0 to 100 percent in 10 percent increments. A rating of 10 percent, for example, is given to tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, which is increasingly common for troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan because of roadside bombings. Ratings for post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury can range from 0-to-100 percent, and 10-to-100 percent, respectively.

Former Army Sgt. Michelle Saunders was rated at 70 percent by the VA after being shot at during a 2004 convoy mission in Iraq. The bullet was caught in her flak jacket, but she sustained painful injuries, including two ruptured disks in her lower back and nerve damage to her right leg.

“It’s turned me from a really alive, pretty happy person into somebody who is numb. I don’t know how to feel anymore,” she said.

Saunders gets a disability check each month from the VA for just under $800.

Annual benefits run from $1,404 for a veteran rated at 10 percent to about $30,324 for those at 100 percent. Severe disabilities, such as the loss of a limb, draw additional compensation.

IRAQ: A girl, a soldier, a dream

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:00:15 +0000

IRAQ: A girl, a soldier, a dream

For months, Staff Sgt. Luis Falcon patrolled the downtrodden neighborhoods of Baqubah, where Sunni Muslim extremists had tried to create an Islamic caliphate. One day, he came upon a young girl sitting in an old, oversize wheelchair, blood crusting on the stumps where her legs had been.

Her name was Shahad Abbas Aziz, and on Friday, she sat patiently in a clinic in Baghdad’s Green Zone while doctors measured what remains of her legs. Later, they would make prosthetic limbs to replace the ones blown off seven months ago by a bomb.

As she perched on the edge of the examination table, wearing a denim jumper and lime-green earrings, Falcon stood behind her and related the extraordinary events that brought them to this point and that have changed both of their lives.

It began seven months ago, when Shahad was on her way home from school with her 10-year-old brother, Ali Abbas Aziz. A roadside bomb meant for U.S. forces exploded beneath them. “The Iraqi doctors thought that she was going to die and he was going to live, but what happened was the opposite,” said Shahad’s mother, Waheda Jabbar Mohammed.

Shahad was left with both legs amputated below the knee.

A few weeks later, Falcon was on a routine patrol when he came upon Shahad. “All I want is legs to walk to school,” she told him.

Thus began a Herculean effort to bring Shahad to Baghdad to be fitted with proper prostheses, an effort hampered by everything from military bureaucracy to dust storms but finally achieved just three weeks before Falcon was to end his Iraq tour.

Late Friday, doctors finished work on Shahad’s new legs and she was able to briefly walk on them using a set of parallel bars. She’ll be returning Sunday for physical therapy, but “she is doing really well,” said Lt. Col. Frederick Wellman.

Falcon’s biggest fear is that the unit that replaces his won’t follow up with the family, which has five children in addition to Shahad. The father earns money by using a donkey cart to haul goods.
“I can’t order them to do what I’ve done. It has to come out their heart,” Falcon said. “They might say I don’t want to waste time here.”

For months after first meeting Shahad, Falcon would make sure to visit her family at its humble home in Baqubah. Soldiers brought them food, water, a heater in the winter, and a new wheelchair for Shahad.

Each time he visited, Falcon, 38, of New York, found that while other children clamored for soccer balls, PlayStations or money, Shahad never asked for anything except legs. But time was running out for Falcon, who arrived in Iraq early last year and whose 15-month deployment was nearing its end.

He began pushing her case up the chain of command. He went to his platoon leader, who went to the battalion commander, who went to the brigade leader. As Falcon’s departure date neared, he lost hope, until one day a man named Jerry Gardner approached him and said, “I’m here to help you.”

Gardner is a public health advisor working in Iraq on one of the U.S. State Department’s Provincial Reconstruction Teams. He apparently provided the final push needed to get Shahad the treatment she needed.

Getting Shahad to Baghdad proved a challenge. Baqubah, the capital of Diyala province, is only 50 miles north of Baghdad, but Falcon worried about roadside bombs along the road. They arranged a military helicopter flight for Shahad and her mother on Thursday to ensure they could make it to the Green Zone on Friday morning, in time for the fitting.

The work was done by Iraqi doctors and specialists in the Ministry of Defense Prosthetics Clinic, which currently is attached to the U.S.-run Ibn Sina Hospital. One of those advising the Iraqi staff was Chris Cummings, a prosthetics expert who said the method used with Shahad was as advanced as it gets and is used at VA centers. It involved using a wand to scan her limbs into a computer so that perfectly fitted, comfortable sockets could be constructed. Shahad’s upper legs fit into the plastic sockets, and limbs and feet were attached below.

