Tulsa World: Heroes of Oklahoma

Marine Lance Cpl. Thomas A. Blair, 24 Broken Arrow Killed: March 24, 2003 Blair is credited for saving the lives of nine wounded Marines.	Army Sgt. 1st Class Randall S. Rehn, 36 Lawton Killed: April 3, 2003 Rehn left behind a 7-month-old daughter.	Army Pvt. Jerod Dennis, 19 Antlers Killed: April 25, 2003 He was in basic training just a month after his May 2002 graduation from Antlers High School, where he was a standout tennis player and known for occasional classroom pranks.	Marine Staff Sgt. Aaron Dean White, 27 Shawnee Killed: May 19, 2003 White’s daughter just celebrated her first birthday shortly before his death.	Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Doyle W. Bollinger, 21 Poteau Killed: June 6, 2003 Bollinger’s battalion was working on a 120-foot gap in the bridge over the Tigris River.	Army Spc. Jonathan Paul Barnes, 21 Coweta Killed: July 26, 2003 Barnes died while guarding a children's hospital in Baqouba.
Army Pfc. Daniel R. Parker, 18 Oklahoma City Killed: Aug. 12, 2003 Parker followed his father and grandfather into the Army, believing it to be more a moral obligation than family tradition.	Army Sgt. Steven W. White, 29 Lawton Killed: Aug. 13, 2003 “His heart really went out to the children in Iraq because it made him think of how fortunate his own children were not to have this in their backyard,” his wife, Laniece said.	Army Spc. Stephen M. Scott, 21 Lawton Killed: Aug. 23, 2003 Scott married his high school sweetheart.	Army Spc. Dustin Knight McGaugh, 20 Tulsa Killed: Oct. 2, 2003 McGaugh saw the Army as a way to gain an education.	Army Pvt. Jason M. Ward, 25 Tulsa Killed: Oct. 22, 2003 Ward died in Baghdad a little over a week before he was due to return to the Tulsa area.	Army Sgt. Ross Pennanen, 36 Shawnee Killed: Nov. 2, 2003 Erma Pennanen received a birthday letter from her son one day before he was killed.
Army 2nd Lt. Luke S. James, 24 Hooker Killed: Jan. 27, 2004 James’ son, Bradley, was 6 months old at the time of his death.	Army Sgt. Kyle Seitsinger, 29 Oklahoma City Killed: Jan. 29, 2004 Seitsinger was involved in efforts to find weapons caches along the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan.	Human Rights Activist Fern Holland, 33 Tulsa Killed: March 9, 2004 Holland also drafted part of Iraq's interim constitution, insisting that it include a provision that will give women one out of four seats in the country's new legislature.	Army Chief Warrant Officer Lawrence S. Colton, 32 Oklahoma City Killed: April 11, 2004 Colton was a successful cross country runner who won medals at Carl Albert High School in Midwest City.	Marine Cpl. Scott M. Vincent, 21 Bokoshe Killed: April 30, 2004 Vincent extended his service time by five months so he could go back to Iraq voluntarily in February of 2004 for a second tour in the combat zone.	Army Staff Sgt. Erickson H. Petty, 28 Fort Gibson Killed: May 3, 2004 Petty's brother, Kyle Petty, said that while growing up in eastern Oklahoma, Eric Petty knew he wanted to be a soldier.
Army Spc. James E. Marshall, 19 Tulsa Killed: May 5, 2004 Marshall had spoken to his mother by phone only hours before his death.	Army Spc. Kyle A. (Showler) Brinlee, 21 Pryor Killed: May 11, 2004 Brinlee, who had an interest in carpentry, helped install the floor in his high school's new gymnasium	Army Spc. Sonny G. Sampler, 23 Oklahoma City Killed: July 8, 2004 The main reason Sonny Sampler gave for joining the Army was so he could save money and help his family.	Marine Lance Cpl. Joseph L. Nice, 19 Nicoma Park Killed: Aug. 4, 2004 Nice was a fourth-generation veteran.	Army Sgt. Daniel L. Galvan, 30 Moore Killed: Aug. 12, 2004 Galvan died in a Black Hawk helicopter crash.	Marine Pfc. Nachez Washalanta II, 21 Ardmore Killed: Aug. 21, 2004 Washalanta was scheduled to come home in September 2004.
