Reporter’s Notebook: Meet the 3 soldiers I think about every day

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - In September 2005, I found myself in the heart of Baghdad, deployed as an Army captain in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. My job was to escort media into the battlefield.

This Memorial Day, I want to introduce you to three of my fellow soldiers who never made it home.

Sgt. 1st Class Isaac Lawson served with me in the 49th Military Police Brigade.

Isaac was an amazing senior non-commissioned officer who mentored young troops He was a loving husband and father. We lost him after a roadside bomb exploded as we were returning to Baghdad in June 2006.

First Lt. Ashley Henderson Huff was a young military police officer full of life and compassion for the young troops she was leading and for the Iraqi police she was training. I will never forget finding out about the lieutenant’s death, also from a roadside bomb, on the very day I boarded a C17 to return to the U.S.

Staff Sgt. James Hunter was barely out of army journalism school when he showed up at a safety brief with camera and notepad in hand. Then private Hunter, he was visibly shaking upon arrival but he wasn’t shaking from fear.

I learned he was shaking from excitement, wanting to be on the front lines, covering the stories of soldiers. I remember four years later learning that James had been killed in Afghanistan while covering a story.

There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of these servicemembers and the countless others who died serving their country. This Memorial Day, thank you for honoring all those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country.

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