I briefly remember filling this out a while ago.  I recently stumbled on it, and thought you all would like to add your own entry. 

To write in or view his guestbook, go to:

http://www.legacy.com/NewsZapDE/gb/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonID=20374610

 

 

Honor in sacrifice

The Legislature will recognize 67 servicemembers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan

ON FRIDAY, Pamela Fiscus visited Arlington National Cemetery where the ashes of her 26-year-old son, killed while serving with the 25th Infantry Division last year, is entombed.

Tomorrow, Fiscus will visit the islands for the first time and will be honored by the state Legislature for the sacrifice of her son, Sgt. Keith E. Fiscus, who was killed Dec. 2 in Baghdad, Iraq. Keith Fiscus had been assigned to the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, since 2002.

She will be one of 42 family members who will receive the Hawaii Medal of Honor in a joint session of the state Legislature in the Senate chambers, which will begin at 10 a.m.

..> ..>The medal, designed by Sgt. 1st Class Aaron Pollick, historian for the Hawaii Army National Guard, features the state coat of arms and the Maltese Cross, which depicts four axes of the globe, representing Hawaii as the crossroads of the Pacific.

Sixty-seven servicemembers with ties to Hawaii who were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan will be honored

This is the second time such a ceremony will be held. Last year 120 servicemembers were recognized.

"Arlington was just so beautiful," said Fiscus as she completed the 90-minute drive to her home in Townsend, Del. "But it was so very sad to see all the fallen soldiers."

She hopes to spend time with soldiers in her son's unit.

"I had wished to visit him when he was stationed here, but it didn't come true.

"This will be my first time. It will be very, very difficult."

Pamela Fiscus, who opposed her son enlisting in the Army, said she is still finding out how he died.

She said that her son, who had just been promoted and re-enlisted, wasn't supposed to be in the Humvee, whose doors didn't work, in a convoy that had turned onto the wrong road.

Her son was thrown from the Humvee and was killed instantly.

When she was informed that she and her son would be recognized by the Hawaii Legislature, "I was just elated," she said.

"I cried for the longest time. ... it's such an honor. Nothing will keep me from being there."

Michelle Sakoda, whose husband, Sgt. Steve Sakoda, was killed by a roadside bomb on April 29, 2006, said she remembers her husband last year trying to get recognition for a friend for the same award.

"I'm glad and honored," said Michelle Sakoda, who is now living near Seattle and working as a registered nurse.

She said her husband was motivated to join in part because of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists attack on the World Trade Center. Sakoda, 29, was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 75th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) when he was killed last year.

She said members of her husband's unit still keep in touch with her.

Rep. Mark Takai, who authored the 2005 law creating the Hawaii medal, said: "In the past four years, the war against terrorism has changed our world and our lives in a profound way.

"Ultimately, it's not about politics, it's not about money, and it's not even about winning. It's all about the families and their loved ones and what these brave men and women sacrificed to our country.

"The Hawaii Medal of Honor is a symbol of our remembering those who stood tall for our values so that we may live in a land perpetuated in righteousness."

2007 Hawaii Medal of Honor recipients

» 1st Lt. Dustin M. Shumney (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Richard A. Perez Jr. (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Kristen K. Figueroa Marino (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Nicholas R. Anderson (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Andres Aguilar Jr. (Marine Corps)
» Pfc. Joseph I. Love (Army)
» Staff Sgt. Jason C. Ramseyer (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Eric R. Lueken (Marine Corps)
» Staff Sgt. Metodio A. Bandonill (Army)
» Staff Sgt. Edward G. Davis III (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Brandon M. Hardy (Marine Corps)
» Sgt. Lea R. Mills (Marine Corps)
» Sgt. Steve M. Sakoda (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Adam C. Conboy (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Hatak Yuka Keyu M. Yearby (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Jose S. MarinDominguez Jr. (Marine Corps)

