SGT. Heath A. McMillin

7-27-2003 Iraq - Clifton Springs

A Marine who was killed in Iraq when he came under attack from rocket-propelled grenade and small-arms fire was a 29-year-old sergeant from this Finger Lakes town.

Sgt. Heath McMillin was killed while on patrol July 27 south of Baghdad. He was assigned to the 105th Military Police Company of the Army National Guard in Buffalo.

McMillin’s mother lives in Biddeford, Maine. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, described McMillin as “truly an American hero to us all.”

“His bravery in action, his commitment to freedom and democracy and his loyalty to his country will forever be his legacy,” she said.

The defense department said 176 members of the 105th have been deployed.

The unit left Buffalo in February for up to two years, the Buffalo News reported. The 105th was previously deployed on a peace-keeping mission in Bosnia.

SPC. Michael S. Weger

10-12-2004 Iraq - Rochester

Spc. Michael S. Weger, a Pascagoula native killed in Iraq last week, is remembered by his family as a good son and loving father who liked camping and rarely met a stranger.

Weger, 30, died Oct. 12 along with two other soldiers from the 20th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, when an improvised explosive device hit the Humvee they were driving in Iraq. The unit is based in Fort Hood, Texas.

“He was a good little guy. He never met a stranger — a really outgoing, really good father,” said Sonya Gentry, who married Weger’s cousin 12 years ago. “He had a little boy, 5 years old. Damion is his name. He was a really good dad, good son, good brother. He was just an all-around nice guy.”

Gentry, speaking to The Associated Press from her home in Moss Point, said she saw Weger last year when he returned to his hometown for his grandfather’s funeral. She said he seemed proud of his life as a soldier.

The Defense Department listed Weger’s hometown as Rochester, N.Y., but Greg Weger said his son was born in Pascagoula and lived in Houston before joining the Army.

“He had no resentments,” his father has said. “He never shirked from his responsibilities.”

Weger joined the Army in February 2003 and was sent to Iraq with the 1st Cavalry Division in March 2004.

“The 1st Cavalry is basically on peacekeeping missions and insurgent patrols,” said Fort Hood civilian spokesman Dan Hassett.

Hassett said Weger; Capt. Dennis L. Pintor, 30, of Lima, Ohio; and Jaime Moreno, 28, of Round Lake Beach, Ill., all died of injuries sustained in the explosion. The men worked as combat engineers.

“Combat engineers build bridges, work in construction, work with some explosive ordinance devices and some demolition work,” Hassett said. “Their basic task is to perform functions that allow the unit to enter a place — to break down obstacles.”

Gentry said the work of a combat engineer was probably a good fit for Weger’s abilities. “He’s very mechanical, very good with his hands and mechanically inclined,” she said.

Capt. David C. Woodruff Jr., Weger and Moreno’s former commanding officer, described both men as “true heroes and warriors.” Weger, who had been his driver until he changed command with Pintor, “was an outstanding soldier, father, brother and son,” Woodruff said. “He was a true hero and warrior, and I miss him.”

Weger, Moreno and Pintor were on a combat mission to find terrorists and search for IEDs, Woodruff said.

“That was their mission, and Bravo Company is the best at it,” he said. “They are the hardest working soldiers in their Area of Operations and they never stop.”

SPC. Matthew A. Koch

3-9-2005 Iraq - Spencerport

Spc. Matthew A. Koch, 23, of West Henrietta, N.Y.; assigned to the 70th Engineer Battalion, Fort Riley, Kan.; killed Mar. 9 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Taji, Iraq. He is the son of Diane L. Fenstermaker Worman and Dale B. Koch and the stepson of James J. Worman and Madeline Koch.

SPC. Anthony S. Cometa

6-16-2005 Iraq - Greece

The family of a Rochester-area soldier killed June 16 in Iraq mourned him Friday at his funeral.

Pfc. Anthony Steven Cometa, a Nevada National Guardsman who grew up in Greece, just outside Rochester, was killed when the vehicle he was riding in crashed at the end of a routine supply mission about 10 miles from the Kuwait border. Cometa died the day after his 21st birthday.

