That’s Kimberly in the Phillies shirt
I am currently an Army Air Defense Artillery Captain, deployed forward as the Battery Commander for a Patriot Missile Firing Battery (Bravo Battery, 1-7 ADA Battalion). Previously I was a Field Artillery Officer, and deployed as a Cultural Support Team Leader with 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne). I am stationed out of Fort Bragg, NC, but I was originally born and raised in Pottstown, PA (hence my loyalty to the Phillies, Eagles, Flyers, Sixers, and cheesesteaks). I am also loyal to this country, and to the US Military in all forms. I come from a big military family. My father served in the United States Marine Corps, my little sister is currently a Sergeant in the US Army (she just returned from Afghanistan), and my little brother is currently a Lance Corporal in the Marines (he just left for Japan).
I was planning on doing a half by myself out here, but I brought it up to some of my Soldiers, and they wanted to do it with me! One of my Maintenance Sergeants signed up as well, and she is the other female in the picture I posted. It was a great morning. Our route took us around the air base that we are assigned to, outside the gate on the roads adjacent to the desert, and to my Patriot site, where we did a big loop around all of my launchers as the sun was rising. We shared stories of fallen comrades, and discussed the spirit of giving a little of ourselves in remembrance of those who gave all. It was the perfect way to observe Memorial Day out here. The motivation was awe-inspiring, and made the 13.1 miles of jogging with 35 lbs on my back too easy.
I would be honored to have my story featured, and to share the stories of the people I rucked for. When I remember my comrades in arms, living and passed, I always say “Too Tough to Kill.” They are not, and will never be gone–as their spirit, and what they fight/fought for will never die.
I rucked for several people.
First, my great uncles (US Army), who were both killed in action in WWII. My Great Uncle Frank Moszkowski, killed in Italy in 1944, and my Great Uncle Michael Kopack, killed in France in 1944. Stories of them, and of my grandfather Andrew Kopack (USMC), who passed in 2002, are what motivated me to want to join the Army. It also kept me strong during my last and current deployment.
Master Sergeant Arthur Lilley, a Team Sergeant assigned to 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), was killed 15 June 2007 in Afghanistan. He was my boyfriend’s Team Sergeant, for ODA 752, and gave his heart to everyone. Staff Sergeant Andrew Britton-Maholo, an Intelligence Sergeant assigned to 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), was killed on 25 April 2012 in Afghanistan. I worked with him when I was assigned to his ODA as a Cultural Support Team Leader. He was energetic, and very supportive of myself and my mission.
CPT Jennifer Moreno, an Army Nurse, was killed on 6 October 2013 in Afghanistan. 1LT Ashley White-Stumpf, a Medical Service Corps Officer, was killed 22 October 2011 in Afghanistan. Both supported a Joint Special Operations Task Force as Cultural Support Team members. The story of the Cultural Support program, and what they provided to the battlefield, was just captured in “Ashley’s War,” a book published by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon. They helped set the foundation for support of female integration into Special Operations, and in the US Army. They are beloved, missed, and remembered every day by their CST sisters– myself included.
I sometimes get lost in my thoughts about my fallen comrades, and of my experiences overseas (it is easy to get inside your own head out here, when there is not much to do). I think about those who were left behind to grieve, including myself. What can we do? And that is why Memorial Day is so important to me. Each one of them, and all of our fallen heroes, took up a call to arms to defend our great nation. They each had a different reason for doing so, and a different path that led me to that privileged moment of meeting them or being associated with them. Each one is a unique story, that deserves to be told. That is our responsibility. I do not want any one who made that ultimate sacrifice to fall into irrelevance, to become a faceless statistic in a history book. I will continue to find ways to sing the tale of our fallen heroes, and of my battle buddies who made the ultimate sacrifice. Our Bravo Battery Memorial Day Ruck March  (which included my Remember the Fallen virtual race), was one of those small ways I could do that while deployed overseas.
Check out the full album of our half marathon ruck march/run on my unit’s Facebook!
