Today my walk was dedicated in honor of:
Army SPC Douglas J. Weismantle, Age 28 of Pittsburgh, PA.
KIA Oct. 13, 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom
Army Spc. Weismantle was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, as a communications specialist. Weismantle was driving a HMMWV when an Iraqi dump truck swerved and rolled over on top of his vehicle. Weismantle died as a result of his injuries. Douglas, who grew up in Spring Garden, was the youngest of six children. He graduated from Oliver High School in 1994 and also from Dean Institute of Technology, where he took electrical courses. In October 2000, he enlisted in the Army and left for boot camp at Fort Benning, Ga., on Nov. 13. He learned how to be a communications specialist at Fort Gordon, Ga., and trained to be a paratrooper at Fort Benning. Then, he was stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. On Feb. 14, Douglas left for Kuwait and when the war began in Iraq, his company joined the U.S. ground troops arriving there. When he enlisted in the Army, he hoped his military service would finance a college education so he could become a history teacher; later, he decided to become an electrical engineer. Douglas is remembered as a giving man who would go out of his way to help people; he would do anything for anybody. He was an avid Steelers fan who liked to joke around and was also a history buff who frequently watched the Cable News Network, the History Channel and the Discovery Channel. Douglas married Christine Lindenfelser in October 1999, and the couple planned to start a family after he returned from Iraq.
The weather was not nice to us this morning but we had a wonderful 8.25 Mile walk anyway. We walked by Holiday Hills Lake and then headed down town to the War Memorial Park and then we made a stop in the Crossville City Cemetery to visit some of our fallen brothers and sisters. We then headed back. I want to thank everyone who honked, waved, and saluted in helping me honor this hero. We had 127 honks. Thank You.
Army SPC Douglas J. Weismantle will not be forgotten !