“Obviously this has been a great loss for the family, but their son truly had a passion for the military and they realize that,” said Brig. Gen. Randall Sayre, commander of the Nevada National Guard. “It’s unfortunate that in these times we lose our soldiers more frequently than we are comfortable with.”

Cometa moved to Henderson, Nev., in 1999 with his father. Many family members, including his mother, Nancy Fontana, still live in Greece.

Cometa was given a full military burial at Holy Ghost Cemetery in Gates. Cometa had been awarded the Bronze Star and the Good Conduct Medal by the Army.

SPC. Jason Hasenauer

12-28-2005 Afghanistan - Hilton

The family of a Rochester-area soldier killed June 16 in Iraq mourned him Friday at his funeral.

Pfc. Anthony Steven Cometa, a Nevada National Guardsman who grew up in Greece, just outside Rochester, was killed when the vehicle he was riding in crashed at the end of a routine supply mission about 10 miles from the Kuwait border. Cometa died the day after his 21st birthday.

“Obviously this has been a great loss for the family, but their son truly had a passion for the military and they realize that,” said Brig. Gen. Randall Sayre, commander of the Nevada National Guard. “It’s unfortunate that in these times we lose our soldiers more frequently than we are comfortable with.”

Cometa moved to Henderson, Nev., in 1999 with his father. Many family members, including his mother, Nancy Fontana, still live in Greece.

Cometa was given a full military burial at Holy Ghost Cemetery in Gates. Cometa had been awarded the Bronze Star and the Good Conduct Medal by the Army.

SPC. Teodoro Torres

5-5-2006 Iraq - Rochester

Army Spc. Teodoro Torres died May 5, 2006 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom. 29years old, of Las Vegas, Nev. He was assigned to the 490th Civil Affairs Battalion, Army Reserve, Abilene, Texas.; attached to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division; killed May 5 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations in Baghdad. Also killed were: 1st. Sgt. Carlos N. Saenz and Sgt. Nathan J. Vacho. Torres is one of six children, but he was the only boy. 5 sisters, Melissa Torres. Predeceased by grandfathers, Julio Betances and Hipolito Torres. Son of Teodoro Sr. and Carmen Torres; brother of Delilah Rivera, Leticia Andolina, Rosalie Watts, Tina Cruz and Melissa Torres; grandson of Carmen Figueroa and Rosa Torres; nephew of Hilda, Abraham and Wilfredo Betances. He was 29.

1LT. James N. Lyons

9-27-2006 Iraq - Brighton

1st Lt. James N Lyons of Brighton, New York was a 1998 graduate of Vermont Academy and a 2003 graduate of Syracuse University. He served in the military for almost three years and has spent the last 10 months in south Baghdad, Iraq. James played Varsity Football and Varsity Lacrosse at Brighton High School. He also enjoyed downhill skiing and skydiving. He is survived by his parents Robert and Marcia Lyons of Brighton, New York and his girlfriend Hillary Trent, aunt and uncle, Barbara and Michael Walker; great aunt, Marjorie Forrester; cousins, Timothy, Kathryn and Maura Walker. He was 28.

SGT. Jonathan E. Lootens

10-15-2006 Iraq - Lyons

After his first tour of duty, Jonathan E. Lootens received a commendation medal from the Army for saving another soldier''s life while under fire, said his father, Bob. "That''s the way he was, his soldier brothers and friends meant so much to him," he said. "To him, their safety was more important than his own." Lootens, 25, of Lyons, N.Y., died Oct. 15 in Balad of injuries sustained by a roadside bomb in Kirkuk province. He was assigned to Schofield Barracks. He was on his second tour and also had completed one in Afghanistan. "The military turned his life around," said his sister, Andrea Ralye. "He became such a wonderful young man, kind and dedicated to his family." Lootens'' dad said he was extremely driven and worked hard to get his GED so he could join the Army. "Once Jon would set his mind on a goal, he would accomplish it," he said. In his spare time, Lootens loved to hunt and fish. With no wife or children of his own, he was a devoted uncle and also showered attention on a classic 1964 Ford Falcon Futura. He was looking forward to going to college. He also is survived by his mother, Deborah Qualtieri.

