Fallen Heroes

Spc. Justin Dean Coleman
United States Army

Army Specialist Justin Dean Coleman, age 21 of Hernando Beach, died in a firefight with insurgents near the Afghanistan border, on Friday, July 24, 2009. Justin was born Aug. 31, 1987 in Tampa. He was a member of the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment with the 10th Mountain Division stationed in Fort Drum, NY. He deployed to Afghanistan on Jan. 15, 2009. He enlisted in the Army in June 2007, soon after graduating from Nature Coast Technical High School in Hernando County. He joined the military to earn money for college.

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Gunnery Sergeant
Aaron M. Kenefick,
United States Marine Corps.

Gunnery Sergeant Aaron M. Kenefick, 30, of Roswell, Ga.; assigned to 3rd Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Okinawa, Japan; died Sept. 8 while supporting combat operations in Kunar province, Afghanistan. Also killed were Gunnery Sgt. Edwin W. Johnson Jr. and 1st Lt. Michael E. Johnson.

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Lance Corporal Travis J. Layfield
United States Marine Corps

Lance Corporal Travis J. Layfield, 19, of Fremont, California was killed April 6, 2004 during a battle in Iraq’s Anbar province. He was based at Camp Pendleton, California. Travis is survived by his mother, Diane Bolton Layfield, father John Layfield, older Brother Todd Bolton, Sister Tiffany Hicks, and younger Brother Tyler Layfield

Travis was a history buff who used to watch films on World War II on the History Channel as a boy. He came from a military family. His grandfather was a Navy Seabee during World War II. Travis joined the Navy cadet program in Hayward when he was 11. His grandfather may have influenced his decision to join the Navy ROTC in high school and his enlisting in the Marine Corps after graduating from Washington High School in Hayward, California. Travis had been enthusiastic about going to Iraq. "He always said he was excited to go," said his cousin Ashley Mills, 19. "But you could see in his face he was a little scared ... He always assured us he was ready to go and that he would come back."

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US Navy
Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class
James R. Layton

US Navy Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class James R. Layton died September 08, 2009 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom

James R. Layton, 22, of Riverbank, Calif.; assigned to an embedded training team with Combined Security Transition Command in Afghanistan; died Sept. 8 in Kunar province, Afghanistan, while supporting combat operations.

A corpsman was killed Tuesday in Afghanistan while serving with an embedded training team.  Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class James Ray Layton, 22, of Riverbank, Calif., died in Kunar Province “while supporting combat operations,” according to a news release Thursday from the Defense Department.

At the time of his death Layton was assigned to Combined Security Transition Command in Afghanistan, which is responsible for training and equipping Afghan security forces.  Lt. Cmdr. John Daniels, a Navy spokesman at the Pentagon, said Layton deployed to Afghanistan with an element of the Okinawa-based 3rd Marine Division. Layton enlisted Dec. 20, 2007.

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