May We Never Forget
25, of Houma, La.; assigned to the 256th Infantry Brigade (Mechanized), Louisiana Army National Guard, Lafayette, La.; killed Jan. 6 with six of his fellow soldiers when an improvised explosive device struck their Bradley fighting vehicle in Baghdad. Also killed were Sgt. 1st Class Kurt J. Comeaux, Sgt. Christopher J. Babin, Spc. Huey P.L. Fassbender, Spc. Armand L. Frickey, Spc. Warren A. Murphy and Army Pfc. Kenneth G. Vonronn.
Caskets of Six Soldier Arrive in Louisiana
Associated Press, Thursday January 13, 5:08 AM
Relatives sobbed Wednesday at the sight of flag-draped caskets containing the bodies of six Louisiana National Guardsmen killed by a bomb in Iraq.
One by one, the six caskets were removed from an Air Force cargo plane and loaded into separate hearses as family members watched from a hangar at the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base near New Orleans.
The six were killed Jan. 6 in the first of two deadly bombings that took the lives of eight members of the 256th Infantry Brigade of the Louisiana National Guard. In both attacks, bombs blew up heavily armored vehicles.
There were no speeches.
"They trained together, they fought together, they went to war together, they died together. The families wanted them to come home together," Hunt Downer, assistant adjutant general in the National Guard, told reporters before the plane arrived.
The six who returned were Sgt. Bradley Bergeron, 25, Staff Sgt. Christopher Babin, 27, and Sgt. Armand Frickey, 21, all of Houma; Sgt. Warren Murphy, 29, of Marrero, Sgt. Huey Fassbender III, 24, of LaPlace, and Sgt. 1st Class Kurt Comeaux, 34, of Raceland.
All but Comeaux received posthumous promotions.
A soldier from New York also was killed in the blast, which military authorities said was probably set off by insurgents using a remote electronic detonator. Brig. Gen. John Basilica, commander of the 256th Brigade, has said the soldiers were on a mission to suppress the insurgents' ability to launch rocket and mortar attacks.
Four days after the six were killed, two other Louisiana guardsmen died in a similar attack. They were Sgt. Robert Sweeney III of Pineville and Staff Sgt. Bill Manuel of Kinder. Their bodies have not yet been returned.
Eulogy
Bradley John Bergeron was and is the best thing that has ever happened to me
and there are not enough words to describe how much he meant to me. Ever
since he asked me to dance 9 months ago, he had my heart. He was the type of
guy every girl hopes to find and I was lucky enough to have been blessed by
having him in my life. He was fun,sweet, loveable, and if I do say so
myself, quite cute. And he was a gentleman, he would even walk around the
car to open and close the door for me and he always put others' needs ahead
of his. After only a month of dating, we knew we wanted to spend the rest of
our lives together and start a family. Our love was the kind of love that
only appears in movies and that everyone dreams will happen to them. And
although this love story doesn't have a happy ending ,I'm forever thankful
for the love he gave me that only few experience. My Bradley showed me how
wonderful true love can really be and he made me look at the world in a
whole new way. He is my everything and I love him more than life itself.
Those months I was with him were the happiest times in my life.I pray and
hope that he can help me live life without him because I know that will be
the hardest thing I will ever have to go through. I'll always remember how
he made me happy and made my life complete. I thank God for sending him to
me; even if it was for a short while. Like he engraved on a heart-shaped
jewelry box for my birthday-"you are the love of my life and my best
friend," he was just that to me and so much more. He is my hero, as I'm sure
he is yours and the world would be a better place if there were more people
out there like him. He has touched so many lives and no one can ever replace
him. I'll never stop loving him and I can't wait until we'll meet again in
heaven and truly be together forever.
Amber Stilley, Fiancee
2005
