Freedom Remembered

Born: October 1, 1981
Died: November 16 2005 in Ubaydi, Iraq

Lance Cpl. Roger W. Deeds of Biloxi, Mississippi moved with his mother and siblings from Germany to Truman, Minnesota, his mother’s home town, in the early 1990s. He attended school in Truman from third grade through eighth grade. At age 14, he went to live with his father and attended school in New Mexico. He later moved to Biloxi and attended Biloxi High School where he graduated in 2000. It was in high school where he met his future wife, Sarah. Roger joined the United States Marines in November 2003. In October of 2004 he came home to see his son, Alaric for the first time; the baby had been born in July of 2004, a month after Roger first left for Iraq. A second child, daughter, Mikaleigh, was born in September, two months after Roger returned to Iraq. Roger never got to meet his newborn daughter. In addition to his wife, and children he is survived by his father, Scott Deeds, mother, Joyce Deeds; and a sister, Gina McKnight. Roger was killed at age 24 by enemy small arms fire while conducting combat operati
Marines
Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion
1st Marine Regiment
13th Marine Expeditionary Unit
I Marine Expeditionary Force
Camp Pendleton, California

Burial is at Biloxi National Cemetery in Biloxi, Mississippi – Sec BB Site 6

Born Dec. 29, 1973 in New Mexico
Died Feb. 8, 2008 in Taji, Iraq
Gary was raised in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The oldest of three children, he was nicknamed “Calvin” growing up in reference to the comic strip “Calvin and Hobbs.” Not only did Gary physically resemble Calvin, he had the same antics. Gary graduated from Alamogordo New Mexico High School before joining the United States Army in 1995. He was currently assigned to 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. Gary set an example of what a leader is. He’d fight for the underdog, was unbending and made of steel. He looked forward to his second tour in Iraq, mostly because he enjoyed dealing with the Iraqi children, giving them candy and gum. He felt he was doing his part in trying to give the Iraqi children a better life. Gary was killed along with 3 other soldiers when their vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device in Taji, Iraq.

Born February 11, 1984 in Las Cruces, New Mexico
Died: November 4, 2009 in Ad Dawr, Iraq

Spc. Tony Carrasco of Anthony, New Mexico was a graduate of Gadsden High School where he studied landscaping, agriculture and mechanics as well as welding classes. Tony was an AG student who was involved in the horticulture program and was a well-behaved and hard working student. He enlisted in the United States Army in January of 2008 and was assigned to Fort Riley in September of 2008. He was a caring and loving young man with a heart as big as the world and a big smile to match. He was a loving son, brother, uncle and friend, always with a helping hand. He was protective of his family and by joining the military he was also protective of his country. He leaves behind, his parents, Antonio and Juana Carrasco; wife Johana; sisters, Rosie, Susana, Jessica; his stepdaughter; stepson, and his unborn child. Tony was killed at age 25 in Ad Dawr, Iraq after being hit by sniper fire.
Army
2nd Battalion
32nd Field Artillery Regiment
4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team
1st Infantry Division
Fort Riley, Kansas

Burial is at Anthony Cemetery in Anthony, New Mexico

Born: August 13, 1968 in Fort Riley, Kansas
Died: October 7, 2009 in Washington, D.C.

