Photo By Capt. Jennifer French | Sgt. Michael Yashinski, 24, of Monument, Colorado, was electrocuted while laying...... read more read more
Subscribe
They came from quiet towns, bustling cities, and military families. Some joined the Army for college money, others to answer a deeper calling after 9/11. They were medics, riflemen, dancers, and dreamers. And they were all Sky Soldiers—paratroopers of the U.S. Army’s 173rd Airborne Brigade.
Nine of them gave their lives during Operation Iraqi Freedom, serving with courage in some of the earliest and most dangerous months of the war. The youngest was 20. The oldest, 28. All jumped into northern Iraq in March 2003, part of the Army’s first combat parachute assault since Vietnam.
Their stories remain etched in gold on brigade plaques and in the hearts of those they left behind.
Spc. Justin Hebert, 20, of Silvana, Washington, was killed Aug. 1, 2003, by a rocket-propelled grenade near Kirkuk. More than 200 mourners packed his former middle school gym to honor him. “I am proud to be the one who brought Justin home,” said Sgt. Nicholas Lewis, who escorted his body back. “I ask God to protect him, to keep his music loud and his steaks well-done.”
1st Lt. David Bernstein, 24, of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, was valedictorian of his high school and fifth in his class at West Point. Killed in an ambush on Oct. 18 near Taza, Iraq, he was remembered by his father as “an athlete and a scholar” who chose to lead from the front.
Pfc. John Hart, 20, of Bedford, Massachusetts, was killed in the same attack. His father, Brian Hart, called him a natural counselor and said his death united an entire town in sorrow. “You dreamed of being a soldier,” he said. “And you lived your dream.”
Sgt. Sean Reynolds, 25, of East Lansing, Michigan, a former Army Ranger, died May 3, 2003, in a training accident when he fell from a ladder and his weapon discharged. His brother said he believed in fighting for justice, no matter the politics.
Spc. Kyle Thomas, 23, of Topeka, Kansas, was a professional ballet dancer who felt called by faith to serve after the Sept. 11 attacks. Killed by an improvised explosive device on Sept. 25 in Tikrit, he was remembered as a “renaissance man” whose talents ranged from stagecraft to sharpshooting.
Sgt. Michael Yashinski, 24, of Monument, Colorado, was electrocuted while laying communication wire in Kirkuk on Dec. 24, 2003. Born on a Marine Corps base, he was a reenactor, black powder enthusiast, and beloved teammate in wrestling and football.
Pfc. Jacob Fletcher, 28, of Bay Shore, New York, joined the Army after 9/11 in honor of a family friend lost in the World Trade Center. He was killed Nov. 13 when an IED struck a bus in Samara. “He was my beloved son and he was a hero,” said his father.
Sgt. Joseph Minucci II, 23, of Richeyville, Pennsylvania, died in the same attack as Fletcher. He joined the National Guard at 17 and later earned his airborne wings. “He was a proud soldier,” said his mother. “He felt he was keeping his family safe.”
Spc. Craig Ivory, 26, of Port Matilda, Pennsylvania, suffered a fatal stroke on Aug. 17 after being medically evacuated from Iraq. A former mechanic who re-enlisted to become a medic, he hoped to become a physician assistant after his Army service.
On Memorial Day and every day, they are remembered—not as statistics, but as sons, brothers, and warriors.
The 173rd Airborne Brigade is the U.S. Army’s Contingency Response Force in Europe, capable of rapidly deploying forces across U.S. European, Central, and Africa Commands. The brigade is based in Vicenza, Italy, with a forward presence in Germany.
(U.S. Army photos courtesy https://thefallen.militarytimes.com)
| Date Taken: | 05.10.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.10.2025 06:58 |
| Story ID: | 497574 |
| Location: | IQ |
| Web Views: | 92 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Nine Sky Soldiers Remembered: A Brotherhood Carried Home From Iraq, by CPT Jennifer French, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
