The Diamond Event
At
ontelongo’s
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Come visit us April 16 th & 17
for our first annual
Montelongo s Fine Jewelry
. Diamond Event!
th
Best prices of the year on all loose
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30% off all diamond jewelry in stock
Register to win an AJaffe mounting,
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505 E. University Dr., Ste. 305
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
AGGlELt
the bathu
‘They’re almost home i
Family of soldier killed in Iraq pleads t\
keep her two sisters from being sent hi
\V
|HI
By James A. Carlson
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
(4
NEW BERLIN, Wis. — With three daughters
serving in Iraq. John and Lori Winner had a
family Web site with photos from Baghdad,
notes to home and messages of encouragement.
“Keep praying! They're almost home!" a
recent entry says.
The top notice, dated Sunday, carried grim
news: “We regret to inform you
that Michelle Winner was killed
in action April 9th
The 20-year-old private died
when her Humvee was ambushed
in Baghdad, making her the first
woman in the Wisconsin
National Guard to die in combat.
Her family is asking the mili
tary to stop her sisters from
being sent back to Iraq after this
week’s funeral.
“1 can’t live another year like
I’ve lived this one.” John Winner
told The Associated Press. “The
sacrifice that this family’s made
can never be understood by
someone who hasn’t gone
through it... It’s a burden I can’t
bear. My family can’t bear it.”
The sisters arrived home
Monday morning, two days
before Michelle’s funeral, and
indicated they would need a
week to mull over their options
Army spokesman Lt. Col. Kevin Curry sail
Defense Department policy states that if a soli;
dies while serving in a hostile area, othersolli
of the same family are exempt from serving!
hostile area if they request. The requestntusi
come from the soldiers themselves.
John Winner acknowledged the final decis
of whether to return will be up to his daughte:
But he said they would have to understand"f ,|
terribly we need to know they’re not
I can't live another
year like I've lived this
one. The sacrifice that
this family's made can
never be understood
by someone who
hasn't gone through
it... It's a burden I
can't bear. My family
can't bear it
— John Witmer
father of 20-year-old
Michelle Witmer, killed in
action in Baghdad
Witmer said he worried a 1 1
his daughters joining theniL.I
but felt at the time that duty J
the National Guard wouldM
atively safe, especially witlia
military police unit.
“My daughters wantedtti;
freedom of being able to cal
their shots with theireducatK
he said. “They wereusingtli
go to school.”
Asked on NBC’s "Todaf
whether U.S. actions inlrai)
were justified. Witmer said u
was a difficult issue to son on
but he recalled daughter
Michelle’s comments.
“She felt that shehadmai:
difference in that cultureandii
there was a liberation that wen
on." he said. “She was also\uj
concerned that if we had ate
jerk reaction to some of te
H
s
nunil
ere
Si
hra
e r
jhon
a fue
a:
diai
ick
Li
sto
ntr
odi
M
ork
[ell
“(
■e a
id i
out
n
non
ibi di:
Be
$2
he said. “In the
end. it is going to be my girls’ decision.”
Michelle's 24-year-old sister. Rachel, served
in the same unit, the 32nd Military Police
Company, which was expected to leave Iraq
shortly but just had its duty extended 120 days.
Charity Witmer. Michelle’s tw in, was sent to
Iraq late last year as a medic with Company B of
the Wisconsin Guard’s 118th Medical Battalion.
The Witmers also have two sons.
horrible things that weretiaur ‘-0S
ing, that thousands of Iraqi people wouldsuffe
from a swift exit.”
Jan Pretzel, the sisters’ grandmother,loldii
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel thatbyFetay
Michelle had an inkling her unit mightsoonsli
out of Iraq because members were told to tell
their families to stop shipping packages.
“This is a REALLY GOOD SIGN!!”slie
wrote in an e-mail. “The redeploymentproift
(though it may be long) is finally beginni
per
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