Soldiers' Angels Mourns Cpl. Jeremiah J. Johnson

From Renee of the Soldiers' Angels Living Legends Team:

We have a fallen Hero from Soldiers' Angels, Cpl. Jeremiah J. Johnson.

Johnson, 23, of Vancouver, Wash., died Jan. 6 in Landstuhl, Germany of wounds suffered when his vehicle rolled over Dec. 26 in Baghdad.

He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.

Jeremiah is survived by his wife, Gale and 2 year old daughter, Rya and son, Isaiah, 5; his parents, Elizabeth and David Johnson, his sisters, Naphtali, 21, and Lauralee, 20; and his brothers, Zachary, 17, and Timothy, 15, all of Vancouver. WA.

Renee

Elizabeth Johnson was taking down Christmas decorations in her Vancouver home when she got a call from the Army on Dec. 26 saying her son had been critically injured in a rollover accident while on patrol in Baghdad, Iraq.

She, her husband, David, and Jeremiah's wife, Gale, flew to Washington, D.C., the next day, got their passports issued to them in an hour and were on a flight to Germany, arriving at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in time to spend almost a week at Jeremiah's bedside before he died Friday.

Elizabeth brought along family photos, magazines and sweets for her son, not realizing how grave his condition was. The reality set in only after two neurosurgeons briefed the family, telling them that Cpl. Johnson had suffered severe hypothermia and brain damage after his Humvee tipped over on a road along a canal, pinning him underwater for 10 minutes.

"I said, 'You mean that I will never hear Jeremiah talk to me again?' and they said, 'That's correct. You'll never know Jeremiah the way you have known Jeremiah,' " Elizabeth said Tuesday from Vancouver.

"I have never cried that deep inner [cry], you know? Jeremiah was the most awesome son you could ever hope for. He was the boy next door, the kind of boy you'd want your daughter to marry."

Source: The Seattle Times

Please take a momen to read the Army Cpl. Jeremiah J. Johnson tribute at the Soldiers' Angels Fallen Heroes blog.

The Patriot Guard Riders rode for Cpl. Jeremiah J. Johnson.

Remember our Heroes.