Plan to cheer Brook Park Marines & Corpsman soon

Thursday, September 29, 2005: Grant Segall Plain Dealer Reporter

By Friday, all the Marine reserves in a hard-hit battalion from Brook Park should be back in the United States.

About a week later, these Iraqi war veterans should be reunited with their families at the battalion's five company headquarters, including ones in Brook Park and Akron.

Since reaching Iraq in January, the 3rd Battalion, 25th Regiment has lost 48 of about 900 combatants, including some attached from other units. A cluster of deaths in early August gave Brook Park global attention and sympathy.

For security reasons, leaders have not described the troops' precise homeward trips. On Wednesday, Lt. Barry Edwards of Camp LeJeune, N.C., would say only that they would reach Camp LeJeune on three different days of a six-day period ending Monday. But Maj. Jenny Potter of Brook Park said the whole battalion would reach the camp by the end of the day Friday.

Families of the surviving soldiers are finally starting to uncross their fingers. "We're feeling relatively confident, now, that he's going to make it all the way back," Dave Dunlap of Jackson Township said Wednesday about his son, Lance Cpl. Seth Dunlap of the Brook Park company.

Leaders promised to announce exact homecoming dates soon. Brook Park plans to hold a public parade and private reunion that day, followed a few days later by a public reception.

After the homecomings, the Marines will get four days of liberty. They can also apply to use accrued leave and to be deactivated individually. The whole unit will be deactivated in January.

Besides Brook Park and Akron, the battalion has companies in Columbus, Buffalo and Moundsville, W.Va.

<>To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: gsegall@plaind.com, 216-999-4187

<>© 2005 The Plain Dealer • © 2005 cleveland.com All Rights Reserved.

Beans On Way To USA

Dog Set To Arrive This Week
POSTED: 9:49 am EDT September 27, 2005

A dog that served as the mascot for the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment based out of Brook Park, will soon arrive in the United States.The dog, named Beans, is set to arrive this week. He got his name because Cpl. Jeffrey Boskovitch, who was killed in August in Iraq, bought the mixed-breed dog for a quarter and three jelly beans.

A 5 On Your Side bank account was set up at Key Bank to help bring Beans home. Boskovitch's mother said she wants to hug the last thing that her son hugged before he was killed in Iraq.

Previous Stories:
August 18, 2005: Mom Wants To Hug Dog Belonging To Brook Park Marines
August 11, 2005: Donations Can Help Bring Marines' Dog To U.S.

I can see the end of a chapter...

Dear friends and family~

The 3/25 has fought hard. They've lost many. And will be home before we know it. They will continue to need our support and love.

This blog is dwindling down to it's last few entries. I will continue to keep up the Articles of Interest blog for the 3/25 and other news of the war: http://usacouragearticles.blogspot.com/
and if anyone asks how they can support our troops you can send them to the many, many sites offering opportunities to make that possible or you can send them a link to http://usacourage.blogspot.com/ . There they can find a list of places and groups that are making extraordinary efforts to always send a little bit of home with each package they send out.

If you would like to be kept informed on new entries to either blog (support blog or articles blog) please send me an email and I will include you in the mailing list.

God speed to our boys returning home in the near future. Safe journey.

Carrie

Brook Park Marines may be home soon

Saturday, September 17, 2005
Grant Segall: Plain Dealer Reporter

A bloodied Marine battalion headquartered in Brook Park is supposed to come home from Iraq in a couple of weeks.

Their families are cautious, but hopeful.

"It'll feel a lot better to know he's out of there," said Lisa Stout, of Tallmadge, whose nephew Luke Riddle is one of about 900 Marine Corps reservists fighting with the 3rd Battalion, 25th Regiment.

"You're not home until you're home, but he's making progress, that's the big thing," Ron Ickes, also of Tallmadge, said about his son, Nate.

The father heard that the battalion was moving this week from the Haditha Dam area -- where 20 Marines, including 14 Ohioans (13 from the 25th Regiment) were killed in early August -- to the relatively safer Al Asad air base. From there, they will travel to Kuwait, then on to the United States.

The Columbus Dispatch reported similar accounts Friday from families of other 3rd Battalion reservists.

Marine officials said it would be dangerous to reveal troop movements within Iraq. But Gunnery Sgt. Brad Lauer at battalion headquarters said the reservists are scheduled to reach Camp LeJeune, N.C., in early October and their home bases by the second week of the month.

The battalion's five companies -- based in Brook Park, Akron, Columbus, Buffalo and Moundsville, W.Va. -- are holding meetings for families to prepare for the troops' return. Lauer said the meetings' subjects would range from benefits to counseling.

Aaron Cohen, of Akron, said he will be glad to see his battalion buddies again.

"Whenever I do something I wasn't able to do in Iraq, I always think of them," said Cohen, who came home early with hobbled knees. "I was at an Ohio State game, and they should have been right in that seat next to me."

© 2005 The Plain Dealer

"...leaving the home fires burning..."

They're on their way home!!!! (sometime soon anyway!) There just aren't enough exclamation marks I can put here to show how elated, excited, relieved and just plain eager everyone back home is to see our boys come home.

At this time no details are available of exactly who and when is in transition, mostly for security reasons. Please contact your Key Volunteer or attend a family day for information.

Some have made it back to NC already but many of the 3/25 are still in Iraq.

Safe travels. God speed to all of them.

article:
Lima Company Closer To Coming Home

Families say a Columbus-based Marine Reserve unit that lost 16 members in Iraq has moved to a safer area in a first step toward returning home.

Members of Lima Company of the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment have told parents and spouses of the transition in recent days.

Nine members of Lima Company were among 14 Marines who died August third in the deadliest roadside bombing of U.S. troops in Iraq.

Citing security concerns, a Marine spokesman won't confirm the troop movements. But he does say that Lima Company and the rest of the battalion are due at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina, early next month.

He says the reservists are expected to return to their home bases during the second week of October.