SSG. Steve Butcher Jr.

5-23-2007 Iraq - Penfield

A soldier from suburban Rochester was killed in Iraq after an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit, military officials said May 25.

Staff Sgt. Steve Butcher Jr., 27, of Penfield, N.Y. died May 23 in Ramadi.

He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.

Butcher’s family and friends learned of his death May 23, according to Steve Butcher Sr.’s law firm. The soldier’s father declined to comment through his law firm.

Butcher was also survived by a six-year-old daughter.

He graduated from Penfield high school in 1997. He also attended Charles Finney School and McQuaid Jesuit High School.

Butcher’s sister, Angela told R-News that he prioritized his fellow soldiers.

“My brother wanted to do everything to ensure the safety of his men,” she said. “He felt personally responsible.”

Butcher last returned home for a visit in November, then returned for his third tour of duty in Iraq in January.

Penfield is 8 miles east of Rochester.

CPL. Kevin S. Mowl

2-25-2008 Iraq - Pittsford

A western New York soldier wounded six months ago in an explosion in Iraq has died in a military hospital in Maryland.

Army Cpl. Kevin Mowl of the Rochester suburb of Pittsford was 22 when he died Monday at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda.

Mowl suffered multiple broken bones and a head injury Aug. 2 when a roadside bomb flipped his vehicle in Baghdad. Three others died, and 11 soldiers and an interpreter were injured.

President Bush presented Mowl with a Purple Heart and a Presidential Medallion at the hospital in December.

Mowl recently suffered a serious infection after part of his feeding tube broke and perforated his intestines.

Since Mowl was injured, his family has kept a Web page chronicling his recovery. The page, which received more than 70,000 visits in six months, will include funeral plans once they are made.

Mowl was sent to Iraq in June 2006 and patrolled with Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team based at Fort Lewis, Wash.

Last year while on leave, Army Spc. Kevin S. Mowl visited the Rochester School for the Deaf, where his father was superintendent. He told the students about Iraq, his sense of purpose, and how he handed out candy to children.

Some students were thrilled to meet him in person and impressed with his sign language. “We don’t know a lot of soldiers here,” said Derrick Behm, a senior. “We are all deaf, and we can’t be soldiers. We don’t get to meet those kind of people very often.”

Mowl, 22, of Pittsford, N.Y., died Feb. 25 at the National Naval Medical Center of wounds he suffered in Baghdad on Aug. 2, 2007, when his vehicle was struck by an explosive. He was assigned to Fort Lewis.

Mowl loved to drive around in the family’s yellow Toyota Celica.

He started karate as a youngster and earned a black belt in his teens.

He wanted to become a teacher, but had picked up some Arabic and thought he could build a career out of conflict resolution, said his father, Harold Mowl Jr. “I often hear that when boys go into the Army, they come out as men. Kevin was a perfect example of that.”

He also is survived by his mother, Mary.

SSG. Nekl B. Allen

9-12-2009 Afghanistan - Spencerport

 Mourners gathered Sept. 22 in a Rochester suburb for the funeral of a soldier killed in combat in Afghanistan after two tours in Iraq.

The parents, widow and three young children of Staff Sgt. Nekl Allen bid farewell to the soldier, who died Sept. 12 when his vehicle was hit by small-arms fire and an improvised explosive device in Wardak province.

Allen, 29, graduated in 1999 from Churchville-Chili High School, where he was a wrestler and played football. He joined the Army in 2002.

He was killed along with Spc. Daniel Cox, a 23-year-old from Parsons, Kan. Stationed with the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, N.Y., they were deployed to Afghanistan in January.

When Nekl Allen was home from the Army, he always found time to interact with his daughter and two sons.

Riding dirt bikes with 10-year-old Christopher. Roughhousing in the living room with 7-year-old Michael. Helping 5-year-old Grace learn to count.

“He was the most lovable person I know,” said his sister, Rana.

