Here is the final, most recent listing of Canadian soldiers who have died in Afghanistan. It has been an amazing couple of days for me, reading about these people, about their children and their wives, husbands and loving families. What they did when they weren’t in uniform.
I hope you join me in this celebration of their lives.
Corporal Thomas Hamilton, 26, of Truro, Nova Scotia, was one of three soldiers killed in December when their armoured vehicle was hit by an IED while on patrol in Arghandab district. He left behind a daughter.
Private Justin Jones, 21 of Baie Verte, NL was killed in the same incident, which took place approximately 14 km west of Kandahar City and within one km of the site of the December deaths a week earlier.
Private John Michael Curwin, 26, of Mount Uniacke, Nova Scotia, died in the same December 2008 incident with Justin and Thomas. He left behind two 2 daughters and a son.
Private Michael Freeman, 28, Peterborough, Ontario was killed in December 2008 by an IED blast while travelling in security operations in the Zhari district west of Kandahar city. Three other Canadians were wounded in the incident.
Warrant Officer Gaetan Roberge, 45, of Hanmer, Ontario, left behind four children when he was killed by a roadside IED west of Kandahar.
Sgt. Gregory Kruse, 40, New Maryland, NB, was killed in the same December, 2008 incident with Gaetan, along with two Afghan police officers and an Afghan interpreter. He left behind three daughters.
Trooper Brian Good, 42, of Ottawa, Ontario left behind two daughters when he was killed in January, 2009 by an IED while travelling in an armoured vehicle north of Kandahar city.
Sapper Sean Greenfield, 25 of Pinawa, was killed in January, 2009 when his vehicle struck an IED in Zhari District.
Warrant Officer Dennis Brown was 38 when he was killed by a roadside bomb that detonated after having defused another IED that had been called in by the Afghan National Police. He was from St. Catharines, Ontario, and had four children.
Corporal Dany Fortin, 29, of Baie-Comeau, QC died in the same March, 2009 blast that killed Dennis and Ken. Two other Canadian soldiers were wounded in the explosion.
Corporal Kenneth O’Quinn of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL died in the same IED blast, which occurred north of Kandahar city.
Trooper Marc Diab, 22, of Mississauga, Ontario died in March 2009 when a large IED detonated near his armoured vehicle in the southern Shah Wali Kot district. Marc’s family had moved to Canada from Lebanon in 2000.
Master Corporal Scott Vernelli, 28, of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario died a roadside bomb detonated near Zhari district. He left behind a daughter. Five other Canadian soldiers were wounded in the blast.
Cpl. Tyler Crooks, 24, of Port Colborne, Ontario died in the same blast that killed Scott, while they were a part of an operation to attack Taliban supply lines in March, 2009.
Trooper Jack Bouthillier, just 20 years old, was from Hearst, Ontario. He was killed with Corey when a roadside bomb detonated under their vehicle in the Shah Wali Kot district. Three other Canadian soldiers wounded in the blast.
Trooper Corey Hayes, 22, was from Ripples, New Brunswick. He died in the same blast as Jack, about 20 km northwest of Kandahar City, and on the same deadly day as Tyler and Scott, in March, 2009.
Cpl. Karine Blais of Les Méchins, Quebec was just 21, and only two weeks into her first tour of duty when she was killed by an IED in the Shah Wali Kot district. Four other Canadian soldiers were wounded in the April, 2009 blast.
Major Michelle Mendes, of Wicklow, Ontario was just 30 years old when she was found dead in her accommodation room at Kandahar Air Field, of a gunshot wound that was ruled to be self-inflicted. Michelle had reached the astounding rank of Major and was Chief of Defense Intelligence – a remarkable achievement. She had been sent home as a wounded soldier when she held the rank of Captain, after her first tour of Afghanistan in 2006.
Pvt. Alexandre Péloquin, who came from the Region of Laurentides, was just 20 years old when he was killed in June, 2009 by an explosive device while on foot patrol in the Panjwai district, after a 6-day sweep to find and remove materials used to make IEDs.
Cpl. Martin Dubé, 35, of Quebec City was killed in the Panjwai district when the explosive device he was trying to defuse detonated. The explosion also killed the police chief of the Panjwai district and seriously wounded an Afghan interpreter in June of 2009.
Cpl. Nicholas Bulger, 30, of Buckhorn, Ontario was killed in July, 2009 when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb in Zhari district, seconds after the bomb was narrowly missed by the vehicle carrying the senior commander of coalition forces in the province. He left behind a two daughters.
Master Cpl. Charles-Philippe Michaud, 28, of Edmundston, New Brunswick died in July, 2009 in a Quebec City hospital of his wounds sustained 11 days earlier when he stepped on a land mine while on foot patrol in the Panjwaii district, southwest of Kandahar city. He had never regained consciousness.
Master Cpl. Pat Audet, 38, of Montreal, was killed in a helicopter crash along with a coalition soldier from another country, Zabul province, about 80 km northeast of Kandahar city. Three other Canadian soldiers were injured in the crash.
Cpl. Martin Joannette, 25, of Saint-Calixte, Quebec also died in the July, 2009 helicoptor crash, on a American base in Zabul province.
Pvt. Sébastien Courcy, 26 of St-Hyacinthe, Quebec died when he was thrown off a cliff edge after stepping on an IED or landmine in the Panjwaii District.
