YHC substituted Q’d and put this together so that we could honor a few of our fallen, remember that we get to and have a little IronPax prep.
WARMUP: 10 SSH, 5 Windmills, 10 Moroccan NC’s
THE THANG: First was for Zachary Tellier
An 82nd Airborne paratrooper who pulled two comrades from a burning vehicle in April has died of wounds sustained while on a ground patrol in Afghanistan, military officials said Oct. 1.
Sgt. Zachary D. Tellier, 31, of Charlotte, was a combat infantryman with the 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, at Fort Bragg. He died Sept. 29, 2007 officials said.
In April, Tellier’s unit was conducting a mounted patrol when one of its vehicles drove over and detonated a bomb, which set the vehicle on fire, according to a statement from the 82nd Airborne.
Tellier pulled two paratroopers out of the vehicle to safety, suffering severe burns to his hands. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal with valor for his actions.
Spc. Larry Spray, who was one of the two paratroopers Tellier rescued, called Tellier “a good friend and a buddy.”
After he was burned, Tellier jumped up in the turret to return fire, said Sgt. Michael Layton, a member of Tellier’s unit. A lieutenant made Tellier get out of the vehicle because of his injuries, Layton said.
“Zachary Tellier has to be the biggest hero I’ve ever known or heard of, not just because of what he did, but because of his personality,” Layton said. “He came in the Army because he wanted to be around soldiers and serve his country, and he paid the ultimate sacrifice.”
Tellier is survived by his wife, Sara Tellier of Atlanta, Ga.; his father, David W. Tellier of Groton, Mass.; and his mother, Pamela Rodriguez, of Falmouth, Mass.
5 Rounds:
1- 10 Burpees
2- 10 Burpees, 25 Merkins
3- 10 Burpees, 25 Merkins, 50 Lunges
4-10 Burpees, 25 Merkins, 50 Lunges, 100 Big Boys
5- 10 Burpees, 25 Merkins, 50 Lunges, 100 Big Boys, 150 Squats
Next on the docket was the Griff.
AF Staff Sgt. Travis Griffin
Air Force Staff Sgt. Travis Griffin knew the dangers of serving in Iraq, but the 28-year-old volunteered anyway as part of a yearlong deployment to help train Iraqi police officers.
Griffin was on patrol in central Baghdad on Thursday when his vehicle encountered a roadside bomb and he was killed, officials at Kirtland Air Force Base confirmed late Friday.
Griffin, who had served in the Air Force for nearly nine years, was a member of the 377th Security Forces Squadron at Kirtland. He had been stationed at the Albuquerque base since July 2004.
Griffin’s mother, Christine Herwick of western Ohio, was at the Clearcreek Christian Assembly in Springboro, Ohio, on Thursday when she learned of her son’s death. Griffin’s picture is on a prayer wall at the church.
“He died doing what he loved,” she said.
Herwick and Griffin’s stepfather, Donald Herwick III, said he was born in Okinawa, where the Herwicks were both on active duty, and traveled with them from base to base.
“We knew there was risk every day,” Donald Herwick said. “He wanted to be there.”
Col. Robert Suminsby, installation commander at Kirtland, said Griffin’s mission in Iraq was much more dangerous than what most airmen are confronted with.
“Most deploy for four to six months. He actually volunteered to go on a 365-day tour,” Suminsby said. “He was one of the folks that really stepped up to do not just a very dangerous and demanding mission, but one that was going to last a lot longer.”
Griffin, of Dover, Del., had been in Iraq since October and was working with the 732nd Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron. As part of the squadron’s Detachment 3, Griffin and his fellow airmen were focused on helping build Iraq’s police force.
Capt. Kevin Eberhart, operations officer of Kirtland’s security forces, had regular talks with Griffin before he deployed last fall. The two talked about Griffin being safe and taking care of his troops as well as the importance of the mission.
“The biggest thing that comes to mind when I think about him is he was definitely the right person if you had to pick one individual from our unit to go over and do this training. He was that one,” Eberhart said.
In a November interview with the American military newspaper Stars and Stripes, Griffin said: “I want to leave knowing that we’ve done something.”
Eberhart described Griffin as competent and confident but not arrogant.
“He had a capability and a charisma about him,” he said.
Kirtland Air Force Base spokeswoman Jillian Speake said a memorial service was being planned for Griffin but no date has been set.
Griffin is the second Kirtland airman to die in Iraq in the past month. Sgt. Christopher Frost, 24, a native of Wisconsin, was killed in March near Bayji, Iraq, when the Iraqi Army Mi-17 helicopter in which he was riding crashed. He was assigned to Kirtland’s 377th Air Base Wing and worked with the base’s public affairs office.
The exercise consisted of:
800m run
400m nur
800m run
400m nur
MARY: The 200 big boys were plenty, and we ran out of time.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: IronPax signup, Bethel Serve Help Request,
COT: Several families in the community lost husbands and fathers at a much too early age recently. Prays for those families to get back on their feet after the tragedy.