Allen, 29, of Rochester, N.Y., died Sept. 12 in Wardak province, Afghanistan, when he and a fellow soldier were attacked with an explosive and small weapons. Both were assigned to Fort Drum, N.Y.

Allen, known also as Nick or Nicky, loved the outdoors. He enjoyed fishing, bow-hunting and playing paintball. He was a 1999 graduate of Churchville-Chili High School, where he was a wrestler and played fullback and linebacker for the football team.

“He showed the signs of courage by taking on big tasks, even when he was young,” said his high school coach, Paul Dick.

Allen joined the Army in May 2002, prompted by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He was deployed twice to Iraq before being sent to Afghanistan.

“He stepped up to serve his country because he knew it was the right thing to do,” said his father-in-law, Mike Meehan.

Allen also is survived by his wife, Amy Meehan-Allen.

PFC. Daniel J. Rivera

10-18-2009 Afghanistan - Victor

Iraq: October 18, 2009. Survived by his mother, Myrian Y. Rivera; sister, Shadel Y. (Edwin) Martinez; brother, David Walker; niece, Eve A. Martinez; many aunts, uncles & Cousins. Daniel attended Canandaigua Academy before joining the U.S. Army and going to Iraq.

SSG. Dennis J. Hansen

12-5-2009 Afghanistan - Scottsville 

Dennis Hansen was determined to dunk a basketball when he was a boy, so he plotted the perfect strategy: Set up a ladder to slam that ball through the hoop.

He made the shot, but there was just one problem: He didn’t plan for what would happen after the dunk, so his landing was a bit rough, Pastor Barry Baughman recalled at Hansen’s funeral. But that desire to excel is something Hansen carried throughout life, Baughman said.

Hansen, 31, of Panama City, Fla., died Dec. 7 at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, of wounds sustained from a roadside bomb four days earlier in Logar province, Afghanistan. He had served 8½ years in the Marine Corps before joining the Army and had previously served in Africa, Kosovo, Japan, Panama, Cuba and Iraq, as well as two tours in Afghanistan.

Hansen was assigned to Fort Drum, N.Y., and lived in Scottsville, N.Y., with his wife, Jennifer, and their infant son, Michael. Hansen had two other children who live in Texas: 10-year-old Alana and 7-year-old Gabriel.

His family said in his obituary that he enjoyed fishing, golfing, wrestling and woodworking, and noted he was an avoid Ohio State University football fan. He also loved animals, pumpkin pie and coffee, his family said.

“Michael says Hi Daddy!” his wife wrote on his MySpace page in July 2009. “... We think you’re the best and we cant [sic] wait to see your face again!”

SPC. Jason M. Johnston

12-26-2009 Afghanistan - Albion

SPC. Kyle J. Wright

1-13-2010 Afghanistan - Romeoville, Ill.

Kyle J. Wright’s choice to join the military, following the path of his father and grandfather, had roots in Sept. 11.

“He decided [to enlist] when he was sitting in a classroom watching the Twin Towers fall,” Richard Wright said of his son, whom he called “a hell of a standup kid.”

Kyle Wright went on to be a member of the Marine Corps JROTC program at Romeoville High School in his hometown of Romeoville, Ill., before graduating in 2006.

“He was just an unbelievable guy, wildly popular among the band of brothers that he served with,” the elder Wright said.

The 22-year-old died Jan. 13 at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, of wounds from a roadside bombing earlier that day. He was assigned to Fort Lewis, Wash., where he fell in love with a girl who stole his heart.

He “was the toughest, smartest, bravest man, and I don’t just say that because he’s my son,” Richard Wright said.

Kyle Wright was on his first deployment in Afghanistan, where he was interested in improving the treatment of women and used his fluency in Arabic to explain the culture to fellow soldiers, his father said.

Survivors include his mother and stepmother; and several siblings.

SGT. Devin Snyder

6-4-2011 Afghanistan - Cohocton

During a solemn procession marked by the skirl of bagpipes and the sound of U.S. flags snapping sharply in the breeze, the body of Army Sgt. Devin A. Snyder arrived June 13 at Greater Rochester (N.Y.) International Airport.