Sgt. 1st Class Kenneth W. Westbrook of Shiprock, New Mexico attended Shiprock High School, graduating in 1987, where he was part of the football team and played trumpet. An avid fisherman, he loved hunting, and he loved the outdoors, especially driving through the Rocky Mountains. And anything that had to with cooking he enjoyed too. From outdoor grilling to baking. Kenneth was fun loving and would often give a good natured tease to those he was around. He had a quick wit and a great sense of humor. Though Kenneth collected good cigars, he would often enjoy lighting one up. And the Green Bay Packers fan loved to watch his team whenever he got the chance. Science Fiction and the History channel were other favorites he enjoyed. His musical interested spanned most genres and through four decades. He enlisted in the United States Army in July of 1987, completing basic and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Benning, Georgia. In October of 1987, he married his childhood sweetheart, Charlene. His was stationed throughout beginning with, Fort Lewis, Washington, Korea and the Persian Gulf, Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Vilseck, Germany, Fort Irwin, California, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, Fort Collins, Colorado, South Korea, Fort Carson, Colorado, Fort Bliss, Texas, and then Fort Riley, Kansas when he was deployed to Afghanistan. Kenneth had served in the 1991 Persian Gulf War and in Baghdad in 2007. Kenneth planned to retire after a 22-year Army career in order to spend more time with his three sons. His older brother, Marshall “Alan” Westbrook, a member of the Army National Guard from New Mexico, was killed by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Iraq on Oct. 1, 2005. He leaves his wife, Charlene, three sons, Zachary, Joshua and Joseph, his parents, Ruth and Marshall Westbrook, two brothers, David and Richard, and a sister, Sandra. Kenneth died at age 41 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., of wounds suffered Sept. 8 when insurgents attacked his unit in the Ganjigal Valley, Afghanistan, using small arms and indirect fire.
Army
1st Brigade
1st Infantry Division
Fort Riley, Kansas

Burial is at Shiprock Cemetery in Shiprock, New Mexico

Born Aug. 28, 1975 in Fontana, California  

Died Nov. 20, 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq

Born: April 2, 1988
Died: August 18, 2009 in Kandahar, Afghanistan

Spc. Troy O. Tom was from Beclabito, New Mexico, a small community 20 miles west of Shiprock. It has one store and no stoplights. One of four children, Troy was a gifted artist, who joined the Army after graduating from Aztec High School in 2006. Troy was an outgoing man with an interest in the outdoors and art. He always wore a smile and you never saw him mad. He joined the Army in June of 2006 partly because he wanted to physically and mentally challenge himself. Troy also liked to hunt, fish and enjoyed herding sheep when he was back on the reservation. Troy said “I decided to join for three reasons. First, I felt that it was my duty to serve my country in time of need. Second, the army sounds like a good way to gain even more physical and mental discipline. Third, it’s a good way to earn money for college. After I serve my time in the Army, I plan to go to college. There’s a school named Embry-Riddel in Prescott that I want to go to for aeronautical engineering. I’m good at math and science, so it should be easy for me.” Troy was killed at age 21 when he stepped on a roadside bomb when his unit was setting up camp after a fight with Taliban insurgents. Survivors include his parents, David and Carolyn Tom; brothers, Steve Tom, Leon Harvey; sister, Carrizoe.

Army
1st Battalion
17th Infantry Regiment
5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team
2nd Infantry Division
Fort Lewis, Washington

Burial is at Greenlawn Cemetery in Farmington, New Mexico

Born Dec. 2, 1986 in Roswell, NM

Died Dec. 13, 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq

Brynn, a young man who maintained a deep love of God and always made time for those he loved. He was raised in Texas, but moved back to Roswell at age 16. He excelled in tennis and was offered several scholarships at the time of his 2005 graduation from Goddard High School. He instead enlisted in the Army, passing up college to serve his country. He believed in the cause, he believed in what he stood for and he believed in what he died for. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colorado. He died of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit using small arms fire, two weeks short of the end of his 15 month tour. During his service he was awarded the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Army Commendation Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and Combat Infantry Badge. He was buried in Plainview Memorial Park, Plainview, Texas.

