Afghanistan Memorial

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This Memorial Page is Dedicated to those SEALs lost in Afghanistan

 

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In Memory of ABH1 Neil C. Roberts
A Navy SEAL

Travel with care life's highway with it's hidden gates to hell.
Flowers, balloons, plush silk baskets, a young girls tender heart.
Oh, precious life dressed and wrapped in Navy Blues now stained
with blood. Dashed dreams, what prayer of peace or joy to heal
such wounds. Her hearts love that slumbers on some distant battlefield.
Flag draped coffins once again to fill our country chapels.
Their names and faces forever etched upon our souls.
Heroic Acts and Glory Tales now cast shadow's across our land.
Wisdom, Patience, Gods sweet Grace. To Understand the reason
or the rhyme, Summertime now gone with leaves that are sweetly
turning - someone sang the song. And I'll cling to you forever the
poet pens his tales of life and love to barren hearts full of hate that
now hold yesterdays sweet rose. Stale now the fragrant petals of
life first love, but in time there will come a Rare Tender Bloom
To Heal The Human Tear.


C.G. Majors
Former Navy SEAL
SEAL Team One


The family has requested that in lieu of flowers donations be made to the Naval Special Warfare Foundation, P.O. Box 5365, Virginia Beach, VA 23471,
or to the Neil Roberts Memorial Fund, Navy Federal Credit Union, Lynnhaven Branch, 509 Viking Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23452.



In Memory of HMC Matthew J. Bourgeois
A Navy SEAL

Just a quick story.

Matt Bourgeois and I did a deployment together back in ’90.

Matt Bourgeois joined SEAL Team 2 ­ Alpha platoon while were already deployed to NSWU-2 in Machrahanish in 1990, about one month into the cruise.

Matt was brand new, in fact he didn’t have his Trident yet, when he came to us. We were short a corpsman and Matt was the guy. Our platoon had taken (a minor part in the Invasion of Panama about 7 months earlier, so even though it was the first cruise for most of us, we were all pretty long in the tooth, at least in our own minds.

Matt Bourgeois quickly became Meat Bourgeois as we treated him like an ugly dog for about the first month or so. What we all quickly came to realize was that despite his small stature (he was about 5’7, 135 lbs) and DEEP southern accent (He called himself Matt Boowjshwaaah) he was a tough bastard and a real good guy. You couldn’t help but like him.

One night at the Barrel (the pub at RAF Mach), virtually the entire platoon was in having a beer (or 7) when Ken V. called over to tell us that we had been recalled and were heading out within the hour. We were to report to the barracks for an intel brief in the lounge.

We all show up, there are blankets on the windows, easel set up, the whole nine yards. Once Ed (platoon OIC) was satisfied that we had a full head count, he instructed Ken to proceed with the briefing.

Ken (paraphrasing): “From ..Commanding officer SEAL Team Two, To…OIC SEAL Team Two Alpha Platoon… be advised that Hospital Corpsman third Class Matthew Bourgeois has successfully completed probationary period and is designated Naval Enlisted Code Fifty-Three Twenty-Six effective this date blah blah blah.

Matt was finally getting his Trident. What ensued was one of the worst hazings I have ever seen. The game was platoon jeopardy. I was the host and Matt had to answer questions pertaining to the other members of the platoon. A correct answer and he had to chug a beer, incorrect and Todd was standing behind him with an IBS paddle (Todd had played baseball in college so this was not insignificant)

“What are the names of Mark’s three daughters”
WHACK
“What town is Chris from”
WHACK
“what religion are TK's parents”
Chug ­ I think he got that one right
“What is the state slogan of Tim's home state of New Hampshire”
WHACK

Eventually someone asked him to name the war which started in 1862 and ended in 1865 Matt: “The War of Northern Aggression”

WHACK
Same question
Matt: “I told you, ..’The War of Northern Aggression’ whatsa matter, ain’t you got no learnin?”

SMACK
Same question
Matt: “The War of F-ing Northern Aggression, and Tallahassee NEVER FELL”

It went on like that for a while, until Ken made us stop.

Matt took it like a champ, and never took any shit from any of us again.

I know it isn’t much of a story, but that is what I am remembering now fellas. I have a bunch of pictures of Matt, that I’m gonna go dig up now. He was a GREAT guy.

Dave Rogers


IC1 Thomas Eugene Retzer
A Navy SEAL

 

Most of you already know that a third SEAL gave his life in Afghanistan - Petty Officer Tom Retzer. Tom served in SEAL Team THREE and was stationed on the East Coast at the time of his death. Tom was in a HumVee when several vehicles were ambushed, and he was shot. He died Thursday 28 June 2003 from the wound. The incident occurred in a mountainous region south of Kabul near the Pakistan border.
Tom graduated from Mount Whitney High School in Visalia, California and attend BUD/S shortly after his graduation. He has served in the Teams for ten years. He is survived by his wife Courtney and two sons, age 5 and 21 months. Tom was a warrior, teammate, and outdoors man, but most of all he was a devoted father and husband.


PH1 David M Tapper
A Navy SEAL

The Naval Special Warfare Community mourns the death of a fellow warrior, teammate, and friend - PO1 David M. Tapper. Dave is the fourth SEAL to give his life in Afghanistan conducting operations as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. He was fatally wounded last Wednesday after his convoy made contact with enemy forces in the vicinity of Orgun in Paktika province. Dave was transported to Bagram Air Base hospital, where he died of his wounds Thursday evening, 21 August 2003.

Originally from Camden County, N.J., Dave enlisted in the Navy in November 1989 and graduated in February 1991. He served in both East and West Coast SEAL teams and recently returned from combat operations in Iraq.



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