Snyder, 20, of Cohocton, Steuben County, was killed June 4 by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan that also killed three of her fellow soldiers. She was the first female soldier from western New York to die in the war.

After a casket containing Snyder’s body arrived by jetliner at the airport, it was transferred to a hearse that took it to Walter E. Baird & Sons Funeral Home in Wayland. As it neared the airport’s exit gates, it passed under a huge U.S. flag, suspended between two ladder trucks of the Rochester and Gates fire departments.

The hearse left the airport accompanied by police motorcyclists and cruisers and 150 motorcyclists of the Patriot Guard Riders. Snyder’s family members followed in a bus.

Members of the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Rochester Blue Star Mothers — a group whose sons and daughters are serving in the military — lined the route of the procession outside the airport to show their support as members of an extended military family.

“This is one of our own,” said Jim Vanderpool of Rochester, past commander of Patchen-Briggs Post 307 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. “As veterans we’ve all been called to fight for freedom. We share the grief of Sgt. Snyder’s family and we’re here to support them.”

Sue Louis of the Blue Star Mothers, whose two sons served three deployments each with the Navy over the past eight years, said Snyder’s death hit close to home.
“We’ve had children honorably serving our country and we’re here to recognize Sgt. Snyder’s service and sacrifice,” she said as she and Blue Star mother Angie Uhnavy and Jennifer Duval, a liaison for veterans and their families with the American Red Cross, held a U.S. flag in front of them.

CPT. Bruce Clark

5-1-2012 Afghanistan - Spencerport

With American flags flapping from their motorcycles, Patriot Guard riders escorted the body of Capt. Bruce Kevin Clark to an upstate New York church where bagpipers played and uniformed pallbearers slowly carried his flag-draped casket inside.

The U.S. Army nurse collapsed and died in Afghanistan during a computer video chat last month with his wife.

Susan Orellana-Clark was joined by family and friends for her husband's funeral Tuesday at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Spencerport, her hometown and the community where they lived before he joined the Army.

The couple's 3- and 9-year-old daughters, in matching black dresses, followed their mother's lead and placed their right hands on their hearts as they stood in the sunshine and watched.

Orellana-Clark was in Texas chatting with her husband from his base in Tarin Kot, Afghanistan, via Skype on April 30 when he pitched forward. For two hours, she tried to get help for her dying husband, before finally seeing military officials enter the room where the 43-year-old lay still.

Initially, Clark's family said they believed he had been shot, and that after he fell his wife could see a bullet hole in the closet behind him. But the Army said last week that there was no bullet wound on his body and no evidence of foul play. Autopsy toxicology results are pending as the death remains under investigation.
The family asked for privacy Tuesday and asked that reporters not attend the funeral service, which ended with the hymn "America the Beautiful."

Clark grew up in Michigan and lived for nearly seven years in Spencerport, a suburb of Rochester. He joined the Army in 2006 and was stationed in Hawaii before he was assigned to the medical center in El Paso, Texas. He went to Afghanistan in March.

He was buried in the veteran's section of Fairfield Cemetery in Spencerport.

Although it was the night of April 30 at his Texas home, Clark's time of death is officially listed as May 1, the date in Afghanistan at the time.

SPC. Theodore M. Glende

7-27-2012 Afghanistan - Rochester

Spc. Theodore M. Glende, 23, of Rochester, N.Y., died July 27, in Kharwar, Logar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with small-arms fire. Glende was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy. Killed in Action on July 27, 2012 at age 23 proudly serving with the 503d Infantry 173rd Airborne in Afghanistan. He is survived by his wife, parents, brother, mother-in-law, brother & sisters-in-law, many aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Family and friends are invited to call, FRIDAY, 3-8 PM at Miller Funeral Homes (3325 Winton Rd. S.). Funeral services will be held, SATURDAY, 1 PM in the Interfaith Chapel at the University of Rochester (500 Joseph C. Wilson Blvd). Interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Wounded Warrior Project in Theo's memory.

