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Old 01-25-2004, 18:14   #1
Martinez
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SFC. Nathan R. Chapman

http://www.detnews.com/2002/nation/0...a01-383450.htm

Parents praise son's Army life
Military veteran is first U.S. soldierkilled by enemy fire

By Natalie Gott / Associated Press
6 Jan 2002

GEORGETOWN, Texas - Sitting beside a framed photo of their son, Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Ross Chapman, the parents of the first U.S. soldier killed by enemy fire in Afghanistan fought back tears Saturday as they recalled his Army career.

Will and Lynn Chapman said the 31-year-old Green Beret communications specialist had served in Panama, Haiti, Operation Desert Storm and then Afghanistan. "The Army took to him and he took to the Army. It was a good match up until yesterday," Will Chapman said. "I think he was a better person for going into the Army and the Army was a better place."

On Friday, Chapman had been part of a U.S. team operating near the Afghan town of Khost, a few miles from the Pakistan border, military officials said. Officials said Chapman and a CIA officer had met local tribal leaders in Afghanistan's Paktia province, near where U.S. warplanes had struck several al-Qaida and Taliban targets in the past few weeks. After they left the meeting, the Americans were ambushed.

Chapman was killed by small-arms fire. The CIA officer was wounded but expected to survive. "We mourn for Sergeant Nathan Chapman and we pray with his family for God's blessings on them," President Bush said Saturday during a news conference in Ontario, Calif. "He lost his life for a cause that is just and important. And that cause is the security of the American people, and that cause is the cause of freedom and a civilized world."

At Fort Lewis, Wash., where Chapman had been based, former colleagues praised him for his commitment to the Army and his dynamic personality. "He was always the go-to person for people on other teams," said Capt. Edwin D. Hoenig, one of several colleagues who spoke Saturday at the base, about 30 miles south of Seattle. "He was a very charismatic person. People loved working with him and he loved working with soldiers."

Chapman was born on April 23, 1970, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. He joined the Army after his 1988 graduation from high school in Centerville, Ohio. "He did so well in his career. We were just amazed. He was my little boy," his mother said Saturday, wiping away tears during an interview in her Sun City home, about 25 miles north of Austin.

Lynn Chapman said her son was a loving husband and father. The couple said they planned to travel to Seattle today to be with Chapman's widow, Renae, and children, Amanda, 2, and Brandon, 1. Army officials said Chapman's wife would not be speaking to reporters Saturday.

Chapman served most of his military career at Fort Lewis. Since the war in Afghanistan began, he had been assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group at Fort Campbell, Ky., said Maj. Gary Kolb, a spokesman for Army Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg, N.C.

His parents said he parachuted into Panama during the U.S. invasion of that country and served in Desert Storm and Haiti. He attended Special Forces school at Fort Bragg, they said. The Army's Special Forces have been advising, arming, training and coordinating with local Afghan forces since the military campaign began Oct. 7. Chapman dealt primarily with long-range communications and electronic equipment and had weapons' training.

"Nate Chapman was dynamic, outgoing and a physically hard soldier. He is known by his team for his great sense of humor," said Col. David P. Fridovich, his group commander.

Chapman's remains were to be flown to a base in Germany, where officials said they would arrange transportation back to Fort Lewis, likely by midweek. Funeral details were not finalized Saturday. Before Friday, the only U.S. military members killed inside Afghanistan were three Green Berets mistakenly hit last month by a U.S. airstrike north of Kandahar. In October, two Army Rangers were killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Pakistan. A CIA operative, Johnny "Mike" Spann, was killed Nov. 25 in an uprising of Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan.
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More:
http://www.quietpros.com/Afgan/chapm..._ross_5sfg.htm
http://www.groups.sfahq.com/1st/chap...id_to_rest.htm
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Old 01-25-2004, 18:22   #2
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RIP, SFC Chapman.

Sorry, Jen, I missed that one. Thanks.

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Old 01-25-2004, 18:27   #3
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RIP Nate.


Thanks Jen.
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Old 01-25-2004, 20:17   #4
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Old 02-02-2004, 13:33   #5
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He looks so young:

Blue skies:

Rest In Peace:

Terry
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Old 07-19-2005, 16:01   #6
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County dedicates nature trail to Fallen SF Soldier

RELEASE NUMBER: 050719-04
DATE POSTED: JULY 19, 2005

Quote:
County dedicates nature trail to Fallen SF Soldier
By Sgt. Christopher Stanis
1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) Public Affairs


PUYALLUP, Wash. (July 19, 2005) — Pierce County Parks and Recreations carved the name of a local hero in stone July 18 with a nature trail dedication to Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Chapman at the South Hill Community Park.