» Sgt. David R. Christoff Jr. (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. William J. Leusink (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Michael A. Estrella (Marine Corps)
» Staff Sgt. Jeffrey S. Loa (Army)
» Cpl. Jeremy R. Shank (Army)
» Sgt. 1st Class Michael T. Fuga (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Ryan A. Miller (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Yull Estrada Rodriguez (Marine Corps)
» Sgt. Velton Locklear III (Army)
» Pfc. Kenneth E. Kincaid IV (Army)
» Pfc. Christopher T. Riviere (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. James Chamroeun (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Michael K. Oremus (Army)
» Staff Sgt. Daniel Isshak (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Derek W. Jones (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Jeremy S. Sandvick Monroe (Marine Corps)
» Capt. Shane T. Adcock (Army)
» Pfc. Kenny F. Stanton Jr. (Army)
» 1st Lt. Joshua Deese (Army)
» Sgt. Jonathan E. Lootens (Army)
» 1st Lt. Joshua L. Booth (Marine Corps)
» Pvt. Edwardo J. Lopez (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Daniel B. Chaires (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Donald S. Brown (Marine Corps)
» Staff Sgt. Richwell A. Doria (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Timothy W. Brown (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Mario D. Gonzalez (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Michael D. Scholl (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. James R. Davenport (Marine Corps)
» Pfc. Heath D. Warner (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Joshua C. Alonzo (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Jeromy D. West (Marine Corps)
» Sgt. Keith E. Fiscus (Army)
» Lt. Col. Joseph T. McCloud (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Joshua C. Sticklen (Marine Corps)
» Maj. Megan Malia-Leilani McClung (Marine Corps)
» Pfc. Travis C. Krege (Army)
» Sgt. Jesse J.J. Castro (Army)
» Cpl. Jason I. Huffman (Army)
» Cpl. Yari Mokri (Army)
» Sgt. Joshua B. Madden (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Matthew W. Clark (Marine Corps)
» Staff Sgt. Henry K. Kahalewai Jr. (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Stephen L. Morris (Marine Corps)
» Cpl. Toby R. Olsen (Army)
» Gunnery Sgt. Terry J. Elliott (Marine Corps)
» Hospitalman Matthew G. Conte (Navy)
» Cpl. Kenneth T. Butler (Army)
» Cpl. David C. Armstrong (Army)
» Lance Cpl. Daniel T. Morris (Marine Corps)
» Lance Cpl. Anthony L. Aguirre (Marine Corps)

---

Compiled by the Office of Rep. K. Mark Takai

Sen. Thomas Carper [D-DE]: ..Mr. President, I rise today to reflect on the life and service of Army SGT Keith E. Fiscus. Keith epitomized the best of our country's brave men and women who fought to free Iraq and to secure a new democracy in the Middle East. He exhibited unwavering courage, dutiful service to his country, and above all else, honor. In the way he lived his life--and how we remember him--Keith reminds each of us just how good we can be.

Keith was born to Pamela and Darrell Fiscus in Glendale, CA, in 1980. His family moved to Townsend, DE, in 1998. He was the second oldest of four children and is survived by an 18-year-old brother, Jordan, and two sisters, Korrie, 16, and Dena, 28. My heart goes out to each of them.

Keith finished his senior year at Glasgow High School in Newark, DE, and graduated in 1998. After his graduation, Keith took a job in the produce department at Genuardi's supermarket in Glasgow, DE, and then worked as a customer service representative for a major credit card company. He enrolled in business classes at Delaware Technical & Community College but soon decided that his interests didn't include sitting behind a desk in an office or classroom.

Inspired by his grandparents' service in the Armed Forces, Keith joined the Army in 2002. After graduating from boot camp, he was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division based out of Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. He was deployed to Iraq and served with distinction for the duration of his 14-month tour.

While serving in Iraq, Keith decided to reenlist in the Army. After returning to the States, Keith received training on how to identify and disarm explosives. Keith volunteered to serve a second tour of duty in Iraq and was deployed again in August of 2006. He was scheduled to return home in February of 2007.

On December 2, 2006, Keith was serving as a machine gunner for an explosive ordinance disposal team on their way to clear a suspected roadside bomb near the city of Taji. An improvised explosive device was triggered near the humvee he was riding in, and Sergeant Fiscus was killed instantly.

Contrary to his tough-looking tattoos and love of heavy metal music, Keith was a fun-loving, caring, and sensitive young man. He was described by those that knew him as a hopeless romantic who loved the camaraderie of the Army and spending time with family and friends. He was also an avid golfer and fisherman.

Sergeant Fiscus was also an excellent soldier. He was an expert rifleman who received numerous recognitions during his Army career: Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, and Combat Infantryman Badge. The Purple Heart and the Bronze Star were awarded posthumously.

I rise today to commemorate Keith, to celebrate his life, and to offer his family our support and our deepest sympathy on their tragic loss.

It's no secret that Fisk loved his tats.  It was something that made him... well... him!  This blog is for all those who are getting tattoos in the name of Fisk.  If you have already done so, please post up a pic and what it means to you or how it relates to him.  I already know many of you are in the works to get something done.  And we all know Keith is looking down going, "Dude, thats tits, yo!"

 

 

The Middletown Transcript

The story also can be found at: www.middletowntranscript.com

Remembering U.S. Army Sgt. Keith E. Fiscus

By Shauna McVey
Staff Reporter
shauna.mcvey@doverpost.com

Keith Fiscus liked to play his electric guitar, loud.

