Sgt. Michael P. Scusa

By Semperpapa

I have received a request for friendship on my Facebook page from a woman in Philadelphia. The picture on the request showed a man in Army uniform, so I was immediately inclined to accept the request, but I checked it out.
The request was from a Gold Star Mom, Cynthia Woodard, whose son, Army Sgt. Michael P. Scusa, was killed in Afghanistan on 3 October, 2009.
Michael would have turned 23 on October 5th, which was the day he made his final homecoming.

Michael was one of eight soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division who were killed on that day at a place called COP (Combat Outpost) Keating, when over 300 insurgents attacked the small base.
Also killed that day were:

SSG Justin T. Gallegos
SGT Christopher T. Griffin
SGT Joshua M. Hardt
SGT Joshua J. Kirk
SSG Vernon W. Martin
SPC Stephan L. Mace
SPC Kevin C. Thomson

I have exchanged couple of messages with this coragious mom, who is sharing the greatest pain of her life with so many others across our country, asking about Michael and is clear to me that Michael was a special person, and through his life as a son, a husband, a father, a brother he will remain a special person in the momories his loved ones will carry for ever.

But Michael is also the symbol of what is great about our country, the symbol of the sacrifices that our Military has for over two centuries and still today makes for the maintenance of our great Nation.

Michael had spent 15 months in Iraq, coming home to the joy of he and his wife having a son, whom Michael named Connor Allen in honor of one of his friends who had not made it back from Iraq.
He subsequently deployed to Afghanistan in May 2009.

Cynthia also communicated with me some of the tributes to this American Hero and some details she just found out. In her own words:

“They have had 3 articles on Michael in the Philly paper, the high school he went to planted a tree in front of it with his name. The year book for 2010 has a two page in memory of Michael. And Fort Carson has their names on the GWOT Wall. I have pictures of it all. He just got another award, something about Valor, waiting for the report/certicate from that. They said he took two trips to get ammo and ran over 100 yards, he knew there were snipers but he didn't care. He was hit outside the ammo building when he went back for more. I had just found this out last night.”

On 7 October 2009 I wrote a post on my web site that was inspired by the events of October 3rd at COP Keating. The piece was called “The New Greatest Generation” because after reading some of the reports on the events of that day, it was the only possible way to address these heroes. This is part of what I wrote:

According to a report from an ABC journalist, who accompanied the Medevac helos into the battle, when the chopper was loaded with wounded and ready to lift, the Medevac crew was told that only three wounded were leaving: one American and two Afghan soldiers. The Medics told that the other wounded were refusing evacuation in order to remain with their buddies in the fight, which lasted about 12 hours.
Moreover, the Medics reported to the Medevac crew that soldiers were donating blood in the thick of the battle, to be transfused into their wounded friends, all, again, while the battle enraged around them.

I was completely awestruck by the heroism and devotion of these men.

At that time, my family and I were counting down the days prior to my Marine son deploying to Afghanistan and the news of the attack against COP Keating and the casualty rate was truly horrific.
Today I have a fragile line of communication with one of the family members of one of those Heroes and I hope that my words may be enough to express my deepest condolences and appreciation for what Michael and all his brothers and sisters have done for the safety and security of our Nation.

The American people must realize that the price our Nation is paying for our safety and security is enormous. As the father of a US Marine who just returned from a deployment in Afghanistan, and as an American, I feel a duty to tell about Heroes like Michael and his brothers and sisters who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our Country. And I feel the duty to remind all who listen, that their sacrifice has left a painful void in the lives of those who loved them, but also in the very fiber of the United States.

We must never forget the true cost of our freedom.
We must never shy away from standing next to Cynthia and all Gold Star Moms and Dads and Wives and Children.
Thank you Michael, the Lord must have needed another Angel at his side.

Just my thoughts!