Chapman, a 1st Special Forces Group Soldier and long-time resident of Puyallup, was the first service member to die from enemy fire in Afghanistan.

The dedication ceremony included comments from local political leaders as well as Maj. Guy LeMire, the 1st SF Group executive officer and former team leader of Chapman.

LeMire did not want to talk about how Chapman died, but how he lived. He was a dedicated Soldier, but he was also a dedicated husband and father of two young children.

“Nate served as a touchstone for everyone around him,” said Lemire. “He set himself apart even more from the already elite.”

Following the comments, a bronze plaque with Chapman’s military biography was unveiled. The plaque sits atop a stone wall that reads “Nathan Chapman Memorial Trail.” This is the entrance to the two-and-a-half-mile trail.

Friends of Chapman said the trail and its location is a fitting dedication for the type of man he was.

“The beauty and Solitude of the trail embodies everything Nate enjoyed,” said Master Sgt. Chris Heim, a friend and former teammate of the honored Soldier.

A man who was in tune with nature and the outdoors, Chapman thrived on physical competition.

“Nobody was more competitive, more dominant or more consistently proficient as Nate Chapman,” said LeMire.

It was only too often that LeMire would hear, “Sir, we have a long way to go to be like Nate.”

The Soldiers attending the ceremony said it meant a lot to see the community where Chapman lived, and his family still lives, honor the Green Beret.

“It’s touching,” said Master Sgt. John Iliff, a former team sergeant of Chapman’s. “It makes us happy to see that the people of this community care.”
Everyone, everywhere in the world may have their own heroes, but if the citizens of Pierce County are asked they can say, “We now have a hero.”

-usasoc-
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Old 07-20-2005, 08:07   #7
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Rest easy Nate. It was good being in C/3/1 with you.

Gone but never forgotten
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Old 12-29-2008, 09:50   #8
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Posted on behalf of Nate's Father, an email for all of us to share. TS


I am Will Chapman father of SFC Nathan R. Chapman. I have not visited your site before, but today I had a Google alert email indicating a hit on his name and it led me to your site. I was very moved by the comments that were left there regarding our son Nate.

I wanted to let you know that we live in Georgetown, TX and our community raised money to build a memorial to local soldiers who have fallen in the War on Terror. The centerpiece of this memorial is a life size bronze statue of Nate. MG (now LTG) David Fridovich was the keynote speaker at the dedication ceremony for the memorial on September 11, 2006. Gen Fridovich was commander of 1st SFG at the time Nate was killed. The memorial is a wonderful and lasting tribute to our son, the first American soldier to die from hostile fire in Afghanistan, and to those who have followed him in making the ultimate sacrifice.

If you wish to post this information on your web site, please feel free to do so. Thank you for providing this place in cyber space to honor our Special Forces heroes.

Will Chapman
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Old 12-29-2008, 10:02   #9
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I passed through the airfield at Khowst which named in memory/honor of Nate.

Here's the picture of the sign
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Old 05-15-2005, 10:56   #10
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Chapman Hall

I received this photo this morning from a Brother who is over seas. This sign hangs at Camp Vance, Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan. It was good to see that my friend is not forgotten. I don't know how many of you had the honor to serve with Nate, but I will tell you that he was a good dude, a great friend, and one of the best warriors I ever had the privilege to serve with. Nate was in my squad in 2nd Ranger Battalion.

We were close during my stay there, but for some reason, we lost contact with each other after I had been out for a few years. I tracked down his parents, shortly after his death. They live a few hours from here. Unfortunately, they were not home when I dropped by, but I left a package of old squad photos and a lengthy letter on their doorstep. I received a very touching call from his dad when he found it. I hope to get back over there and meet them in person someday. Strange how a simple picture of a sign can bring the tears back so quickly. Rest Easy, Brother. You are not forgotten.

RLTW
EP

PS: Thanks to Team Sarnt for the photo assist!
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Old 05-15-2005, 11:17   #11
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RIP, Nate.

Good job, EP!

TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910

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Old 05-15-2005, 11:25   #12
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RIP Nate. I'm glad they remembered him.
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Old 05-15-2005, 13:54   #13
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RIP.
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Old 05-15-2005, 19:45   #14
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I was just thinking of the video he sent home to his kids the other day. He's not forgotten.

RIP Nate.

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Old 12-29-2008, 18:37   #15
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Rest In Peace SFC Chapman!
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