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October 20, 2004
LCpl Wyatt - duty and sacrifice
When a hero falls in battle, his memory is never forgotten by the Marines he serves with. Lance Cpl. Daniel R. Wyatt, 22, of Calendonia, Wis., died on Oct. 12 due to enemy action in Babil Province, Iraq. Wyatt was assigned to Marine Corps Reserve?s 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division in Chicago, Ill. His commanding officer sent these words back to the extended Marine Corps family at the base where he served:
It is with the deepest sadness and most profound grief that I must report to you the loss of Daniel Wyatt, LCpl, Fox Co, 2nd Bn, 24th Marines, USMC. |
Posted by Deb at October 20, 2004 08:08 AM
Comments
OORAH! 2/24!
Get some!
Posted by: JarheadDad at October 20, 2004 06:10 PM
Oh when the change winds are blow’ in
And the whirl wind things are throw’ in
Just which way you’ve no way of know’ in
You’ve got to hold on to the Lord.
Oh when the change winds are blow’ in
When your tears are overflow’in
And in the darkness satin’s laugh’ in
You’ve got to hold on to the Lord.
Oh when the change winds are blow’ in
And that breeze is gently flow’ in
And you know just where you’re go’ in
You’ve got to hold on to the Lord.
Oh, When the change winds are blow’ in
The Lord, He is a know’ in
Just what you need to keep on grow’ in
Grow’ in in the Lord
So, When the change winds are blow’ in
Your praises should be flow’ in
Flow’ in to the Lord
Flow’ in to the Lord.
Posted by: WhoIAmIsNotImportant at October 21, 2004 07:00 AM
I am a former Marine who never saw combat. I pray daily for our Military and especially for my Brother Marines. Words can not express the graditude I have for those under fire and for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. I am thankful for the Family af Daniel Wyatt and for Daniel and MEN like him. This is what makes our country great.For as the Captain said greater love hath no man than the one who lay down his own life for another. We in America agree to disagree that is who we are, that is Democracy. This is what we want for Iraq. To all who read this God is in control, Jesus LIVES!
Posted by: J.D. Stewart 1stBn 4th Marines at October 21, 2004 10:02 AM
May God welcome Daniel home. May He give comfort to Daniel's family, fiancee and friends. And, please God, look after LtCol Smith, the Marines under his command and all coalition forces doing their part to make the world a better place.
Posted by: Rod Walsh at October 22, 2004 12:20 AM
I would just like everyone to know how important it was for Daniel to serve his country. He has died an honorable death and now I am sure that he is in the arms of his mother in heaven.
We miss you Daniel.
Love
Aunt Pam
Posted by: Pamela Wyatt-Brandstatt at October 23, 2004 05:59 PM
Rest in peace brother. Semper Fi! Greater love has no man............
Posted by: Steve at October 24, 2004 09:35 PM
Thanks to all who have posted messages here, and to all who have sent cards and letters. The Marine Families have been wonderful, and we would like you to know that we may have lost Daniel, but all of your sons and daughters are now ours too. Words can not express how overwhelmed we have been at your letters and cards. We are so grateful, especially to those who have sons serving in Fox Co. To hear from you with messages from your boys, when you have worries of your own is inspirational. God Bless and keep you and our Marines safe until they all come home
Danni Wyatt
freesoulflyn@aol.com
PROUD SMom of Lcpl Daniel Wyatt
Posted by: Danni Wyatt at October 28, 2004 06:00 AM
I'm glad that all the messages are helping you up there. I don't envie your job right now, and if there is anything that you need or that I can do, please give me a call.
Your sis in law - Pam
Posted by: Pamela at October 28, 2004 03:31 PM
***offensive comment deleted by Deb***
Deb's note:
LCpl was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to help guarantee freedom and liberty to the citizens of Iraq, just as Marines through the years have provided Mr. Rodderback his ability to speak without fear of government reprisal. However, MCM is a private website, not a public soapbox for slams against our military. Further comments of this nature will be deleted without comment.
Posted by: Russ Rodderback at November 14, 2004 02:37 PM
What a disgraceful remark Russ. Have you no shame?