Cpl. Christian Bobbitt, 23, of Sept-Îles, Quebec died along with anther soldier when their convoy was struck by two IEDs in Zhari district. When Christian and Matthiu stepped out of their vehicle to secure the area after the first explosion, another IED exploded.
Sapper Matthieu Allard, only 21 and from Val d’Or, Quebec died in the same August, 2009 explosion, and another Canadian soldier was injured.
Major Yannick Pépin, 36, of Victoriaville, Quebec left behind two children when he was killed by a powerful roadside blast in September, 2009 in the Dand district southwest of Kandahar city.
Cpl. Jean-Francois Drouin, 31 of Quebec City, also died in the same roadside bombing in September, 2009. Five other Canadian soldiers were also injured in the blast.
Cpl. Patrick Lormand, 21, was from Chute-a-Blondeau, Ontario. He died when the armoured vehicle he was riding in struck an IED near Kandahar city. Four other Canadian soldiers were also injured in the September, 2009 blast.
Pvt. Jonathan Couturier, 23, of Loretteville, Quebec died in a September, 2009 roadside blast when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device while returning from an operation in Panjwaii district. 11 other Canadian soldiers were also wounded by the blast.
Lieutenant Justin Boyes, 26, was from Saskatoon. He was killed by an IED in Panjwaii District while leading a foot patrol in October, 2009 with the Afghan National Police. He left behind a young son.
Sapper Steven Marshall, 24 and from Calgary, was killed by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol in Kandahar in October of 2009.
Lt. Andrew Nuttall, 30, was from Victoria. He was killed by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol in Kandahar in December, 2009.
Sgt. George Miok, 28, of Edmonton was one of four soldiers killed when the vehicle they were riding in was struck by an IED in Kandahar city. Canadian journalist Michelle Lang reporting for the Calgary Herald was also killed in the blast.
Sgt. Kirk Taylor, 28, of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia was killed in the same deadly December, 2009 blast.
Cpl. Zachery McCormack, just 21 years old and from Edmonton, Alberta died along with George, Kirk, Garrent and Michelle Lang on that December day.
Pvt. Garrett Chidley was only 21 years old, and from Cambridge, Ontario when he died in the same blast on New Year’s Eve, 2009.
Sgt. John Faught was 44 years old and from Sault Ste. Marie. He was killed after stepping on an improvised explosive device in the Panjwaii district of Kandahar province, the first Canadian soldier to die in 2010.
Cpl. Joshua Baker, 24, was from Edmonton. He died in a weapons training range accident northeast of Kandahar city. Four other Canadian soldiers were also wounded in the February, 2010 incident, which is still under military investigation.
Cpl. Darren Fitzpatrick, 21, of Prince George, British Columbia was wounded by an IED explosion, and died in March, 2010 in an Edmonton hospital.
Pvt. Tyler Todd, 26 years old and from Bright, Ontario, was killed in April, 2010 by a powerful IED while on foot patrol in Dand district.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Douglas Blake, 37, was from Simcoe, Ontario. He left behind two young sons when he was killed by an IED southwest of Kandahar City where he was working as an explosive ordnance disposal operator. He became the first Canadian sailor to fall in this conflict.
Pvt. Kevin McKay, 24, from Richmond Hill, Ontario was killed in May, 2010 by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol southwest of Kandahar city. Known as Mickey, he was buried in Barrie, Ontario.
Colonel Geoff Parker, 42, was from Oakville, Ontario. In May, 2010, he was killed when a suicide bomber a NATO convoy in Kabul. He left behind two children.
Trooper Larry Rudd, 26, was from Brantford, Ontario. He was killed by an IED in May, 2010, during a combat re-supply patrol near the village of Salavat
Sgt. Martin Goudreault, 35, of Sudbury, died while on foot patrol in June, 2010, when and IED exploded in the Panjwaii district. Martin was on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Sgt. James MacNeil, 26, of Glace Bay, Nova Scotia was killed in June, 2010 southwest of Kandahar city in the Panjwaii district. This was James’s fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Master Corporal Kristal Giesebrecht, 34, of Wallaceberg, Ontario, died as a result of an IED explosion. Kristal was a medic, and died in June, 2010.
Pvt Andrew Miller, 21, of Sudbury, Ontario, died in the same explosion, in June, 2010. He was also a medic, trying to save the lives of others when his own was lost.
Sapper Brian Collier, from Toronto. Killed by an IED in Panjwaii district, July 2010. He had been wounded earlier in his tour in another explosion but worked his way back to rejoin his unit.
Cpl Brian Pinksen, injured by an IED about 15 km west of Kandahar, August, 2010. He was 21 years old, and later died of his injuries in a German hospital, after being airlifted after the explosion.
And in a couple of non-military notes, in 2006, Vancouver carpenter Mike Frastacky, 56, was shot and killed while working on building a school project in Nahrin. Also that year, diplomat Glyn Berry died in a suicide bombing.
Please feel free to add comments or let me know any changes you’d like in this listing.
Let’s remember together.
More soon…
~kc
Not exactly in the spirit of the season — unless your season [like mine] is more or less always Hallowe’en, I found these small, creepy houses created on Daniele Delnero’s blog. Click through to see a bunch more.
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