Remembering Dan.

[bobross]

I think that hating country music is a form of snobbery that I haven't ever got. I know several and yet the music they do like isn't that much different. Often the only difference is that country has a very definite rhythm that allows people to dance to it...couples dance, not wiggling at the same time dancing.

I think the following song is the definition of what we should hope people see us as Christians to be...we need to love people like Jesus does...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EjN4m1jPZ0

Great song. Thank you.

 

[PrayerWarrior88]

thanks memoriesbymichelle!

that is a crazy nice fish. wonder where he caught it? might have to steer the carrier that way haha

I don't know but it is a cool fish. Maybe a marlin? I do know I wouldn't want to mess with that guy though. Praying for his family!

 

[bobross]

http://www.christianforums.com/t7809764/ for his son.

 

[CajunQueen]

From someone that knew Dan and has posted here before.

Re: Hello

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I wanted to share this story just because it's pretty powerful and I figure there's no better place to share it than here on a christian website.


Dan wasn't the guy who would come up to you and say, "Have you heard about Jesus Christ"? and then proceed to witness to you and tell you why you're going to hell if you don't accept him into your heart. Dan was the guy who witnessed to people through living a great life and giving all glory to God. He led by example in all aspects of his life. And he was the kind of guy who you wanted to listen to and emulate and work hard for. It is amazing how many guys he brought to God just by being who he was and living a good christian life. I think he had just about every Marine in his unit going to church on Sundays, not because he told them to but because they saw that that was the best thing for them. There is a saying that there are no atheists in foxholes. Well that isn't true. There are a ton of atheists in the military, so it is no easy task to get a bunch of stubborn jarheads to believe that there is a God when they are seeing the things they are seeing and constantly in danger of being killed.


When we were in Ramadi in 2005 we had an Iraqi interpreter named Ayham attached to our unit. He would never miss an opportunity to tell you his name meant "brave". And he really was very brave for what he did. Dan and Ayham built up a pretty strong and trusting relationship. I don't know if any of you have any experience with it but it takes a lot to build up trust with the INF (Iraqi National Force) guys because a lot of them joined just to infiltrate our Ops. We had that happen before so it was especially hard to trust them. But Dan formed a bond with this guy. They talked a lot about religion. Dan about Christianity and Ayham about Islam. They wouldn't debate, they just talked. Dan had a bible and he would read from it to him and Ayham would read from the Koran. Now to make a long story very short, one morning after a particularly bloody firefight, Ayham told us he would like to say something. He then told us that he had become a Christian was going to convert his entire family as well thanks to Mr. Gregory (that was Dan's last name). If you don't know how brave it is for a Muslim to profess something like that, well it's more brave than anything any of us have ever done. After that I really saw a change in Ayham. He went from being a kind of solemn and unhappy guy to being full of life. Even when times were tough, which was almost every day. He said it was the best thing he ever did in his life. From what I know about Dan, I wouldn't be surprised if there were others that he was able to convert as well.


Most of you probably never knew that Dan was anything other than a lonely, crippled, and angry man. I've read through the posts he made here his last few days and it didn't even sound like the Dan I knew and loved. Sadly if I hadn't known him and read these things I would have thought, what is this guy's problem? It was obvious he needed a friend more than anything and I just wish I would have known. I wish I could have visited him and let him know that somebody was there and actually cared about him. He literally had nobody besides you guys there at the end. From what I understand, his aunt & uncle were there at the house but he wouldn't talk to them. So I guess you guys were it. And you did all you could. I think he knew a long time ago it was going to come to what it came to.


All he cared about was his family and he knew (or thought he knew) that he was never going to get his wife and kids back, and he knew he was never going to get his Marines back. He knew he was never going to be able to walk and talk and function like a normal human being. I can't say that I would have handled it any different than he ultimately did. Dan loved to coach his kids' teams and run and workout. He loved to spend time with his wife. They had been together since his junior year and her sophomore year in high school. 22 years. I seriously have never met two people who loved each other more. Most Marines don't smile all the time like he did, but he loved his life. He loved being a dad and a husband. And he would tell you in a heartbeat that all the good in his life was because of God. Not to say that his life was perfect. He has some really bad things happen in his short life, but he never let things get him down. He knew that God was going to take care of him.

Beautiful. I needed to read something like it this morning.
Thank you.

 

[WalksWithChrist]

From someone that knew Dan and has posted here before.

Re: Hello

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I wanted to share this story just because it's pretty powerful and I figure there's no better place to share it than here on a christian website.