Asked what she wanted to do most once the limbs were ready, Shahad said, “I just want to walk.”

“This was what I needed,” Falcon said of his encounter with Shahad. Until then, he had wondered about his mission in Iraq. “Doing this right now, I’ll do as many tours as I need,” he said.

—Tina Susman and Said Rifai in Baghdad

Photos, from top: Limbs wait to be paired with their owners at the Ministry of Defense Prosthetics Clinic in Baghdad’s Green Zone; A doctor measures Shahad Abbas Aziz’s legs for prosthetics (Tina Susman); U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Luis Falcon helps Shahad take her first steps. (Airman 1st Class Andrew Davis)

BlackBerry, Apple IPhone, AT&T BlackJack????

Da-Chief — Mon, 12 May 2008 00:50:46 +0000

So my wifes phone is up for renewal in Feb. (Yeah it seems like a long time but..) and I am looking to get her a new phone probably sooner then later. We have AT&T and have had great service with them here in the Chicagoland area. She has a 1st gen Samsung Blackjack, which has served her well. I have the same phone but with some upgrades as I got mine later. It runs windows mobile 5 out of the box and can be upgraded to 6.0.

To /do to her job, connectivity is a must. While the IPhone looks sleek etc, I know it can not multi-task if your doing a function and a call comes in you lose your work etc.

The Blackberry seems to be the way most corporate go. The Blackberry 8310 is what AT&T offers but there is no Wi-fi. You have to use the 8330 which other Wireless providers use. (One thing about AT&T, they try to get every penny from you, they don’t want you to use Wireless if you can. They make more money if you use the dataplan.) Problem with Blackberry, it does not use “3G” technology yet. This is not AT&T’s fault, but Blackberry’s. Most don’t know it but Blackberry comes out of Canada. If you don’t know about the Internet up there.. (ROGERS GOUGES EVERYONE) Then you would not understand.

Samsung is out with the BlackJack 2. It is running the most current version of Windows Mobile. The thing I don’t like about Windows Mobile, it tries to be regular windows but on a mobile platform. While I “LOVE” Microsoft Window “VISTA”, I don’t think this type of setup is right for a phone.

Are any of you using these phones? If so are you able to get data for Meds etc for them? Nursing modules?

What do you think??

Give me feedback in the Scuttlebutt Forums

Happy Mothers Day 2008

Da-Chief — Sun, 11 May 2008 18:12:04 +0000

Happy Mothers Day 2008 to all you Mom’s out there.

I realized quite a long time ago that the hardest job in the military was not the person who was serving in in the service, but the person at home keeping the home fires burning.

Mothers!

They bear our children, wipe runny noses, clean dirty diapers, help the boo-boo’s, smile and nod..

Then they take care of the children.

You see, most dads think that mom has the easy job, I used to hear it all the time, heck I even thought the same thing until my wife started to go to school, then the roles were reversed.

It was a blessing for me, as it prepared me for the day when I got out of the military. I am quite lucky in that I am a stay at home dad. Karen works at a local hospital as a ICU RN. She works 12 hours shifts, but when she gets home she puts her other hat of “MOM” on as well.

I know I am a strong part of the family unit and do quite well, but darn if the kids when they get their boo-boo’s or have something go wrong at school, They don’t tell me.. They wait for….

MOM.
I love my wife with all my heart, I love my Mother’s (Both mine and my in-law) as well and want to wish you all a Happy Mothers Day for 2008.

Have a great day!

Da-Dad

Speed Racer the Movie, Review

Da-Chief — Sun, 11 May 2008 05:51:23 +0000

Movie: Speed Racer

Movie Makers/Producers/Directors:
Andy Wachowski
Larry Wachowski
Run Time: 135 minutes
Actors:
Speed Racer: Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild)
Racer X: Matthew Fox (Party of 5 & LOST)
Rex Racer: Scott Porter (Friday Night Lights)
Pops: John Goodman (Rosanne)
MMOM: Susan Sarandon ( Bul Durham, Thelma & Louise)
Trixi: Christina Ricci (Adams Family)
Chimp: Chim Chim

My whole family went and saw Speed Racer tonight up in Kenosha, WI at the Tinseltown theater.
Included in this was myself, My wife, and 3 kids aged 9,6,5.

The Brothers made a visually stunning movie the likes I have never seen before. If you don’t remember them, they directed and made the “MATRIX” trilogy. They have and are really into the special effects dept. The visuals on SPEED RACER are something you have never seen before. The Races, awesome, you feel like your there in the cabin with speed. Heck they even brought back “INSPECTOR DETECTOR”

The only gripe I have about the movie itself was the length. Spencer was not able to manage the whole movie so he and Karen left after about 1 hour. She wants me to get a Baby sitter so we can see it again soon.

