Even though major combat in Iraq ended on May 1, the death toll continues to climb for U.S. soldiers. More than 580 American service men and women have died in the struggle. Twenty-five of them were from Florida. As part of the continuing coverage of the first anniversary of the war's start, we pay tribute today to those Floridians.
By wire services
Published March 26, 2004
Adamouski
Army Capt. James Adamouski was killed in a helicopter crash in central Iraq on April 2, 2003.
He was born in Tampa, but soon moved to Germany, returning to Tampa in 1979 when his father was assigned to MacDill Air Force Base. He lived in Tampa until he was 12, then moved to Springfield, Va. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Adamouski, whom relatives recall as adventurous and athletic, did several tours in Bosnia and Kosovo. He had been accepted to Harvard Business School and was planning to teach economics at West Point after earning a master's degree in business administration.
He was 29.
Aviles
Marine Lance Cpl. Andrew Julian Aviles was killed by an artillery round outside Baghdad on April 7, 2003.
Aviles grew up in South Tampa and attended Robinson High School, where he graduated third in his class, was senior class president, a cheerleader, a member of the wrestling team and a member of the ROTC.
He set aside a full academic scholarship to Florida State University because he felt a moral obligation to serve in the military. He joined a reserve unit in Tampa.
Last year the Tampa City Council voted to name a portion of the access road from Gandy Boulevard to Friendship Trail Bridge, "the Andrew J. Aviles Trail."
He was 18.
Broomhead
Army Sgt. Thomas F. Broomhead was killed when Iraqis opened fire at a checkpoint in Fallujah on May 27, 2003.
Broomhead, who was raised in Fort Myers, joined the Marines in 1989, left the service briefly and then re-enlisted in the Army a few years later, hoping to become a helicopter pilot. He also served in the Persian Gulf War.
Mike Broomhead, Thomas' brother, explained that his brother was outside a Bradley fighting vehicle when shooting erupted. He was shot in the legs but continued to fire and killed one of the attackers. He remained conscious, directed a medic to his wounded men and even cracked a joke. Still, he lost too much blood and died on the evacuation helicopter.
He was 34.
Buehring
Army Lt. Col. Charles Buehring was killed when a guerrilla rocket barrage hit the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad on Oct. 26, 2003. U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz was staying at the hotel, but was not injured.
Buehring, who had grown up in Winter Springs, near Orlando, directly advised U.S. administrator L. Paul Bremer on how the occupation was being received by Iraqis. He was in charge of psychological operations for Army Forces Central Command.
After graduating from the Citadel with a bachelor's degree in political science in 1985, Buehring was commissioned as a second lieutenant. He later earned master's degrees in international relations and in military arts and strategic studies.
Two months before he death, he moved back to Winter Springs.
He was 40.
Buesing
Marine Lance Cpl. Brian Rory Buesing was shot by Iraqis pretending to surrender on March 23, 2003, near Nasiriyah. Buesing was the first serviceman from the Tampa Bay area to be killed in the Iraq war.
Buesing, remembered by friends and relatives as energetic and good-humored, was born in Tampa and split time between his father's home in Port Richey and his mother Patty Steve's home in Cedar Key.
He delayed college so he could enlist and had less than a year left in a four-year term. Buesing wrote long letters to his family, sending the last one on Feb. 15.
In it, he wrote about coming home: "Hopefully we're back before August. Don't want to turn 21 in Iraq."
Creighton-Weldon
Army Pfc. Michael Russell Creighton-Weldon was killed by a car bomb on March 29, 2003, at a checkpoint north of Najaf.
He decided to follow in his mother's footsteps when he enlisted in the Army in 2002. Her son was a muscular 5 feet 10 and chose the infantry "because he's a tough guy," said his mother, Sgt. Major Jean Weldon, who retired after two decades in the service.
Creighton-Weldon, of Palm Bay, became engaged to his fiancee, Kerri, before he went to Iraq.
"My son was the strength of the household," Weldon said. "After I got divorced, Michael was the man of the house." He was 20.
Davis
Army Staff Sgt. Wilbert Davis was killed when a Humvee he was driving flipped and landed in a canal on April 3, 2003. The Tampa native believed so strongly in the war that he ignored pleas from loved ones not to accept his assignment. He joined the Army in 1985 and had served in Germany, Korea, Bosnia, Kosovo and Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War.
The fifth of eight brothers, Davis grew up in the east Tampa neighborhood of College Hill. His first love: baseball. At age 12, Davis pitched in the 1975 Little League World Series for Belmont Heights. In August, Davis was inducted into Little League Baseball's Hall of Excellence.
He was 40.
Fribley
Marine Lance Cpl. David K. Fribley was shot by Iraqis pretending to surrender on March 23, 2003, near Nasiriyah.
Fribley, of Fort Myers, had been working as a recreation coordinator at a retirement complex when anger over the Sept. 11 attacks helped inspire him to join the Marines, his father, Garry, said.
Fribley's father said he and his son had talked about war's violence.
