Gardens of Stone

This week's hero tribute. These Soldiers were part
> of the team that died trying to stop a dumptruck full of explosives from
> blowing up a Police station barracks full of Iraqi policemen--who are
> the eventual key to security success here and often the target of Al
> Qaida. The actions of these brave Americans caused the truck to blow up
> prematurely, saving their Iraqi brothers in arms, but costing them their
> lives in the process. We are blessed to have such men among us. Sure love you and miss you all. God bless you. John.

> 1st Battalion
> 67th Armor Regiment
> 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
> Fort Carson, CO
> KIA: 10 April 09
> Mosul, Iraq
>
> SSG Gary L. Woods, Jr.
> Hometown:
> Lebanon Junction, KY
>
> CPL Jason G. Pautsch
> Hometown:
> Davenport, IA
>
> Sir, tonight we honor two fallen warriors in our Hero Tribute: Staff
> Sergeant Gary L. Woods, and Corporal Jason G. Pautsch. Both soldiers
> were members of 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, who along with three
> other teammates were tragically killed by enemy action on April 10th,
> outside of Mosul as part of Multi-National Division - North.
>
> Staff Sergeant Gary Lee Woods, Jr., was born and raised in Lebanon
> Junction, Kentucky. He went by his middle name, "Lee" because he shared
> his "Junior/Senior" name with his father, Gary. Lee graduated in 2002
> from Bullitt Central High School where he was active in the ROTC
> program. Family members say that throughout his life, Lee tried to be
> the best he could be. In school he was a talented musician who sang and
> played the trombone, drums, piano and guitar; and was also a member of
> the school's football team.
>
> Staff Sergeant Woods joined the Army in January 2003. He completed
> Basic Training close to his home at Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he also
> completed One Station Unit Training, graduating as a "19K," Armor
> Crewman. He deployed later that year as a tank loader in support of
> Operation Iraqi Freedom I. In March 2005, Staff Sergeant Woods deployed
> as a tank gunner in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom III. His current
> tour, as a tank gunner and tank commander, began in September 2008.
>
> Gary Woods said his son had talked about making the Army a career and
> had just re-enlisted. Mr. Woods said his son was "mature and cared
> about others, which made him both a good soldier and a good person . . .
> I want everyone to know what a good man he was," Mr. Woods said.
>
> Staff Sergeant Woods is survived by his wife, Christie, his mother,
> Becky Johnson, and his father, Gary Lee Woods, Sr.
>
> Corporal Jason Graham Pautsch was born and raised in the Quad Cities
> Area, graduating from Davenport North High School in Davenport, Iowa, in
> 2007. Community members remember Jason as a fine citizen who made a
> great contribution though his friendly, resolute, and mature nature, and
> his devotion to his family. He was an "amazing person," they said.
>
> Corporal Pautsch joined the Army in January 2007, immediately upon
> graduating a semester early from high school. He attended Basic and
> Advanced Individual Training at Fort Benning, Georgia, becoming an
> "11B,"Infantryman, in May 2007.
>
> David Pautsch, Jason's father, said of his son, "He believed in what he
> was doing . . . [serving in the Army] is what he wanted to do." Mr.
> Pautsch said, "The last time we spoke was at 2 o'clock on Thursday
> afternoon [12 hours before the attack]. We spoke for an hour. We had a
> wide-ranging conversation." He added that neither of them considered it
> a farewell talk.
>
> Corporal Pautsch's fellow soldiers remember him for his honorable
> service as a dismount team leader and echo the fact that he was a fine
> citizen, and a fine soldier.
>
> Corporal Pautsch is survived by his mother and father, Teri and David,
> and by his brothers Josef, Jacob and Jared (who is a soldier of the 82nd
> Airborne), and by his sister, Jenna.
>
> Rest eternal grant to them, O Lord: And let light perpetual shine upon
> them . . .
> And may God bless and keep their family and all those whose lives are
> closely linked with theirs.
>
> Sir, tonight our Hero Tribute is to: Staff Sergeant Gary L. Woods, Jr.,
> United States Army; and to Corporal Jason G. Pautsch., United States
> Army.

Three generations joining the ranks to stand together in the Garden of Stone.