Air Force Capt. John Boria, 29 Broken Arrow Killed: Sept. 5, 2004 Boria was an organ donor, and his kidneys were made available for other patients at the Hamad General Hospital in Doha. Arrangements were made to fly his heart to Saudia Arabia.	Marine Lance Cpl. Lamont N. Wilson, 20 Lawton Killed: Sept. 6, 2004 He joined the marines to make his father proud.	Marine Lance Cpl. Nathaniel T. Hammond, 24 Tulsa Killed: Nov. 6, 2004 Hammond “really loved his nephews, and he had two nieces -- one was born today -- that he hadn't seen," his brother said.	Marine Lance Cpl. Jordan D. Winkler, 19 Tulsa Killed: Nov. 26, 2004 Winkler is survived by his parents, Steven and Lenora Winkler, and his sister, Breynna Winkler.	Chief Warrant Officer Travis W. Grogan, 31 Moore Killed: Nov. 27, 2004 Grogan, who left behind a wife and two children, was described as trustworthy and stable.	Army Sgt. Carl W. Lee, 23 Oklahoma City Killed: Nov. 28, 2004 Lee was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
Marine Staff Sgt. Melvin L. Blazer 38 Moore Killed: Dec. 12, 2004 Blazer’s father was a Vietnam veteran.	Marine Sgt. Zachariah S. Davis, 25 Spiro Killed: Jan. 6, 2005 Davis was assigned to 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif.	Arkansas Army National Guard Spc. Lyle Rymer II, 24 Roland Killed: Jan. 28, 2005 Rymer saw his newborn daughter during a two-week furlough in November of 2004.	Army Spc. Robert T. Hendrickson, 24 Broken Bow Killed: Feb. 1, 2005 Hendrickson was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment of Fort Hood's 1st Cavalry Division.	Army Spc. Jeffrey Henthorn, 25 Choctaw Killed: Feb. 8, 2005 Henthorn was assigned to the 24th Transportation Company and was in Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.	Army Staff Sgt. Jason Hendrix, 28 Claremore Killed: Feb. 16, 2005 Hendrix led a 25-man squad that acted as a decoy so Marine units in the field could identify and knock out rebel strongholds.
Army Spc. Adam N. Brewer, 22 Dewey Killed: Feb. 25, 2005 Brewer’s father, Jeffrey Brewer, said that his son had telephoned him about three weeks before his death and said, "If I don't see you again, I want you to know that I love you."	Army Col. Theodore S. Westhusing, 45 Jenks Killed: June 5, 2005 Westhusing's family said he volunteered for service in Iraq, where he was helping train the Iraqi army and working in a counterterrorism and special operations unit.	Army Chief Warrant Officer Steven E. Shephard, 30 Purcell Killed: June 27, 2005 Shephard was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Aviation Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.	Army Spc. Jared D. Hartley, 22 Newkirk Killed: July 15, 2005 Hartley was a 2002 graduate of Newkirk High School, where he played football and basketball.	Marine Reserve Lance Cpl. Roger Dale Castleberry Jr., 26 Durant Killed: Aug. 1, 2005 Castleberry’s mother and father, Deborah and Roger Dale Castleberry Sr., live in Durant, Okla.	Marine Sgt. James Graham III, 25 Coweta Killed: Aug. 1, 2005 Graham was remembered as a hard worker, who learned responsibility at a young age after becoming a father at 15.
Private Security Contractor Mike Dawes, 57 Stilwell Killed: Aug. 23, 2005 Dawes worked in Kosovo several years ago as a peacekeeper under a United Nations contract. He also served in Vietnam as a member of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division.	Army Staff Sgt. John Glen Doles, 29 Chelsea Killed: Sept. 30, 2005 A thrill-seeker since his youth, he parachuted into Iraq in March 2003 with 173rd Airborne, participating in the largest combat jump since World War II.	Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Brian K. Joplin, 32 Hugo Killed: Oct. 4, 2005 Joplin took special pleasure in working on a vintage aircraft of the type his grandfather piloted during World War II.	Army Sgt. 1st Class Brandon K. Sneed, 33 Norman Killed: Oct. 10, 2005 Sneed loved to play and watch football with his two sons.	Army Pfc. David Jeffery Martin, 21 Edmond Killed: Oct. 31, 2005 David Martin's three brothers each delivered a brief speech, remembering their sibling as a prankster who loved being a soldier and serving his country.	Army Pfc. Travis Grigg, 24 Inola Killed: Nov. 15, 2005 Grigg was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and a good conduct medal, which the military presented to his father, Barney Grigg, during his funeral.
Marine Cpl. Joshua J. Ware, 20 Apache Killed: Nov. 16, 2005 Ware entered the Marines within days of his high school graduation in May 2003.	Marine Cpl. Jeffry A. Rogers, 21 Oklahoma City Killed: Nov. 16, 2005 Rogers' military awards include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Iraq Campaign Medal, among others.	1st Sgt. Tobias C. Meister, 30 Jenks Killed: Dec. 28, 2005 He "would never ask any man to do anything that he wasn't willing to do himself," his mother said.	Air Force Tech Sgt. Jason L. Norton, 32 Miami Killed: Jan. 22, 2006 Norton was described as an avid hunter and fisherman, and was known by friends as "the great Alaskan hunter."	Army Staff Sgt. Lance M. Chase, 32 Oklahoma City Killed Jan. 23, 2006 Chase was the kind of soldier who inspired Iraqi citizens to wave and smile at him on patrol, his mother said.	Army Pvt. Joshua Francis Powers, 21 Skiatook Killed: Feb. 25, 2006 Powers died within three weeks of his arrival in the country.