In one letter from Iraq, Fribley wrote: "I'm not sure what God wants me to do after this is over. . . . But right now, I'm sure I'm where He wants me to be."
He was 26.
Gonzalez
Marine Cpl. Armando Ariel Gonzalez was killed when a commercial refueling truck collapsed as he worked beneath it on April 14, 2003, in central Iraq.
Gonzalez, of Hialeah, came to the United States from Cuba in 1995 and learned English at Miami-Dade Community College, said his father, Julio Gonzalez.
"I'm very proud of him. He was serious, affectionate and responsible," he said. "He always hung out with his brother and me. Even after he married he always came around."
Gonzalez was married seven months before his death.
He was 25.
Army Spc. Tracy L. Laramore died in a vehicle accident on March 17, 2004, in Baji. Laramore had been in Iraq for two weeks.
Laramore, of Okaloosa, loved overseas duty and after one two-year stint was up, he re-enlisted. He even extended his time by five months so that he could serve in Iraq.
Laramore was the oldest enlistee at Fort Benning, Ga., but outperformed younger recruits to the amazement of other soldiers, his mother, Faye West, said. His father lives in Crestview.
He was 24.
Manuel
Army Chief Warrant Officer Ian D. Manuel died when a Black Hawk medical-evacuation helicopter was apparently shot down Jan. 8, 2004, south of Fallujah. Aaron Weaver, from Floral City, was killed in the same incident.
Manuel, of Jacksonville, joined the Army, with dreams of becoming a helicopter pilot. He joined the Army in 2000 and completed flight school. Manuel, who transported wounded Americans and Iraqis, had flown more than 200 combat hours.
Manuel was remembered as an avid outdoorsman and fisherman. He was secretly engaged to Sgt. Jill Payton, a mechanic in his company.
He was 23.
Army Sgt. Keman L. Mitchell drowned on May 26, 2003, in an aqueduct in Kirkuk.
Mitchell, who grew up in Hilliard, near the Georgia border, had served six years in the Army.
His father, Steven Mitchell, said he received a letter from his son the day he died, in which he complained about the heat and said his soldiers were retrieving loose weapons and helping to establish a police force.
He was 24.
Orr
Army Pfc. Cody J. Orr, was in a Bradley vehicle when he was killed by a roadside bomb on Jan. 17, 2004, north of Taji. Edmond Randle, from Miami, was killed in the same incident. Orr grew up in Ruskin. The East Bay High graduate was a typical country boy: fond of John Deere ball caps, Western-style belt buckles and anything mechanical. Orr enlisted in May 2002. He was nearing the end of his yearlong duty in Iraq, and was a couple weeks from celebrating his first wedding anniversary.
He was 21.
Quinn
Army Staff Sgt. Michael B. Quinn was killed in an ambush on May 27, 2003, at a checkpoint in Fallujah. Thomas Broomhead, from Fort Myers, died in the same incident.
Quinn lived in Tampa for five years in the early 1990s.
Quinn met and married his wife, Melissa, in Tampa, where he worked construction and tended bar. Before he left for Iraq, Quinn gave his son, Timmy, a talking teddy bear, one in which he recorded a message to the boy and his wife.
"I love you both very much," the message said. "I miss you both. Don't worry. I'm being extra safe, and I'll be home soon before you know it and I love you."
He was 37.
Army Sgt. Edmond L. Randle was killed by a roadside bomb on Jan. 17, 2004, north of Taji.
He was killed in the same incident as Cody Orr. Randle was from the Carol City neighborhood of northwest Miami and graduated from high school in 1995.
A trumpet player who loved video games, he attended Florida A&M University on a music scholarship but later chose pharmacy studies. For four months, he worked as a Delta Air Lines baggage clerk to help pay his tuition and expenses.
Randle was worried before going to Iraq, but soon became enthusiastic about helping people there, his relatives said. "He used to tell his mom how Iraqi kids came up and asked for something, anything, to eat," said his uncle, William McKnight.
He was 26.
Rivero
Army Cpl. John T. Rivero was killed in a vehicle accident on April 17, 2003, in Kuwait.
He grew up in Gainesville and graduated from Buchholz High School in 1998, when he joined the Florida National Guard. He originally attended Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville but came to the University of South Florida in Tampa to major in computer science and engineering.
On the way to deployment in the Middle East, he flew his first trip on an airplane. He stopped in Ireland, where he saw mountains for the first time and experienced his first snowfall.
Known for his buoyant personality, Rivero told loved ones in a letter that he had hurt his ankle while serving in Iraq - but said he didn't mention it to medics because he was afraid of being removed from his assignment.
He was 23.
Army Cpl. Robert D. Roberts died in a vehicle accident on Nov. 22, 2003, in Baghdad.
Roberts, who was from Winter Park, played high school football and worked at an Italian restaurant and as a carpenter before enlisting.
His brother returned home from serving in Iraq in August.
