SSG Gene A. Vance Jr. 30 November 1963 - 19 May 2002

When we were discussing the events of September 11th in a couple of the threads it dawned on me that today was a tragic anniversary of another type. Four years ago today one of my fellow soldiers was killed in an ambush in Afghanistan, in the operations that were a response to 9/11. I didn't know Gene well, we weren't even from the same unit, but we did share an office (OK, it was a tent) for a month or so, and I knew him well enough to know he was a great guy. He used to talk about how about much he loved his wife and how he had to cancel his honeymoon when he got deployed. I could tell he was sincere.

So we need to remember that we aren't just talking about buildings and cell phones, these were real people in the towers, in the airplanes, and in foreign lands battling against Islamic extremists. They deserve our honesty, and our respect.

His wife built a web site for him here, if you are interested.














Gene, I'll raise a beer for you tonight. You will always be remembered.