Posted by: MJB at November 20, 2004 01:47 AM
Way to go MJB. Hard enough to lose a child without someone posting a dumb messege like THAT. The world takes all kinds, too bad it has some like Russ in it. He should be ashamed of himself. This is to honor a fallen Marine, not make political statements.
Posted by: DLW at November 20, 2004 02:33 PM
My wife was so angry after reading the now deleted remark she wrote the following poem as a tribute to all fallen soldiers and their families. She posted it in the comments section of "Guarding The Streets of Heaven" on the front page too. Hope it helps make up for insensitive jerks like Russ Rodderback.
A Soldier
His boots stand at attention
Upon the windswept hill
His empty helmet rests atop
His rifle straight and still
He heard his country beckon
He passed the final test
He gave his life in valor
Conviction in his breast
The memories come softly
When he was but a boy
His laughter falling gently o’er
A game, or favorite toy
His shirt - it needed tucking
His tousled hair - a comb
His pockets filled with creeping things
The stray dog he brought home
His prayers each night at bedtime
His kisses, hugs, and pleas
His dirty face, his untied shoes
His scraped and bleeding knees
His love to tell a secret
In quiet, whispered tones
His baseball cap, his well-worn glove
Lost teeth, and broken bones
Then all too fast it happened
He was a boy no more
Instead, a man, with wife and child
And honor through his core
He loved the world around him
He loved the gift of life
He loved his newborn daughter
He loved his sweetheart wife
He had a love of freedom
He had a love of God
He had a love of country
With courage he was shod
He heard his country beckon
He passed the final test
He gave his life in valor
Conviction in his breast
His boots stand at attention
Upon the windswept hill
His empty helmet rests atop
His rifle straight and still
Mona L. Beasley
November 20, 2004
Posted by: MJB at November 21, 2004 08:22 AM
As a mother of a United States Marine I stand along side many more just like me, day in and day out, as we (and there are many of us)show our love and support for our girls and guys in service. For Danni I say this: "stay strong, stay proud, heal and never forget we are with you and will always be with you." Once a Marine Mom, Always a Marine Mom. Love and many prayers, Cris
Proud Marine Mom of: Cale
Posted by: Cris at November 21, 2004 11:44 AM
Excuse me for intruding on the Marine Corps Moms site. I don’t really belong here because I’m a Dad and not a Mom. I have been following the postings concerning my son, LCpl Daniel Wyatt. It is such a wonderful thing the way you Moms all support each other. I Am especially grateful for the help and consolation that you have given my wonderful wife, Danni.
We will do all of the things suggested by this site and others to help our kids in Iraq and the entire theater. We have sent a box of Christmas cards, a large one, to the CO. I am afraid that we may have sent them too late but we did our best. We could not find Hanukah cards on our little island so Danni printed our own for our Jewish Marines to send home. There are other brave Marines of different faiths that we have missed. Please know that there was no intentional slight.
Our son has the historical honor of being the first KIA to be buried at the VA cemetery in Dover, WI. The original cemetery is in Milwaukee and has grown to its limits. There was no more room so an additional 70 acres or so was created out among the cornfields. It is a beautiful and peaceful site. Except for Daniel, it is populated by veterans of older wars. One thing that struck me when I first toured the cemetery; making the NOK decision on where his final resting place would be, was a headstone, right in the row next to the road, bearing the Crescent and Star rather than the more common Christian Cross or Jewish Star. Here lies a Marine or Soldier or Sailor or Airman who served his country honorably and was, properly, accorded burial alongside all of the others who defended this country and our way of life.
I guess that the reason that I am bringing this to light is that we must be so very careful to remember who our enemy is. Our enemy is comprised of thugs, criminals and extremists. The torture chambers that our Marines are finding daily are proof that those that we fight are animals and they must be killed as such This can not be a “sensitive” war. Our technology allows us to limit “collateral damage” and we should use it to the best of our abilities. But, no more political correctness, please. Let the Generals run the war. If we are fired on from a Mosque than that building needs to be destroyed. End of story, end of problem. And it can be done from ten thousand feet in the air. The animals and cowards that we fight can only understand that kind of overwhelming force. Let the Commanders in the field run the war,,,,please. I’m sure that the honorable person who lies in that VA Cemetery, close to my son, under the Crescent & Star, would agree with me.
