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Iraq takes heavy toll on state

Jun- 1-2007 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT , 4/2 SBCT

The Seattle P-I takes a close look at the losses suffered by Ft. Lewis units during the month of May.

By MIKE BARBER, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The previous 31 days broke tragic records and left broken hearts.

While May was the third-worst month for U.S. military deaths nationwide in Iraq with 122 U.S. deaths, it was the bloodiest ever for Washington members of the armed forces with 22 casualties.

As of Thursday, that was the toll of troops with state ties killed in Iraq for the month, all Army soldiers and most from Fort Lewis. It nearly doubles the previous worst month here, when 12 were killed in December 2004.

Among those mourning lost loved ones is Emily McFall, wife of Staff Sgt. Thomas Michael McFall, 36, who was killed this week by a roadside bomb while serving with a Fort Lewis-based Stryker Brigade.

McFall, who also served in Korea and Afghanistan, was remembered by Emily as my "my husband, a proud dad, a great son and a friend to many."

The couple opened their house at Christmas and Thanksgiving to McFall's fellow soldiers who would otherwise be alone.

"He loved the brotherhood, and his heart beat red, white, and blue ... there was only one exit for him," she said.

"Keep us and his fellow brothers that are still over there in your prayers," she added.

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