Army Spc. Joshua M. Pearce, 21 Guymon Killed: Feb. 26, 2006 A cut-up at church and school, Pearce was known for disarming those around him, friends said.	Army Spc. Bryan L. Quinton, 24 Sapulpa Killed: May 4, 2006 Quinton was remembered for his bright smile and unreserved devotion to his wife and daughter.	Marine Lance Cpl. Hatak Yearby, 21 Overbrook Killed: May 14, 2006 Yearby was an American Indian dancer in powwow competitions and wore two long braids until he woke one morning and told his mother he had to join the Marines.	Army Lt. Col. Daniel E. Holland, 43 Duncan/Marlow Killed: May 18, 2006 "Every time he'd leave, he'd say: 'Glad you got to see me.' That was his trademark line, and we'd always laugh," Holland’s sister said.	Army Cpl. Derek A. Stanley, 20 Tulsa Killed: June 5, 2006 Pam Smith of Tulsa, said her nephew firmly believed in what he died for, "and that makes me very proud of him."	Marine Sgt. Justin Noyes, 23 Vinita Killed: July 2, 2006 Noyes played football and baseball in high school, his mother said, and described him as being highly dedicated to anything he undertook.
Army Staff Sgt. Clint J. Storey, 30 Enid Killed: Aug. 4, 2006 "You were my hero long before you joined the military," Carol Storey Inherst wrote in remembrance of her son.	Marine Cpl. Jared M. Shoemaker, 29 Tulsa Killed: Sept. 4, 2006 Shoemaker was remembered as self-confident with a good sense of humor.	Army Sgt. John A. Carroll, 26 Ponca City Killed: Sept. 6, 2006 Carroll’s said her son joined the military for its educational opportunities.	Army Sgt. Clint E. Williams, 24 Kingston Killed Sept. 14, 2006 Williams volunteered for dangerous duty on raids rather than sit and wait for battle, despite being wounded only a few months before his death.	Army Spc. Joshua Sheppard, 22 Quinton Killed: Dec. 22, 2006 Sheppard had only nine months left to serve, and news of his death devastated his four brothers, two of whom also are in the military, his mother said.	Army Col. Brian D. Allgood, 46 Oklahoma City Killed: Jan. 20, 2007 Allgood was an avid University of Oklahoma sports fan.
Sgt. Buddy Hughie, 25 Poteau Killed: Feb.19, 2007 "This was a soldier who cared more about others than he did himself," said Brig. Gen. Myles L. Deering, the commander of the Oklahoma National Guard's 45th Infantry Brigade.	Marine Lance Cpl. Trevor A. Roberts, 21 Oklahoma City Killed: March 24, 2007 Roberts loved working with children and hoped to become a missionary.	Army Spc. Wilfred Flores Jr., 20 Lawton Killed: March 31, 2007 Flores had dreamed of being in the Army since he was 5 years old.	Army Spc. Ryan S. Dallam, 24 Norman Killed: April 6, 2007 Dallam was killed days before he was to come home on leave.	Army Pfc. Jerimiah J. Veitch, 21 Dibble Killed: June 21, 2007 "He was always the clown. He loved to laugh and wanted everyone else around him to laugh," said his mother, Valorie Sanchez.	Army Sgt. Ryan M. Wood, 22 Oklahoma City Killed: June 21, 2007 Wood received an acceptance from the University of Central Oklahoma at Edmond shortly before his death.
Army Pfc. Thomas R. Leemhuis, 23 Binger Killed: June 21, 2007 He was proud to be an American Indian and member of the U.S. Army, Dickson said.	Army Spc. Derek A. Calhoun, 23 Oklahoma City Killed: June 23, 2007 Calhoun was to have returned home in July.	Army Pfc. Jaron D. Holliday, 21 Broken Arrow Killed: Aug. 4, 2007 "When 9/11 happened, he was 15, and he said, 'If I were old enough to serve, I would,' " his mother recalled.	Army Staff Sgt. William D. Scates, 31 Oklahoma City Killed: Aug. 11, 2007 Scates was apprehensive of going back to Iraq, but told his mother it was his duty to return because "it's my job."	Marine Cpl. Jeremy Allbaugh, 21 Luther Killed: July 5, 2007 The 21-year-old had asked his brother to look after their parents and not to forget him if he died.	Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey D. Kettle, 31 Madill Killed: Aug. 12, 2007 Joel Kettle said his nephew was a stand-up young man who loved the outdoors and anything competitive.