It is probably for the best that there is no site for Marine Dads.. It might be an ugly place. Sending cards and razors and CD’s and things is a wonderful and very, very important thing to do. Please keep doing it. It is very important. But……..I wish that I were so much younger. I am a Viet Nam Era Vet. The M-16 that I was trained on didn’t fire three round bursts when on full auto. It just emptied the clip if you held the trigger down.. I sure wish that someone would give me one and some transport. Oh……Russ, you are welcome to come along.
Posted by: Dave Wyatt at November 22, 2004 01:42 PM
By LtCol Mark A. Smith
Note: A message forwarded to me by former Lieutenant E. M. Kohnke / USMC. Daniel's name is mentioned below.
On Tuesday 16 Nov 04, I had the honor of taking my command element forward to Fox Company's position for the Field Memorial Service for Corporal Brian R. Prening, F Co, 2nd Bn, 24th Marines, killed in action against enemy forces Yusufiyah, Iraq. Now, I say honor, because as tragic as the situation was, and as painful as it was, what I witnessed that day is forever and indelibly etched into both my consciousness and my soul. So, if you will allow me, I will try my utmost to communicate to you the events as they unfolded that day. Fox Company has been forward in FOB St. Joseph for over two months now,
attempting to bring stability to an area that had not had a presence of Multi-National Forces. As I have communicated to you previously, it was an
absolute bastion of Radical Islamists and Terrorists, who had brutalized the citizens in unspeakable terms. Well, the WARRIORS of Fox Company have put an end to that. And, for the terrorists, many of whom are believed to
have been the leaders of the insurgency in Fallujah, have been attempting to come home. Sad fact for them, Fox Company now owns their permanent zip code. So, on the day of Cpl Prenning's unfortunate death, the enemy, for
the first time, chose to actually stand and fight. They did, and at the end of the day, over forty of them lie dead on the battlefield. And, over the course of the last week, throughout our zone, but especially in Fox's, we have rounded up and arrested over 120 of them. That said, and for all the fantastic work of the Battalion elements, this day was no cause for celebration, it was our time to mourn our honored dead. As the leadership of the Company, the Battalion and the Marines of Cpl Prening's platoon gathered for the memorial, the atmosphere was sheer solemnity. The Marines of Fox were layered with the Iraqi dust that they
have called home for 60 days plus. The smell of sweat that eminates from them can only be described as the smell of freedom. That combination of sweat, dirt and emotion that combines to create an aroma that is not
repugnant in the least, but serves to stimulate the Warrior gene that you are among "special knights of the warriored breed."
The ceremony began with the placing of the rifle, helmet boots and dog tags of the fallen Marine, and was followed by Scripture readings, Company
Commander memorial and teammate remembrances. The Marines that knew Cpl Prening best, memorialized him, through their tears and emotions, in a
manner that I know would have made his family swell with pride. They were eloquent beyond imagination, and their words were a lance to the soul in their beauty and truth.
Then came his Plt Cmdr, 1stLt Mayne. Now, before I continue, I must describe 1stLt Mayne. I have been in a few scraps in my day, and truth be
known, kind of enjoy that. But, 1stLt Mayne is one of those physical figures that you see and immediately think, if I can avoid a scrap with
this lad, that would most probably be the preferred course of action. Additionally, since the day we arrived, 1stLt Mayne's combat
accomplishments have been EXTRAORDINARY! His actions have been right in the face of the enemy, and he has stared death squarely in the eye on several occassions, and has done nothing but lead his Marines is a calm and professional manner that has absolutely confounded the enemy each and every time, and more often than not, lead to many of the enemy achieving their goal of martrydom!