The same day she learned of her husband's death in Iraq, Jill Roberts received three cards in the mail from him, two for their 3-year-old son, Jacob. In one card, Roberts told his son to "take care of Mommy until Daddy gets home."
He was 21.
Sims
Army Pfc. Charles M. Sims drowned on Oct. 3, 2003, in a Baghdad swimming pool.
Sims, who was from Miami, set his sights on the Army in the ninth grade, enrolling in the Junior ROTC. He enlisted after high school.
He would have turned 19 Oct. 20.
Sledd
Marine Lance Cpl. Antonio "Tony" Sledd was shot to death in an ambush on Oct. 8, 2002, in Kuwait.
Sledd and his fellow Marines were on break from urban assault training on Failaka, an island near Kuwait City. Sledd and another Marine were setting up the bases for a makeshift baseball game when two Kuwaitis fired AK-47 rifles at the unit.
Sledd loved sports - he played basketball, football and baseball - but the latter was his passion. He grew up in Tampa, playing ball and working summers at the Roy Haynes Recreation Center. Last year the field was renamed Tony Sledd Field.
He was 20.
Smith
Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith was shot in combat on April 4, 2003, outside Baghdad.
Smith, who grew up in Tampa, was killed while holding off an Iraqi counterattack near Saddam International Airport. He found himself leading 16 GIs in a fire-fight against 100 enemy soldiers. He killed 30 to 50 Iraqis before being shot in the head - the only American killed in the 90-minute battle.
Smith's actions earned him a nomination for the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for bravery. He is the only soldier from this war thus far to be nominated.For a special report about Smith and his heroic endeavor, click here.
Smith, known as a taskmaster and a devoted family man, also served in Bosnia, Kosovo and the Persian Gulf War.
He was 33.
Weaver
Army Chief Warrant Officer Aaron A. Weaver was killed in a helicopter crash on Jan. 8, 2004, in south Fallujah. A helicopter pilot, on that day he was a passenger in a Black Hawk that insurgents apparently shot down. Ian Manuel, of Jacksonville, was killed in the same incident.
Weaver grew up in Floral City, attended Citrus High and joined the Army after graduating with the class of 1989.
Then he fought testicular cancer. That illness was Weaver's ticket out of Iraq, but he persuaded officers to let him go to the war zone, and arranged to have medical checkups there. Weaver was on his way to a checkup in a medical evacuation helicopter when he was killed.
As an Army Ranger, Weaver received the Bronze Star with valor for "extreme courage" for saving a buddy's life in the October 1993 battle of Mogadishu in Somalia. The battle was recounted in the book and film Black Hawk Down.
He was 32.
Wershow
Army Spc. Jeffrey M. Wershow was shot during an ambush on July 6, 2003, in Baghdad.
Wershow, of Gainesville, joined the Army and served for three years before going to community college and joining the Florida National Guard. He was deployed to the Mideast in late January 2003.
Even as a boy, Wershow displayed great passion for the military. Friends said he often eschewed schoolwork in favor of military history books and became a self-taught military historian.
He was 22.
Army Sgt. Mason Douglas Whetstone was shot in a non-combat incident July 17,2003, in Baghdad.
Whetstone, of Jacksonville, was serving as an air traffic controller at the Baghdad airport.
Whetstone grew up in Alaska and graduated from high school in Anchorage in 1990. He immediately enlisted in the Army and served in Desert Storm before leaving the military in 1994. He re-enlisted in the Army in 1999. While attending college in Daytona Beach and serving in the Florida National Guard, Mason met and married Heather Curatolo. Whetstone was cremated and his ashes scattered over a favorite part of Alaska.
He was 30.
Wise
Army Spc. Robert A. Wise was killed by a roadside bomb on Nov. 12, 2003, in Baghdad.
The National Guardsman was based in Tallahassee, his hometown. Wise's unit was deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in February.
Even as a Junior ROTC cadet in high school, Wise stood out among his peers, becoming the student commander of his unit.
"He was the person who would show up one hour early, and stay three hours late to do whatever needed to be done," said Senior Master Sgt. Stephen Sullivan.
He was 21.
Army Spc. Michael R. Woodliff was killed by a roadside bomb March 2, 2004, in Baghdad.
Woodliff, who was from Punta Gorda, enlisted in the Army on a delayed entry program the summer after his junior year in high school by tricking his parents into signing a waiver. He reported for duty in May 2000.
Woodliff told relatives he had narrowly avoided death several times in Iraq. In one instance, a suicide bomber's detonator malfunctioned as he ran toward the soldier.
Woodliff was engaged to high school sweetheart and Fort Myers resident Crystal Steward, 19. The couple had planned to marry in February before Woodliff's stay in Iraq was extended.
He was 22.
Sources: Associated Press (War Casualty Database), Times files, Tampa Tribune, (Fort Myers) News-Press, (St. George, Utah) Spectrum, Rocky Mountain News.
Times researcher Kitty Bennett assisted in the compilation of this report.
[Last modified March 26, 2004, 09:19:50]