SFC. Daniel T. Metcalfe

9-29-2012 Afghanistan - Canandaigua

Army SFC Daniel Metcalfe passed away Saturday, September 29th while on patrol in Afghanistan at the age of 29. He was an eleven year Army veteran based in Vicenza, Italy and was deployed multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan. He met his wife, Vesna in Italy, married in 2005 and they have three children, Alexis, 6, Edward, 3 and Nathaniel, 11 months. Daniel is survived by his wife, Vesna, 3 children, his father, Thomas Metcalfe, mother, Sherri Metcalfe, brother James, sister Debi, brother Jesse Warren, numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Daniel will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery. A memorial service will be held at the PAYNE & MURPHY FUNERAL HOME located at 1040 Route 31, Macedon on Thursday, October 4 at 11 am. A reception for family and friends will be held at East Penfield Baptist Church at 1 pm. No prior calling hours are available. Donations in his honor may be sent to Patriot Guard Riders, 6399 Lake Ave, Williamson, NY 14589 or Blue Star Mothers NY 1 at PO Box 426, Bloomfield, NY 14469.

SSG. Nicholas J. Reid

12-13-2012 Afghanistan - Brockport

SSGT. Alexander M. Ortega

10-23-1983 Lebanon - Henrietta

PFC. Craig S. Stockton

10-23-1983 Lebanon - Churchville

LCPL. Brian K. Schramm

10-15-2004 Iraq - Greece

Friends remembered a 22-year-old Marine killed in Iraq last week for his sense of humor.

Lance Cpl. Brian K. Schramm, of Rochester, died Friday in Iraq’s Babil province, a hotspot south of Baghdad where the U.S. military launched a major offensive this month to try to quell insurgents. He was serving his second tour of duty in the country.

The Defense Department did not release details about Schramm’s death, but his father, Keith Schramm, said his son was killed by shrapnel, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle in New York reported.

Schramm, who was assigned to the 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, Second Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., was described by friends and family as a decent person with a sense of humor.

“He was the most genuine person you’d ever meet in your entire life,” said friend Jon Zodarecky, who graduated high school with Schramm in 2001 and later enlisted in the Army.

Keith Schramm said his son decided as a youngster that he wanted to become a Marine. “It was a lifelong dream,” he said.

Schramm spent five months in the Middle East and Iraq last year during and after the invasion, and was deployed again in June.

Keith Schramm had hoped his son’s second tour would not stretch out extensively. “They told him a year,” Keith Schramm said. “We were hoping he’d come home sooner. But not this way.”

Capt. Philip J. Dykeman

6-26-2008 Iraq - Bernhards Bay

June 26, 2008 Captain Philip J. Dykeman, United States Marine Corps, 38, of Bernhards Bay, New York, stationed at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, died Thursday, June 26, 2008, while serving in Kharma, Iraq. Born March 5, 1970, in Syracuse, New York, Dykeman served his country in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as an infantry company commander for Company F, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines. A graduate of P.V. Moore High School, Philip went on to Brockport Community College to complete his associate's degree. In June 1991 Philip enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and reached the rank of staff sergeant. Upon completion of his bachelor's degree from Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, in May of 1999, he accepted a commission as a second lieutenant. Captain Dykeman selflessly spent the past 17 years of his life serving his country the world over. He was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur Sr. and Jean Dykeman of Bernhards Bay, New York. Surviving are his loving wife, Virginia; son, Austin; daughters, Emilee and Ashlee of Kailua, Hawaii; brother, Master Chief Petty Officer Arthur Jr. (Judith) Dykeman of Oxnard, California; sister, Kathryn (Raymond) Shoults of Oswego, New York; seven nieces; five nephews; two great-nieces; one great-nephew; several cousins; and the devoted Marines and sailors of Company F.

CPL. Reynold Armand

8-27-2007 Iraq - Irondequoit

LCPL. Zachary D. Smith

1-24-2010 Afghanistan - Hornell

Zachary Dylan Smith…..A True Hero

Zachary Dylan Smith was born on April 2, 1990, and was a beautiful addition to our family. Throughout the years, we quickly learned that Zach was a very special little boy. He always had a beautiful smile and brought joy to everyone. He always played well with his older brother Nate and eventually was a big brother to his sister, Grace who was born nine years later. We had the perfect family and the perfect life.

