LFH Veterans Memorial Wall

Our wall is dedicated to those Veterans that have given their lives for us and their country since the start of LFH in 2003.  To submit any fallen veterans send pictures and info to lettersfromhome@windstream.net

Chad A. Edmundson

Friday, May 29 2009 @ 04:45 PM EDT Contributed by: River97 Views: 19 PR Newswire -- HARRISBURG, Pa., May 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A Pennsylvania Army National Guard soldier was killed and three others wounded by an improvised explosive device attack in Abu Ghraib, Iraq, earlier this week. Spc. Chad A. Edmundson, 20, Williamsburg, was on a dismounted foot patrol with the Iraqi Army when a bomb detonated at 10:17 a.m., Wednesday, May 27. He later died at the 10th Combat Support Hospital in Baghdad. The three other soldiers were not seriously injured and will most likely be returned to duty. Also injured in the attack were 16 Iraqi civilians, three of them seriously. Edmundson, an infantryman, was assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's, Company B, 2nd Battalion, 112th Infantry, in Altoona. He was on tour in Iraq with the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team. The Stryker Brigade arrived in Iraq in January and will depart in September. "Spc. Edmundson was a dynamic, young soldier who had enormous potential in the military or any other career field he would have chosen," said Maj. Gen. Jessica L. Wright, commander Pennsylvania National Guard. "This is a tremendous loss and our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends." Edmundson was a 2008 graduate of Williamsburg Community Senior High in Blair County. He joined the Pennsylvania Army National Guard in January 2007 and completed basic training at Fort Benning, Ga. He is survived by his mother, Karen L. Cornell, Breezewood; father, Roy A. Edmundson, Williamsburg; sister, Jessica N. Miller also of Williamsburg; and fiancee, Jessica A. Welch, Altoona. Edmundson is the 34th soldier of the Pennsylvania National Guard killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the second soldier lost in the 56th Stryker Brigade. Edmundson will be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Combat Infantry Badge. Memorial service arrangements are pending.

Army Staff Sgt. Mark C. Baum

A member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team was killed in action Saturday morning, February 21,2009 after an attack in Mushada, Iraq, according to a Guard spokesman. Staff Sgt. Mark C. Baum, 32, Quakertown, PA, a member of Detachment 1, Company B, 1-111th Infantry, Phoenixville, was severely wounded by small-arms fire after the quick reaction force he was assigned to responded to an improvised explosive device attack around 5 a.m.

"This is truly a sad day for both the family of Staff Sgt. Baum and members of the 56th Stryker Brigade," said Maj. Gen. Jessica L. Wright, commander of the Pennsylvania National Guard. "His bravery and dedication serve as a reminder to all of the sacrifices made each day to ensure that freedom and democracy prevail in Iraq. Words cannot describe the loss we feel."

Baum, a former active-duty combat veteran, served tours in Iraq, Kosovo and the Sinai. He joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 2005. As a civilian, he was a corrections officer at the Bucks County Correctional Facility.

"Staff Sgt. Baum was a dedicated, professional soldier who loved his family and his country," said Col. Marc Ferraro, 56th Stryker Brigade commander. "We send out our heartfelt condolences to his family. He will be deeply missed."

Baum was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and promoted to staff sergeant.