Dan wasn't the guy who would come up to you and say, "Have you heard about Jesus Christ"? and then proceed to witness to you and tell you why you're going to hell if you don't accept him into your heart. Dan was the guy who witnessed to people through living a great life and giving all glory to God. He led by example in all aspects of his life. And he was the kind of guy who you wanted to listen to and emulate and work hard for. It is amazing how many guys he brought to God just by being who he was and living a good christian life. I think he had just about every Marine in his unit going to church on Sundays, not because he told them to but because they saw that that was the best thing for them. There is a saying that there are no atheists in foxholes. Well that isn't true. There are a ton of atheists in the military, so it is no easy task to get a bunch of stubborn jarheads to believe that there is a God when they are seeing the things they are seeing and constantly in danger of being killed.


When we were in Ramadi in 2005 we had an Iraqi interpreter named Ayham attached to our unit. He would never miss an opportunity to tell you his name meant "brave". And he really was very brave for what he did. Dan and Ayham built up a pretty strong and trusting relationship. I don't know if any of you have any experience with it but it takes a lot to build up trust with the INF (Iraqi National Force) guys because a lot of them joined just to infiltrate our Ops. We had that happen before so it was especially hard to trust them. But Dan formed a bond with this guy. They talked a lot about religion. Dan about Christianity and Ayham about Islam. They wouldn't debate, they just talked. Dan had a bible and he would read from it to him and Ayham would read from the Koran. Now to make a long story very short, one morning after a particularly bloody firefight, Ayham told us he would like to say something. He then told us that he had become a Christian was going to convert his entire family as well thanks to Mr. Gregory (that was Dan's last name). If you don't know how brave it is for a Muslim to profess something like that, well it's more brave than anything any of us have ever done. After that I really saw a change in Ayham. He went from being a kind of solemn and unhappy guy to being full of life. Even when times were tough, which was almost every day. He said it was the best thing he ever did in his life. From what I know about Dan, I wouldn't be surprised if there were others that he was able to convert as well.


Most of you probably never knew that Dan was anything other than a lonely, crippled, and angry man. I've read through the posts he made here his last few days and it didn't even sound like the Dan I knew and loved. Sadly if I hadn't known him and read these things I would have thought, what is this guy's problem? It was obvious he needed a friend more than anything and I just wish I would have known. I wish I could have visited him and let him know that somebody was there and actually cared about him. He literally had nobody besides you guys there at the end. From what I understand, his aunt & uncle were there at the house but he wouldn't talk to them. So I guess you guys were it. And you did all you could. I think he knew a long time ago it was going to come to what it came to.


All he cared about was his family and he knew (or thought he knew) that he was never going to get his wife and kids back, and he knew he was never going to get his Marines back. He knew he was never going to be able to walk and talk and function like a normal human being. I can't say that I would have handled it any different than he ultimately did. Dan loved to coach his kids' teams and run and workout. He loved to spend time with his wife. They had been together since his junior year and her sophomore year in high school. 22 years. I seriously have never met two people who loved each other more. Most Marines don't smile all the time like he did, but he loved his life. He loved being a dad and a husband. And he would tell you in a heartbeat that all the good in his life was because of God. Not to say that his life was perfect. He has some really bad things happen in his short life, but he never let things get him down. He knew that God was going to take care of him.

What an amazing story of courage and dedication and love. Please pass on my thanks to the person who wrote that.

 

[WalksWithChrist]

It was also requested that I post this and ask everyone to pray for the families of these other fallen Marines. These were Dan's closest friends and four of them died the day he was wounded. Dan would have wanted us to pray for their families.

From left to right (the ones with the asterisk are the ones who didn't make it):

*Mike Martinez
*Joe Chenoweth
Dennis Benson
Nick Fox
*Ricky Kazas
Dan
*Jorge Torrez
Brett Pulju
Luke Kauer

I was told this was the day before they left. The other four men were with a different squad that day and they were uninjured. I'm sure they are needing prayers as well.

Sure thing.

They are all together again now.

 

[WalksWithChrist]

I don't think he was able to "hear" the thanks anymore. Someone had convinced him that he was a "monster" and a "murderer" of many thousands of people through that service...and that even God couldn't love him because of this. He didn't feel like it was a compliment or a "praise". He no longer felt the honor that he obviously once did.

Sad to say, I kind of suspect that this belief (and bullying) came from people on Christianforum based on what he said and how active he appeared to be here both before and after his injuries. After the fact, his social life was primarily limited to online because of his disabilities.

Frankly, it's because of people like Dan that I have returned to CF. There really is a lot of bullying here. Almost every time I log on, I see some example of bullying and I'll reach out to the person targeted. I heard some of what Dan went through here and it breaks my heart still. There's nothing worse than kicking someone when they're down.

 

[blackribbon]

Frankly, it's because of people like Dan that I have returned to CF. There really is a lot of bullying here. Almost every time I log on, I see some example of bullying and I'll reach out to the person targeted. I heard some of what Dan went through here and it breaks my heart still. There's nothing worse than kicking someone when they're down.