Marine Cpl. Bryan J. Scripsick, 22 Wayne Killed: Sept. 6, 2007 Scripsick’s brother said Scripsick was determined to serve his country and no one would have been able to talk him out of it, anyway.	Army Staff Sgt. Kevin Brown, 38 Harrah Killed: Sept. 25, 2007 Glenda Brown said her son's birthday was coming up on Oct. 12, and the family had just sent him a birthday package the day he was killed.	Spc. Adam D. Quinn, 22 Edmond Killed: Oct. 6, 2007 Quinn and his wife were expecting a baby at the time of his death.	Pvt. Cody Montana Carver, 19 Haskell Killed: Oct. 30, 2007 Dyeing his hair blue on the eve of church camp became a yearly tradition for Carver. As people got to know him, he went home having made friends with everyone.	Army Spc. Micheal E. Phillips, 19 Ardmore Killed Feb. 24, 2008 Phillips loved history, running and art, and had been offered admission to the San Francisco Art Institute. He bypassed art school to join the Army.	Army Capt. Torre R. Mallard, 27 Lawton Killed: March 10, 2008 ard's grandfather, Mose ard Jr., described Torre as the "finest young man in the world."
Army Staff Sgt. Chris Hake, 26 Enid Killed: March 23, 2008 Hake volunteered for duty in Iraq after enlisting when he graduated from high school.	Army Spc. William Elliott Allmon, 25 Ardmore Killed: April 12, 2008 A memorial statement said Allmon was a “proud soldier . . . who was constantly joking and making everyone laugh.”	Staff Sgt. Jason L. Brown, 29 Cartwright Killed: April 17, 2008 Brown was killed by a burst of small-arms fire while trying to capture an al-Qaida leader in an Iraq town.	Army Reserve Maj. Scott A. Hagerty, 41 Stillwater Killed: June 3, 2008 Hagerty received several honors, among them two Meritorious Service Medals, a Joint Service Commendation Medal and two Army Commendation Medals.	State Department employee Steven Lee Farley, 57 Guthrie Killed: June 24, 2008 "There wasn't anything you could ask him to do for this community that he wasn't on the front lines to try to help," said Guthrie Mayor Chuck Burtcher.	Sgt. Daniel Eshbaugh, 43 Norman Killed: Sept. 17, 2008 "He always wanted a little bit more. He expanded from just the engines to learning the aircraft. He got that knowledge, he got that step down, and from beyond that he wanted to become crew member. That was one of his goals," said Maj. Pete Barger.
Cpl. Michael E. Thompson, 23 Harrah Killed: Sept. 17, 2008 Thompson was a hunter and fisherman who graduated from Kingston High School in 2003.	Chief Warrant Officer Brady J. Rudolf, 37 Oklahoma City. Killed: Sept. 17, 2008 Dustin Rudolf, the brother of Rudolf, said his brother was a dedicated father, husband and soldier who comes from a long line of servicemen in the Rudolf family.	Army Staff Sgt. Brandon W. Farley, 30 Haworth Killed: Sept. 18, 2008 He was described by his family as a fun-loving country boy who was “military all the way.”	Army Pfc. Coleman Wayne Hinkefent, 19 Coweta Died: Dec. 20, 2008 Eric Hinkefent said his son enlisted, and turned down all of his bonus money in exchange for a “front-row seat in a faraway place as an infantryman.”	Cpl. Stephen Zapasnik, 19 Broken Arrow Killed: Dec. 24, 2008 He joined the Army when he was 17 and did his basic training at Fort Sill. More than anything, he wanted to fight in Iraq.	Army Cpl. Stephen Scott Thompson, 23 Tulsa Killed: Feb. 14, 2009 "I am so proud of my son. Stephen became a man the day he joined. This young man changed overnight," his father, Philip Thompson said.
National Guard Sgt. Schuyler Brent Patch, 25 Owasso Killed: Feb. 24, 2009 Patch first went to Afghanistan with the Oklahoma National Guard from June 2006 until May 2007.	Cpl. Gary L. Moore, 25 Del City Killed: March 16, 2009 Moore "loved the military, loved being a MP, and he loved knowing he was protecting our country," a friend said.	Petty Officer 2nd Class Tony Michael Randolph, 22 Henryetta Killed: July 6, 2009 "He was very patriotic," said Henryetta High School football coach Kenny Speer. "He loved his country and was willing to fight for it, and give it 110 percent."	Army Pfc. Dennis Pratt, 34 Duncan Killed: July 20, 2009 He cared deeply for his family, including his 9-year-old daughter, and two sons ages 8 and 3.	Army 1st Lt. David Timothy Wright II, 26 Moore Killed: Sept. 14, 2009 Wright attended OU on a track scholarship and joined the military after graduation.

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