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Saturday, April 1, 2006
As of Friday, at least 2,327 members of the U.S. military had died in Iraq since March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The latest identifications reported by the military:
-- Air Force Tech. Sgt. Walter M. Moss Jr., 37, Houston
-- Army Pfc. Sean D. Tharp, 21, Orlando, Fla.
-- Army Sgt. Michael D. Rowe, 23, New Port Richey, Fla.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-iraqdead0106apr01,0,2500931.story?track=rss
Orlando soldier slain in Baghdad
Pvt. Sean Tharp, 21, who followed his parents into the service, was killed on foot patrol.
By Henry Pierson Curtis
A 21-year-old Orlando soldier who turned his life around and joined the Army to save money for college was killed Tuesday while on foot patrol in Iraq.
Pvt. Sean Tharp died when he was struck by small-arms fire as he and members of the 4th Infantry Division were on duty in Baghdad, the Department of Defense said Friday.
"He'd just gotten over there," his stepfather, Michael Tharp, said. "He was a brilliant kid. He had high-enough test scores to do about anything [in the Army], but he chose the infantry."
Michael Tharp learned of the death when a reporter called at his home near the University of Central Florida on Friday afternoon.
"I'm sorry I can't think right now," Tharp said. "Baghdad? That's supposed to be the safest place, isn't it?"
Tharp had not seen his stepson since he and Sean Tharp's mother were divorced about three years ago. But he said he spoke with him shortly before Christmas when the soldier called him to say he was shipping out for Iraq.
The slain soldier's mother, Teresa Tharp, who teaches economics at Valencia Community College, could not be reached for comment. Messages left at her home and work were not answered.
Her east Orange County neighbors said they had not seen her since Wednesday, when several soldiers visited the house.
On May 17 last year, Sean Tharp enlisted after talking with recruiters in Orlando, according to the Army.
"He was a good kid, a gung-ho kid," Ron Horvath, a spokesman for Army recruiters in Central Florida, said in a telephone interview from Tampa. "He impressed the recruiters who remembered he was reading a biography of [Gen.] Colin Powell."
He also told the recruiter he hoped to go to officer-candidate school.
Sean Tharp grew up on a series of military bases in the continental United States and Hawaii after his mother and stepfather, both career soldiers, married when he was 3, Michael Tharp said.
Despite being a gifted student, Sean started getting in trouble and dropped out during 10th grade at Edgewater High School in Orlando, his stepfather said.
"He was just trying to get his life back together. He'd gotten his GED, and he had been straight for like a year before he went in," Tharp said. "I think he enlisted to get the bonus money and get college money to go back to school."
Neither parent raised him to follow them into the Army.
"We both told him . . . he shouldn't go into the military," his stepfather said.
Sean Tharp was posthumously promoted to private first class this week, said Dalena Kanouse, a spokeswoman for the Army's III Corps and the 4th Infantry Division based at Fort Hood, Texas. His awards and decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon, she said.
No information was available about his burial.
More than 100 military personnel from Florida have died in the Iraq war, according to The Associated Press.
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Bay Area Man Dies In Iraq A Day Before Birthday
NEW PORT RICHEY - Army Sgt. Michael D. Rowe had been keeping a secret about his deployment in Iraq from his mother until about a week and a half ago, when she learned he was providing support for convoys, not re-arming vehicles.
Marcy Rowe said her son "wanted to protect his mother," but hated lying about his job and was glad that she found out he had an assignment that put him in harm's way.
Rowe was riding in the lead Humvee of a convoy Tuesday in Rutbah, Iraq, when a roadside bomb exploded, killing him.
His death came a day before his 24th birthday, his mother said Wednesday night.
A 2001 graduate of Gulf High School, her son loved military life, Marcy Rowe said. He first enlisted in the National Guard and was in training when the Sept. 11 attacks occurred.
He switched to the Army nearly three years ago, she said, and about two weeks ago re-enlisted for another four years. He was assigned to the 46th Engineer Battalion, Warrior Brigade and based at Fort Polk, La., the Army said.
The Army, he told his mother, was going to be his career.
Wednesday, she recounted his drive - how at 5-feet 5-inches tall, he always tried harder than bigger opponents while swimming, diving and playing soccer at Gulf High.
"He did everything full throttle," Marcy Rowe said. "He enjoyed life. He wasn't stupid. He knew he had so much to live for."
That included his wife, Rebecca, who is seven months pregnant, Marcy Rowe said.
He learned of the pregnancy shortly after deploying to Iraq in November, she said.
Her son was an avid photographer who also enjoyed disc jockeying, she said.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., Michael Rowe is survived by his mother; father, Dave Rowe; sister, Megan; and wife.
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