Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Zane Craig | Family, friends and fellow Soldiers of three Pennsylvania National Guardsmen killed in...... read more read more
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FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – Family, friends and fellow Soldiers of three Pennsylvania National Guardsmen killed in Afghanistan in 2011 gathered here to dedicate a memorial in their honor July 18.
The dedication took place exactly ten years after the convoy carrying Staff Sgt. Kenneth VanGiesen, Staff Sgt. Brian Mowery, and Sgt. Edward Koehler III, all motor transport operators with the 131st Transportation Company, 213th Regional Support Group, was attacked with an improvised explosive device, killing all three and injuring two others.
“To our Gold Star Families; each Soldier and Airman who serves in the Pennsylvania National Guard is part of our family and we embrace you as we continue to honor our fallen heroes,” said Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general.
To make this promise a reality, groups like the Pennsylvania National Guard Foundation and a diverse group of volunteers resolved to create a monument here to provide family, friends and comrades a place to grieve and reflect on the memories of their loved ones.
“I suspect that these three men absolutely have something in common: and that’s their love of the uniform, love of their country and love of the Pennsylvania National Guard,” said Col. Laura McHugh, deputy adjutant general-Army. “Between the three men, there are over eight deployments worldwide.”
Schindler observed that when most Americans imagine our service members showing courage on the battlefield, they likely recall cinematic images of a fire team clearing a building or a Soldier falling on a grenade to save his or her squad. However, it is often our truck drivers that face the most consistent dangers in order to deliver the materials required to sustain our forces in hostile and austere conditions.
“Staff Sgt. VanGiesen, Staff Sgt. Mowery and Sgt. Koehler showed no fear, only personal courage, traveling the treacherous roads of Afghanistan every day,” said Maj. Dana Boyer, who commanded the 131st TC at the time and played a major role in advocating for the memorial over the last ten years.
There are three major components of the monument: the keystone archway, which represents fallen Soldiers from Pennsylvania, the bronze Soldier’s Cross, which recognizes fallen Soldiers from all services, and the three individual granite lecterns inscribed with the fallen Soldiers’ names.
“While the passing of time does not heal all wounds, it is my hope that this memorial will provide reassurance to the families of our fallen and to the members: past, present and future of the 131st Transportation Company, as it ensures the names of Sgt. Koehler, Staff Sgt. Mowery, and Staff Sgt. VanGiesen will never be forgotten but will forever be remembered and honored,” said Schindler.
| Date Taken: | 07.20.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 07.21.2021 12:50 |
| Story ID: | 401294 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 123 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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