But, on this day, the Lt Mayne that I saw was not the Warrior. No, the Lt Mayne I saw on this day was the Man. And, it embarasses me not one bit to
say I only hope to be one tenth the Man I saw in Lt Mayne on that day. He spoke of his admiration for Cpl Prening and Cpl Prening's actions in a
manner that crushed your soul and made you want to scream that you were not worthy of sharing the same room as these Warriors. He spoke of the need to channel and contain the rage and always honor Cpl Prening by only killing in righteousness and in accordance with the rules. He spoke of the "decent people of Iraq" who we are here to liberate. He spoke of all these things in a manner and among those who must do it in a way that should shame every person who has ever ascribed any attribute to our Marines, other than hero. Having done that, he then finished with a prayer. A prayer that he stated he prays every night, and in knowing this man and the quality of his character, I suspect he prays it one hundred times a day. As he prayed the prayer of St. Ignatius aloud, I can tell you, I have never felt such overwhelming pain and peace, all at the same time. I have never been so destroyed and fullfilled, all at the same time. I have never been so torn, and so complete, all at the same time. Upon relfection, I understood how I could have such dichotomous feelings all at once. Because in that thirty second prayer, prayed aloud by a man and Marine Officer who will forever
have my undying respect and admiration, I realized in the prayer of St. Ignatius, the eternal reality of our temporal struggle: GOOD VS. EVIL. And, I was standing, humbled to the bone, among the agents of GOOD.
Maybe I am wrong, but I believe in my heart and soul that everything has a time and a purpose under God. And at that time and for this purpose, God used Cpl Prening and Lt Mayne, that we would know our struggle is right, and that our will be not shaken, and that for our children and the future of our Great Nation, we will see this through until there is nothing but peace for our future generations. And, that for that struggle, there is a price paid in death, in visible scars and in invisible ones.
So, for LCpl Daniel R. Wyatt, Cpl Nathaniel T. Hammond, LCpl Shane K. O'Donnell, LCpl Branden P. Ramey, Cpl Robert P. Warns II, Cpl Peter J.
Giannopoulos, Cpl Brian R. Prening, the next time you see a US Veteran, you shake his hand and say thank you. You shake his hand with the ferocity of
firmness that says I love you, and I thank you for my freedom. If you get the chance, you go to a US Veterans hospital and you gently stroke the head of our wounded and broken from all wars, in a manner that says, do not be afraid, for I am here with you friend, I love you and I thank you. You do all this if you can, because everything we have, everything we are, we have and are because of their unbelievable sacrifice! And for that my friends, you and I should be eternally grateful and eternally humbled, for we have walked with the Saints!
St Ignatius' Prayer
Lord give me the strength to serve you as you deserve;
To give, and not to count the cost;
To fight, and not to heed the wounds;
To toil, and not to seek for rest;
To labor, and not to seek reward, save that of knowing that I do your will.
May God continue to bless you and bless you abundantly, as he does me everyday that I share this earth with your beloved. And may he grant
strength, peace and serenity to the families of our fallen heroes.
Mark A. Smith
LtCol, USMCR
Commanding Officer
TF 2/24
Posted by: GySgt Perez, T. at December 1, 2004 04:36 PM
Dear Dave,
As a Marine mom, I think I can say, you are always welcome on any Marine Mom group. You have earned the right to be with any of our groups.
And to all of Daniel's family, I have to say thank you for his sacrifice. All of our brave military serving in Iraq are a part of history. They are making a difference in this world, something I will never be able to do. My own son just came home from serving in Iraq and I am so proud of him. But I grieve with all of the families who have lost loved ones. May you know the families of all of those who return will never forget the sacrifice of those of you who's son or daughter did not return. All of their names are in our hearts and mind and we will never let anyone degrade what they have done. I will always defend our military in this action. I will never let your loss and sacrifice be in vain. That is a promise.
Barbara Porter
VPMM of LCpl Jesse,
Returned
Posted by: Barbara Porter at April 2, 2005 01:44 PM
LtCol Smith:
The brave men of 2/24 have served their country well. Their sacrifice as "citizen soldiers" demonstrates that America can always count upon her young men to bear any burden in the cause of Liberty. I thank God for you and your command.
As a former member of H&S 2/24 and B 1/4, I continue to stand tall at the mention of "Chicago's Own".
Fair Winds and Following Seas
K. Brown
Posted by: Ken Brown at April 14, 2005 09:57 AM