Pennsylvania National Guard Mourns Combat Deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom  August 2005 FORT INDIANTOWN GAP (August 11) – Five Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers were killed and three injured Tuesday evening in two separate attacks in Iraq. In the first incident, four Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers were killed and three others injured when their convoy was attacked in Bayji, Iraq, late Tuesday evening. The Soldiers involved in the firefight, were members of Company A, 1-111th Infantry, Philadelphia, Pa.  The 11:45 p.m. attack killed Pfc. Nathaniel Detample, 19, Morrisville; Spc. John Kulick, 35, Jenkintown;  Corporal Gennaro Pellegrini, 31, Philadelphia; and Sgt. Francis Straub Jr., 24, Philadelphia. Sgt. Timothy Breen, 25, Mt. Wolf; Spc. Felix Schmeider, 21, Sharon Hill; and Sgt. Daniel South, 23, York, received minor injuries in the attack.   The Soldiers were on a routine patrol when improvised explosive devices struck their up- armored HMMWVs. Both vehicles were then attacked by small arms fire and rocket propelled grenades. Unit members returned fire and the insurgents retreated to a wooded area. Pellegrini was a Philadelphia police officer; Kulick was employed by the Whitpain Fire Department, Montgomery County; Straub worked for the United Parcel Service; and Detample was a college student at Shippensburg University.  The Philadelphia-based unit has 150 members and was deployed to Iraq in December for a one-year assignment. In the second incident, Staff Sgt. Ryan S. Ostrom, 25, a member of Co. B, 109th Infantry, Williamsport, Pa., was killed in action late Tuesday evening. Ostrom, a resident of Liberty, was conducting combat operations in the city of Habaniyah when he was hit by enemy small arms fire. There were no other casualties reported in this incident.   The Williamsport-based Pennsylvania Army National Guard unit was deployed with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team to Iraq in July for a one-year assignment.  “Our thoughts and prayers are with these five Soldiers’ families during this difficult time,” said Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell. “The commonwealth mourns the loss of these heroes, and prays that our military personnel still fighting are returned to us safely.”  Pellegrini, Kulick, Straub, Detample and Ostrum will be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Combat Infantryman Badge. On Saturday, Aug. 6, two Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry, Philadelphia were killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near their convoy in the city of Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad.  The blast killed Sgt. Brahim Jeffcoat, 25, Philadelphia, and Spc. Kurt Krout, 43, Spinnerstown. “This has been a particularly difficult week for the Pennsylvania National Guard,” said Maj. Gen. Jessica Wright, state adjutant general. “We’ve lost a total of seven Soldiers in four days and words cannot describe the loss we feel. My condolences go out to their families and loved ones.” Eleven Pennsylvania National Guard members have been killed in action since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. More than 90 Pennsylvania service members have died while fighting the Global War on Terror; 11 of them were Pennsylvania National Guard members killed in action in Iraq.   Click Here for Photographs   FORT INDIANTOWN GAP (August 7) – Two Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers were killed and three others injured when improvised explosive devices (IED) detonated near their convoy in the city of Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad, Saturday, Aug. 6. The 5 p.m. blast killed Sgt. Brahim Jeffcoat, 25, Philadelphia, and Spc. Kurt Krout, 43, Spinnerstown.  They were in a multi-vehicle supply convoy in up-armored HMMWVs when the IEDs exploded, causing their vehicle to roll over.         The explosions also injured Sgt. James Newman, 33, Schwenksville; Spc. James McIntosh, 38, Johnstown; and Spc. Rudolph Roberson Jr., 27, Philadelphia.  Roberson was seriously injured with a head laceration and leg fracture.  He was transported to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany.  Newman and Mcintosh were not seriously injured. “Sergeant Jeffcoat and Specialist Krout proudly represented Pennsylvania and their country and sadly, like too many others before them, they made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Governor Edward G. Rendell. “Our condolences go to the families of these dedicated Soldiers, and we continue to pray that all of our brave men and women return to the commonwealth safely.” Both Soldiers were assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard’s Company A, 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry, Philadelphia.  The unit is part of Task Force Dragoon, a force of 750 Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers.  Task Force Dragoon deployed to Iraq in December for a one-year assignment. “The entire Pennsylvania National Guard family mourns the loss of these two fine Soldiers,” said Maj. Gen. Jessica Wright, state adjutant general.  “Our thoughts and prayers are extended to the Jeffcoat and Krout families, whose sons epitomized the ideals of the citizen Soldier.” Jeffcoat joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 1998 as a traditional Guard member.  In his civilian career, Jeffcoat was a youth counselor. Krout is a former Marine who joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 1995.  In his civilian career he was a manager with Wal-Mart in Quakertown. “They were two outstanding Soldiers who will be greatly missed,” said Lt. Col. Philip Logan, commander of the Pennsylvania National Guard Task Force in Iraq.  “They were good Soldiers and good men, who not only contributed to the success of the mission, but left an indelible mark on everyone they touched here.” Jeffcoat and Krout are the fifth and sixth Pennsylvania National Guard Soldiers to die of combat wounds in Iraq.  They will be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Combat Infantry Badge. Click Here for Photographs