Born June 4, 1980 in Germany

Died Nov. 15, 2008 in Iraq

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Christian P. Humphreys was born at Bitburg Air Base in Germany to a military family and he moved around the world with them, from North Dakota, to Italy, back to Germany and finally to Alamogordo, New Mexico. Chris was always on the go, full of energy and inquisitive. He didn’t much like the thought of school at first and announced to his teacher: “I already know this stuff. Call my dad and he’ll pick me up.” Chris participated in Cub Scouts, and numerous sports growing up and did each with his full energy. When his family settled in New Mexico, he enjoyed the desert life and its critters. After graduating from high school in 1998, he joined the Navy because he wanted to jump out of helicopters. He served for eight years as part of the search and rescue team aboard UH-1 Hueys. He was stationed from 2004-2006 at Fallon Naval Air Station Search and Rescue Longhorns. He flew in the back part of the helicopters there. In 1998, he used the Blue to Green Program enabling him to leave the Navy and join the Army. He trained at Fort Ricker Alabama, enabling him to work in the front part of helicopters as a pilot. He was assigned to Fort Wainwright in April 2008. He married Christina on November 19, 2004. Chris was a funny guy and a serious soldier. Flying was in his blood. Deployed to Iraq in July, 2008, assigned to the 6th Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, Task Force 49, U.S. Army Alaska, he was a rescue crew chief, making the decisions of when to deploy rescue teams out of helicopters. Chris died at age 28 in Mosul, Iraq, when the OH-58 Kiowa helicopter he was in with another pilot crashed while on a mission over Mosul. He is survived by his wife, Christina; his parents, Daniel and Sylvia Humphreys, of Alamogordo, New Mexico; his brother Tobias Humphreys and wife, Jamie, of Albuquerque; his sister Alyxandra Byars and husband, Justin, of Alamogordo; and Gavin, Madison and Brodee Humphreys, his nephews and niece. Chris was a history buff, and for hours he would discuss, and sometimes argue, over military and political affairs and what the real mission of the Army meant to him. He believed that we were making life better for millions of people by our mission and that history would show just exactly that. Once early in the morning Chris and his father were sitting in the back yard enjoying the New Mexico night. He said: “Pop, if the worst happens and I’m terribly injured or disfigured in Iraq, I don’t want to come home and be a burden on the family. Please, just tell everyone I died and let everyone get on with their lives. Take care of Christina, and don’t cry for me, have a party instead.” Very recently, that attitude changed. In a letter to his wife he said that it didn’t matter if he lost an arm or a leg, he just wanted to come home. He was buried in New Mexico.

Birth: Jan. 23, 1977 in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Death: Mar. 20, 2009 in Iraq

Sgt. Jose R. Escobedo Jr., of Albuquerque, New Mexico served 11 years with the United States Marine Corps after he graduated high school. He took a year break then enlisted in the Army in 2007. Jose died at age 32 in Baghdad, of injuries sustained from a non-combat related incident the night before at Forward Operating Base Kalsu in Iskandariyah, Iraq. He leaves behind his wife Angelica, daughter Elvira, sons Jose and Miguel, parents Jose R. and Hortencia, sister Monica Evangelina Adams. Jose was 32.
Army
1st Battalion
77th Field Artillery Regiment
Schweinfurt, Germany

Burial is at Fort Bliss National Cemetery in El Paso, Texas Sec BB Site 713

Born: April 17, 1984 in Anchorage, Alaska
Died: March 15, 2009 in Afghanistan

Air Force Staff Sergeant Timothy Bowles, 24. He grew up on Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, where his father was stationed. Timmy enlisted in the Air Force after graduating from high school in 2002, and had been stationed at Cannon Air Force Base in Clovis, New Mexico, and also in Korea. As a fire engine mechanic, he transfered to Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska, assigned to the 3rd Logistics Readiness Squadron in 2007. While stationed in Alaska, he enjoyed fishing, something that made his friends back in New Mexico jealous. His friends would send him a taste of home though, packages of green chile that Timmy put on everything. Timmy was humerous, loyal, and frank. He told it like it was, wether you wanted to hear it or not. He was meticulous about his uniform and appearance, sometimes starching his uniform so much it might just have stood on its own. He also enjoyed playing baseball, snowboarding and riding off-road. He was always ready to go that extra mile, to do more than was expected of him. Timmy deployed to Afghanistan last November, expecting to be home in June 2009. On March 15 he choose to fill in for a fellow comrade who was not feeling well. Tim and three Illinois National Guard troops were killed near Kot, Afghanistan, by a roadside bomb. He is survived by his father, Retired Air Force Master Sgt. Louis Bowles, his mother Lisa, who live in Glorieta, New Mexico. He is also survived by his sister Heather Ketchmark, who lives on Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia with her husband, Daniel. Daniel was deployed to Iraq around the same time Tim was deployed to Afghanistan.

He was buried at Santa Fe National Cemetery in Santa Fe, New Mexico.