My daughters loved it, my 7 year old especially loved Chim Chim the monkey. I would have to admit this actor should receive a academy award for his portrayal as a chimp. (Grin)

The Movie is rated PG for some fighting but mostly the violence with the racing.

Speed Racer the movie was filmed and recorded Just like the old animated series of the 70’s.

So I give it a thumbs up, bring your kids but make sure they are able to handle the length of the movie.
Enjoy!!

D/C

Week in Review 4-10 May 2008

Da-Chief — Sat, 10 May 2008 15:15:44 +0000

What a week it has been.

Happy Mothers day to all your Mothers out there!

Will the person who applied the Vice to my head kindly come and remove it and take it home! I have had a sinus headache for over a week now. It started out as a Cold then went full force through my noggin.

Those of you who are on Active Duty, you don’t know how good you have it if you get sick. It takes almost a month now to get seen at the hospital/Clinic due to staffing a rotations of folks to IRAQ etc.

Anyhoo. Here is what has been going on this week.

Our ships and supplies are waiting off the coast of Burma, (Myanmar) hopefully the Military Govt will let the Aid in for those ravaged by the storm.

Most of Congress, fighting with the administration for the new GI BILL. Folks, please, if you wish to have the Sen Jim Webb GI BILL, (Info can be read Here ) Please contact your Congressman, or Senator, let them know what you think.

The Iraqi Govt announced to the world that they had caught the “#1 Al-Qaeda opperative in IRAQ on Thursday. Problem was, wrong guy, but he had a name that sounded like him. Yeah this is our Govt Money in action folks.. they can’t even get the names right.

The Hornets are going to take it to the finals, San Antonio is going down. Do They look old to you? I know the Spurs won a game finally but it’s not looking good for Duncan and company.

Pittsburgh is looking tough in the NHL Playoff’s. I think Crosby and his bunch are going to win it all. This is amazing considering the Penguins were “This Close” to folding or moving just a few years ago.

Darlington race is tonight, Will Jr. finally get a win? or will Edwards and his sideways driving car win again on a 1.5 mile track.

The Election, Nuff said.. WOW!

We have lost 8 heroes for the month of May so far. I will be posting this weekly by month so we never loose site of my brothers and sisters over doing the nations bidding.

May 01, 2008

Army Spc. Jeffrey F. Nichols, 21, of Granite Shoals, Texas; assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Polk, La.; died May 1 in Baghdad from wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.May 02, 2008

Marine Lance Cpl. Casey L. Casanova, 22, of McComb, Miss.; assigned to the Combat Logistics Battalion 1, Combat Logistics Regiment 1, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died May 2 in Anbar, Iraq, while supporting combat operations. Also killed were Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman, Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple and Sgt. Glen E. Martinez.

Marine Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman, 21, of Norwalk, Calif.; assigned to the Combat Logistics Battalion 1, Combat Logistics Regiment 1, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died May 2 in Anbar, Iraq, while supporting combat operations. Also killed were Lance Cpl. Casey L. Casanova, Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple and Sgt. Glen E. Martinez.

Marine Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple, 21, of Carroll, Ohio; assigned to the Combat Logistics Battalion 1, Combat Logistics Regiment 1, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died May 2 in Anbar, Iraq, while supporting combat operations. Also killed were Lance Cpl. Casey L. Casanova, Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman and Sgt. Glen E. Martinez.

Marine Sgt. Glen E. Martinez, 31, of Boulder, Colo.; assigned to the Combat Logistics Battalion 1, Combat Logistics Regiment 1, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; died May 2 in Anbar, Iraq, while supporting combat operations. Also killed were Lance Cpl. Casey L. Casanova, Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman and Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple.

Army Pvt. Corey L. Hicks, 22, of Glendale, Ariz.; assigned to 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died May 2 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.May 07, 2008

Army Spc. Jeremy R. Gullett, 22, of Greenup, Ky.; assigned to the 4th Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died May 7 in Sabari District, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. Also killed was Staff Sgt. Kevin C. Roberts.

Army Staff Sgt. Kevin C. Roberts, 25, of Farmington, N.M.; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died May 7 in Sabari District, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. Also killed was Spc. Jeremy R. Gullett.

I will finish with this each week. I won’t forget and I hope you never forget those who are fighting for us and have volunteered to do so. They are our Nations truest heroes. There are names not listed as well and they are the wounded. If you see a vet, Thank them.

Stay Safe.

D/C