I mostly stay in this corner of the world because of the bullying on this forum. I am sure there are some excellent moderators but I have seen moderators overlook bullying and actually be the source of the bullying at times. (I may get in trouble for saying this but it is true). Mostly, what I have witnessed here is people who seem to stalk members when they try to move to friendly areas. We have an awesome group here in the "matures". We don't agree a lot of the time but we are very adult in our "agree to disagree" so we can really have some good conversations that go a lot deeper than "what song are you listening to at this minute"...(though we do have light threads too).

It isn't okay to kick someone when they are up either...and yet, plenty of people like to do that too.

 

[WalksWithChrist]

I mostly stay in this corner of the world because of the bullying on this forum. I am sure there are some excellent moderators but I have seen moderators overlook bullying and actually be the source of the bullying at times. (I may get in trouble for saying this but it is true). Mostly, what I have witnessed here is people who seem to stalk members when they try to move to friendly areas. We have an awesome group here in the "matures". We don't agree a lot of the time but we are very adult in our "agree to disagree" so we can really have some good conversations that go a lot deeper than "what song are you listening to at this minute"...(though we do have light threads too).

It isn't okay to kick someone when they are up either...and yet, plenty of people like to do that too.

I know exactly what you mean.

 

[GIPPER119]

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.
- John Stuart Mill

You did the right thing, sir. May you rest in peace. You earned it. God bless you and your family.

 

[|0sT]

i saw a link for this and am very sad to find out that this guy died. i looked in my pm's and there was one from him dated feb 24 1:13 am.. that must have been not long before he died. i was going to kill myself that night be he convinced me how much i had to live for and to please not do it. he talked me down and prayed for me. He saved my life. i didn't even know what he was going through. he just wanted to help me. i hope i can live a good long life in his honor.

 

[memoriesbymichelle]

i saw a link for this and am very sad to find out that this guy died. i looked in my pm's and there was one from him dated feb 24 1:13 am.. that must have been not long before he died. i was going to kill myself that night be he convinced me how much i had to live for and to please not do it. he talked me down and prayed for me. He saved my life. i didn't even know what he was going through. he just wanted to help me. i hope i can live a good long life in his honor.

Wow I hope you can too! That would be what he would want for you I'm sure.

 

[blackribbon]

i saw a link for this and am very sad to find out that this guy died. i looked in my pm's and there was one from him dated feb 24 1:13 am.. that must have been not long before he died. i was going to kill myself that night be he convinced me how much i had to live for and to please not do it. he talked me down and prayed for me. He saved my life. i didn't even know what he was going through. he just wanted to help me. i hope i can live a good long life in his honor.

And know if you need someone to talk to, ignore the "mature" on our thread and come talk to us...the label is just for who "lives" here but anyone is welcome to come visit

 

[|0sT]

thanks. good to meet you guys. he told me he found some really good people here so probably talking about you. thanks for letting me visit

 

[|0sT]

is his son going to be o k?

 

[blackribbon]

is his son going to be o k?

I am sure that this immediate problem will be healed. However, the grief is the real problem and that takes time, prayer, love, and understanding. He is in a place where they can hopefully address his real problem which is basically a broken heart. This family needs a lot of healing and prayer.

I don't know that they will ever be "healed" but they can find a way to survive and thrive again.

 

[Doctor Strangelove]

Wow, I0sT. I hope you are doing okay - you know what is right and what isn't right. I have run into a couple of threads where people mentioned that Dan helped them. We try to keep positive here - but more in spite of problems than denying or sugar-coating problems. Positive, but not the false type of happiness that has pat answers for everything.

 

[Eagle Of Oz]

i saw a link for this and am very sad to find out that this guy died. i looked in my pm's and there was one from him dated feb 24 1:13 am.. that must have been not long before he died. i was going to kill myself that night be he convinced me how much i had to live for and to please not do it. he talked me down and prayed for me. He saved my life. i didn't even know what he was going through. he just wanted to help me. i hope i can live a good long life in his honor.

I'm sooo glad that Dan connected with you, encouraged you, and helped like that. AND I'm soooo glad you're here today!! *hugs* Thanks for sharing with us, and I agree with the other lovely people here, hang out, chat, vent, whenever you want.

 

[Eagle Of Oz]

Thank so much to everyone who has been sharing memories, thoughts, photos etc, of Dan. God bless each and every one of you. ((((hugs))))

 

[bobross]

i saw a link for this and am very sad to find out that this guy died. i looked in my pm's and there was one from him dated feb 24 1:13 am.. that must have been not long before he died. i was going to kill myself that night be he convinced me how much i had to live for and to please not do it. he talked me down and prayed for me. He saved my life. i didn't even know what he was going through. he just wanted to help me. i hope i can live a good long life in his honor.

So great to hear this, lost! Like everyone said, we are always here if you need to talk, vent, whatever. You are so special to God and we are very happy you are alive