Zach played youth league sports and was involved in many activities throughout his younger years. Once he was in High School, his favorites were football and golf. He played with enthusiasm, was very devoted to his team, was a very hard worker, and he also had fun. These attributes made for a great life for Zach and all who came in contact with him. This is how he lived his life in everything he chose to do.

Zach was always a hard worker, loved people, and cared to make a difference in this crazy world. At the age of 16, Zach worked at our local grocery store, Wegmans, and was always helping people. At times, I would walk in the store to find a baby in Zach’s arms as the mother was trying to write a check. There was also a time that an elderly lady forgot her checkbook, so Zach paid for her groceries with his debit card. From his co-workers and shoppers, I have heard so many stories of how friendly and caring Zach always was and how they miss him in the store.

Zach accomplished a lot in his short 19 years, and he did it right. He always treated people with respect; he cared for people of all ages and, he made everyone feel that he had genuine interest in them. Zach made friends with all types of people. When Zach was in school, he would go to the Resource Room and always bring a smile to the kids in there. Zach struggled in his academics, but always had a positive attitude and got the job done. He never complained about going, just did what had to be done. Zach graduated from Hornell High School in 2008 with many friends and teachers that were really going to miss that beautiful smile he had everyday.

Eleven days after graduation, Zach left for the United States Marine Corp. boot camp training in Parris Island, South Carolina. This entailed being away from his family and friends for three months with only communicating through letters. A United States Marine was a title Zach wanted since he was 13years old. Zach trained his senior year of high school by going to monthly Marine functions in the area, running with a weighted vest, exercising and also studying everything he could get his hands on about the Marine Corps.

Zach graduated from USMC boot camp in October 2008 and then entered his infantry specialty training for 2 months at Camp Geiger, North Carolina. A “grunt” in the infantry unit, Zach was stationed in Jacksonville, North Carolina at Camp Lejeune for his 4-year term. Over the years, Zach went many places to train, as he would be deployed in December of 2009.

In July of 2009, Zach married his high-school sweetheart and best friend Anne Deebs. Zach was very lucky to meet the perfect person that would allow him to fulfill his dream of being a Marine. Zach and Anne had everything going for them. While Zach was deployed, Anne was attending Alfred State College and planned eventually to join Zach in Camp Lejeune and set up base housing for when his tour ended in Afghanistan in July.

On December 17, 2009, Zach was deployed to Afghanistan for a 7-9 month tour. Zach had specialty training for being the medic for his unit; he was also a point man with the title of an expert rifleman. Zach took his Marine role very seriously as a grunt. We have had many stories from Zach’s comrades in the Marines, and they all are conveying to us that even when there were the darkest of moments, Zach tried to get everyone to feel at ease and comfortable. Being so far away from home, it was nice that they had Zach to lighten the moment with a laugh or two.

On January 24, 2010, our perfect life fell apart. While on foot patrol, Zach’s unit became involved in a firefight with the enemy. Zach was providing cover for another unit when he stepped on an IED (improvised explosive device) and was subsequently killed.

We will never forget Zach and all the great times our family shared together. We will never be the same as we are missing an important part of our family. We know Zach is with us all the time and continues to put smiles on our faces as we reminisce of days gone by.

Zach truly is a hero. He lived his life the right way, helping those in need or bringing them a smile or a bit of happiness from his infectious personality. While living his childhood dream of being a United States Marine and serving his country, he made the ultimate sacrifice – giving his life to protect his brother Marines. We are grateful to and extremely proud of him.

We also hold in our hearts that one day we will all be together again.

Our family would also like to thank every Veteran for their service.

Always in our hearts##

SSGT. Javier O. Ortiz-Rivera

11-16-2010 Afghanistan - Rochester

PO1 Michael Pernaselli

Date: 4-24-2004 Iraq - Brighton

LT. Christopher E. Mosko

Date: 4-26-2012 Afghanistan - Pittsford

SSGT. Alexandria M. Morrow

Date: 3-22-2017 Jordan - Dansville