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Spotsylvania native 1 of 9 soldiers killed

Spotsylvania native killed in Iraq

Date published: 3/8/2007

BY JENN ROWELL

Army Staff Sgt. Robert Stanley, a Spotsylvania County native, was killed Monday in one of two incidents in Iraq that left nine U.S. soldiers dead.

On his fourth overseas deployment, Stanley, 27, was a squad leader with the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment from Fort Bragg's 82nd Airborne Division. He went to Iraq in August for what was supposed to be a yearlong tour.

Stanley enlisted in the Army in October 1999, according to his father, Robert Stanley, co-owner of Shannon Airport.

An only son, the younger Stanley was the first of the family to join the military.

"Since he was a preteen, his aim in life was either to be a policeman or to be in the Army," the elder Stanley said.

Stanley initially enlisted for three years, but re-enlisted twice. He probably would have been a career soldier, his father said.

Stanley's unit was patrolling for insurgents when they tripped an Improvised Explosive Device. The incident happened at 2:03 p.m. Iraq time, or 6:03 a.m. local time, his father said.

"You're always worried that something like that would happen, but it's what he wanted to do and we supported him 100 percent," Stanley said.

The family found about their son's death Monday night, when an Army colonel and chaplain showed up at their door.

They are relying on their memories to get them through.

"He was a happy young man," Stanley said. "He was one of the most respectful young men around he was never a problem child. All our memories are good."

Sgt. Stanley could have chosen not to re-enlist, but his father said serving in the Army gave his son purpose.

"He felt that he was doing good in Iraq. He felt that he was accomplishing something," he said. "He really didn't like war, but it was his job. He'd much rather have peacetime, but it was his job, so he did it well."

Stanley attended Fredericksburg Christian Schools through the ninth grade, then transferred to Spotsylvania High School.

He ran track and played football until he hurt his ankle.

Although it had been awhile, Gary Foss, founder of Fredericksburg Christian, remembered Stanley as "one of the boys."

"He was just a kid at that point in time, but he always had an interest in the military. He always wanted to be a soldier," Foss said.

Home on leave one year, Stanley met his wife, Jayme, then a Mary Washington College student. She was from Delaware, but moved to Fayetteville, N.C., to be with him. The couple didn't have children.

A funeral will be held in Fredericksburg, but arrangements are pending. Stanley's father said his son will get a full military funeral.

"He really is a hero, and they're going to treat him as such," he said.

Jenn Rowell: 540/374-5418
Email: jrowell@freelancestar.com

At least 18 other men and one woman with ties to the Fredericksburg area have died in Iraq since the conflict began: Marine Corps Sgt. Joshua James Frazier, 24, of Spotsylvania was fatally wounded by a sniper on Feb. 6. Army National Guard Col. Paul M. Kelly, 45, of Stafford County died Jan. 20, 2007, when his helicopter was shot down near Baghdad. Army Cpl. Adam Fargo, 22, a medic with relatives in Fredericksburg, was killed July 22, 2006, by a roadside bomb Baghdad. Marine Cpl. Brett Lee Lundstrom, a 2001 Brooke Point High School graduate, was killed Jan. 7, 2006, by small-arms fire near Fallujah. Army National Guard Spc. Jeremy Hodge, 20, whose mother lives in Fredericksburg, was killed Oct. 10, 2005, when the convoy he was leading was hit by a bomb near Baghdad. Marine Cpl. Christopher Weaver, 24, of Spotsylvania was one of four Marine reservists killed in a Jan. 26, 2005, convoy ambush near Haditha. Army Sgt. Nicholas “Nick” Mason, 20, a National Guardsman from King George, was one of 22 people killed in a Dec. 21, 2004, mess-tent suicide bombing near Mosul. Army Sgt. David Ruhren, 20, a National Guardsman from Stafford County, also was killed in the mess-tent suicide bombing. Army Sgt. Jack Bryant Jr. of Dale City was in Muqdadiyah Nov. 20, 2004, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his military convoy. Civilian medic Jeffery Serrett, a 43-year-old Caroline native who lived in Spotsylvania, was shot by an unidentified assailant Nov. 2, 2004, at Abu Ghraib prison between Baghdad and Fallujah. He was working for Halliburton. Marine Lance Cpl. Caleb Powers, 21, a former Fredericksburg-area resident, was killed by a sniper Aug. 17, 2004, in Ramadi. Army 2nd Lt. Leonard Cowherd III, 22, of Culpeper was killed by a sniper May 16, 2004, while on a mission near Karbala. Army Spc. Frank K. Rivers Jr., 23, of Woodbridge suffered heart failure during physical training April 14, 2004, in Mosul. Army 2nd Lt. Jeff Graham, 24, a 1998 graduate of Brooke Point High School, was killed Feb. 19, 2004, about 50 miles west of Baghdad after a bomb exploded while he led his platoon on foot patrol. Staff Sgt. Thomas D. Robbins, 27, an Army scout, was killed Feb. 9, 2004, near Mosul when confiscated Iraqi ammunition exploded while he and others were moving it. Robbins grew up in New York, but has relatives in the Fredericksburg area. Army Regimental Sgt. Maj. Cornell W. Gilmore, 45, of North Stafford was killed Nov. 7, 2003, in a helicopter shot down over Tikrit. He worked for the Judge Advocate General Corps at the Pentagon and was on a brief mission in Iraq. Army Chief Warrant Officer 5 Sharon T. Swartworth, 43, of Alexandria, who spent weekends at a summer home at Lake Anna in Orange County, also worked for JAG and died with Gilmore. Army Staff Sgt. David Parson, 30, was shot seven times July 6, 2003, as his vehicle approached Baghdad. The father of three had married into the Belman family of Stafford County.

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Date published: 3/8/2007

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