"Seattle soldier killed in Iraq
Cpl. Brandon Hocking, a 24-year-old soldier from the Seattle area, died Monday in As Samawah, Iraq, from wounds suffered when his unit was attacked by a roadside bomb.
"By Hal Bernton
"Seattle Times Reporter
Cpl. Brandon Hocking
"Cpl. Brandon Hocking, a 24-year-old soldier from Seattle, died Monday from wounds suffered in a roadside bomb attack in Iraq. He died just 10 days before his scheduled return home.
"Cpl. Hocking was a small-arms repair specialist and also served as a convoy gunner, according to his sister, Brianna Hocking, who exchanged messages with her brother on Facebook just two weeks ago.
"I told him to stay safe, and he told me, 'Don't worry. I love you, and I will be home soon'," Hocking, of Reno, Nev., said Tuesday.
"Cpl. Hockings's unit was attacked in the southern Iraq city of As Samawah.
"And he posthumously received a Purple Heart and also the Bronze Star, which is awarded for acts of combat heroism, according to an Army spokeswoman at Fort Stewart, Ga., where Cpl. Hocking's unit is based.
"Cpl. Hocking was on his second tour of duty in Iraq, where the United States has had ground troops since 2003. During that period, more than 4,440 U.S. troops have died, including 11 this year, according to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count.
"Cpl. Hocking first joined the Army in November 2005. He served with the 87th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion. In a June 2010 report by an Army public-affairs writer, Cpl. Hocking was featured as he worked at an armament-repair shop at a base in Iraq, where he was helping put together a team that could travel to repair weapons.
"Cpl. Hocking was the eldest of six children and attended Federal Way and Decatur high schools.
"He enjoyed fixing up old cars, sketching and playing the acoustic and electric guitar.
"He could strum just about anything," said his grandmother, Delores Pitts, of Lake Tapps.
"Friends and family said Cpl. Hocking joined the military after high school in an effort to improve his life.
"I think it probably made him a stronger man," said Mike Davis, a friend since childhood.
"On Tuesday, family members said that Cpl. Hocking's parents, Christine Dansereau, of Pomeroy, Garfield County, and Kevin Hocking, of Burien, were traveling to Delaware to meet their son's casket.
"Other survivors include Hocking's wife, Havalah Hocking, of Seattle, a 4-year-old son, Sebastian Hocking, and a 3-year-old daughter, Gwen.
He is also survived by sisters Britney Hocking, of Tacoma; Brooke Hocking, of Kent; Brielle Hocking and Gracie Dansereau, of Pomeroy. His surviving grandparents are Myrna Hocking, of Bigfork, Mont., and Gary Pitts, of Lake Tapps.
"Hal Bernton: 206-464-2581 or hbernton@seattletimes.com"
Kenneth Stepp salutes Corporal Brandon Hocking, another U.S. soldier killed in our undeclared war in Iraq! Bring the troops home now. If Congress won't declare war, we should not have troops like Brandon dying in foreign wars.
2 comments:
when i heard that cel phones were being used to trigger road bombs i started calling and writing, for many years. june 15 07 Congress woman Anne Eshoe sent me the army's reply. here is my reply with exerts.
Concerning the letter you forwarded to me from the dept. of the army saying my proposal to have the cel phones ring every now and then would be inconveniency to the Iraqi people, the Iraqi people are where the enemy comes from. Is it our duty to arm them with detonators? In war, cutting the enemy’s lines of communication is a very high priority! The letter went on to say something about the welfare of the service providers. Those are the companies making money in the cel phone business
I agree with what JyJim seems to be saying. In the Iraqi combat zone, let's cause each cell phone to ring once a day at random. If that sets off the roadside bombs at random, then you have saved an American or allied soldier's life. It is a cost effective way to save a life. A phone ring costs less than a gas mask, and it just may save a life. I'm on the side of the U.S. Troops. If we won't bring them home, at least we can cause the Iraqi cell phones to ring at random and maybe cause bombs to blow up when nobody is near.
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