Tuesday, May 03 2005 @ 08:16 AM EDT
Contributed by: tomw
Views: 962
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 News Review -- A Winston man married only four months was among four U.S. soldiers killed last week when a homemade bomb detonated near their vehicle in a town of northern Iraq.
 Army Spc. Ricky William Rockholt Jr., 28, died Thursday in Tal Afar after the bomb exploded near their Stryker military vehicle.
“Rick was well-known among a lot of people in Roseburg and well-liked,†his dad, Rick Rockholt said this morning. “I’m sure going to miss him terribly.â€
Rick Rockholt learned of his son’s death Friday afternoon, when an Army sergeant and a chaplain drove to Diamond Lake to tell him. Rockholt serves as the marketing director for Diamond Lake Resort. His mother, Sherry, lives in Portland.
The other solders killed were 1st Lt. William A. Edens, 29, of Columbia, Mo., Sgt. Eric W. Morris, 31, of Sparks, Nev., and Pfc. Robert W. Murray Jr., 21, of Westfield, Ind.
Rockholt and Murray were assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, based out of Fort Carson, Colo. Edens and Morris were from the Stryker Brigade Combat Team out of Fort Lewis, Wash.
The Department of Defense, which this morning publicly identified the soldiers killed in Tal Afar, has released few details on the incident. Rockholt said he wasn’t given any further details than what was released by the Pentagon.
Ricky Rockholt got married in Canyonville on Dec. 20 to Sheridan L. Begley of Roseburg. The couple could only spend a short time together before Rockholt had to leave for Iraq. Sheridan Rockholt could not be reached this morning for comment.
Rick Rockholt spoke to his son two weeks ago on the telephone. Ricky Rockholt had just landed at the Baghdad airport after arriving from Kuwait. He tried to calm his father by telling him that all of their equipment was new and that they would be well-protected.
Ricky Rockholt is the second man with Douglas County ties to die in Iraq. U.S. Marine Cpl. James Lee Moore, a 1999 Roseburg High School graduate, 24, was killed along with 29 other Marine in a helicopter crash Jan. 26 in western Iraq.
Ricky Rockholt was born in Coos Bay. When he was 7 or 8, he moved with his family to Diamond Lake. He later moved to Roseburg, where he earned a GED from Umpqua Community College.
“He was a nice boy, hard-working and he didn’t cause any trouble,†said Marie Gambill, a GED instructor at the Woolley Center in Roseburg. After school, he worked in several local mills. He joined the Army two years ago to obtain education benefits so he could go back to school. His dad said he wanted to open a business in Roseburg. Rockholt had spent a year in Korea and came back to Fort Carson for additional training before being sent to Iraq.
Ricky Rockholt loved to snowmobile at Diamond Lake and just about anything that kept him surrounded by nature, his dad said.
“He loved the outdoors. He was an avid fisherman. He loved fishing for salmon and trout,†his father said.
Funeral arrangements are still being made. They will be announced at a later time. |
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I would like to say thank you to you and the other soldier who was killed in that Styker with you for your service and sacrifice for our Country. And to your family, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.
"Brave Rifles!"(3rd ACR Motto)