Death of an American Hero: Lance Cpl. Garrett Gamble, Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, Helmand Province, Afghanistan

It is the policy of this rather inconsequential web site NOT to report the casualty figures or names of our men and women killed in action in the military. Sadly, I must make an exception to our rule, since the young Marine mentioned in the title above and his untimely death has struck home. I don’t know him or his family, but what brought me to writing this article was the following information…..

We have a Internet traffic-tracking system for this web site that provides us with information about IP addresses, what, when and where persons search for information on libNOT. Over the last couple of weeks I noticed a number of Google searches for the name of, Garrett Gamble. That name stuck with me because there was a family in my home town on Long Island, NY with the same last name….Lance Cpl. Gamble is from Sugar Land, Texas, so I doubt that there is any relationship with the NY Gamble’s, but I digress……today, as I receive too often, I opened an email, DOD Identifies Marine Casualty….

DOD Identifies Marine Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Lance Cpl. Garrett W. Gamble, 20, of Sugarland, Texas, died March 11 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

For additional background information on this Marine, news media representatives may contact the 2nd Marine Division public affairs office at 910-450-6575.

Needless to say, I was very saddened by the news of Garrett’s death….this was a bit different, because I have his picture published on this site, I see his face, I remember his name and….. I have three sons who are or were at risk in the United States Army.

May God Bless Garrett and his family.

The following is a poem that I sent to the family of a young soldier killed in action in Viet Nam during the Tet Offensive of 1968. Clint Collins died on May 8 while standing within three feet of me and most recently read December 14, 2009 at my brother’s funeral in Glenwood Springs, Colorado:

Do not stand at my grave and forever weep.
I am not there; I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn’s rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and forever cry.
I am not there. I did not die.

Lance Cpl. Garrett Gamble

Golf Co, 2nd Btn, 2nd Marine Reg, Patrol Loy Darwayshan, Garmsir, Afghanistan

Our sincere sympathies to the Gamble family…..may Garrett rest in peace.

Respectfully,

LibNOT.com

PS - please read some of the comments left by Gamble friends and family below.