While stationed in Wailua, Hawaii, he would turn his amp up all the way and fill the night air with rock music he taught himself to play.

His arms were covered with colorful tattoos of flames, a Plumeria flower, his nickname "Fisk," a tribal band and a pool ball with the number 3, a tattoo several of his Army friends permanently display to signify their deployment to Iraq with the 3rd platoon.

Yet, underneath his six-foot tall, tattooed frame, was a softer side filled with honor, courage and respect.

"He was this guy with all these tattoos, but he was the biggest teddy bear," said Alicia Dove, who knew Keith when he was stationed in Hawaii. "He was extremely intelligent. He could hold a conversation with anyone and he'd know the facts, and he liked bunny rabbits."

Dove said Keith once owned a white rabbit named Lemmiwinks that he would let sit in his lap as he drove his Volkswagen Beatle around Hawaii.

She said Keith was unpredictable and adapted to anyone he met. He was well rounded, could hang out with the boys or the girls and blend in with anyone.

"He smiled all the time. He had a beautiful face, a beautiful heart and a beautiful smile," said Keith's mother Pamela Fiscus. "He was never mean and always happy. I've never heard him say anything bad."

The 26-year old U.S. Army Sergeant was killed Dec. 2 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee in Taji, Iraq.

He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, based at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.

Pamela had just arrived at her home near Townsend after Christmas shopping nearly three weeks ago when she received the news.

She was about to unload her car when she saw two men in green uniforms walking up her driveway. She ran inside, knowing this was the moment she wished would never come.

"Every time the phone rang, I would jump," she said. "Every time I go outside, I keep seeing them walking up my driveway."

Keith enlisted in the Army in 2002, and had already served one tour in Iraq, during which he re-enlisted for another term. While back in Hawaii after his first deployment, he volunteered to return to Iraq to serve as protection for an Air Force group. He went through explosives training at Aberdeen, Md., and his job was to dismantle IEDs.

He had just received word that he was being promoted from E5, sergeant, to E6, staff sergeant. He was scheduled to return home in February 2007, after which he would go through explosive ordinance division training to further his military career.

Keith told his mother before he died that when his term ended in 2010, he wanted to join a police force bomb squad.

"He was so happy about everything," she said. "He said, 'I finally know what I'm going to do with my life'."

Born and raised in California, Keith was the captain of his high school's golf team. During his senior year, his family moved to Delaware and he began attending Glasgow High School.

"Keith arrived at Glasgow totally focused on graduation," retired Glasgow High School assistant principal Bill Conley stated in an email message. "He immediately made friends with the student body and his senior advisor Jim Hoosty. Mr. Hoosty and I both remember Keith as extremely pleasant and respectful."

Keith graduated from Glasgow in 1998, before his family moved to the Townsend area six years ago. After graduation, he went to work for Genuardi's, now Safeway, in People's Plaza, and later for Discover Card.

His mother said she thinks he got bored and decided to join the military. She said he was very patriotic and would do what he had to do for his freedom. He planned on going back to Iraq three or four times in his career.

"He was proud to be an American, he was proud to be a soldier," Pamela said. "He always told me it was his job and he would do it as many times as he needed to be there."

Pamela said she doesn't agree with the war, but she supported her son through every step of his service. She drives a car with the words "Proud mother of an American soldier," along with patriotic ribbons.

She said she always sent him birthday and holiday emails and would send him whatever he craved including cherry pop-tarts, gummy bears and "packs and packs" of flavored gum.

She would do anything for her oldest son, who she said was like her rock. She lost her mother, her only sibling and her father all within 18 months and she said Keith was always there to comfort her.

"It's like he knew I was sad. I would get a phone call and he always knew what to say," she said. "Every night I sat in front of his picture and I never went to bed without praying. I kept saying 'if you have to take anybody else, just take me because I've been through so much I can't take anymore'."

Keith told her it was a safe mission and, knowing she was worried, he always said, "Mom, I'm OK. I'm safe. Don't worry about me."

During Keith's first tour of duty in 2004, his mother found an anonymous note on her car that thanked her, her family and Keith for his part in defending freedom in the United States.

"I still carry the note because whoever it was is like a guardian angel," she said. "I keep it with me with his picture and I'll keep it with me for the rest of my life."

In addition to his parents and three siblings, Keith also had a special place in his heart for his niece.

"His favorite person in the world was his niece," Dove said. "He always talked about her. Every time she asked for something, he'd give it to her."

On the morning of Dec. 14, family, friends and supporters gathered in front of the Volunteer Hose Company of Middletown and rode in an procession of cars through the heavy fog to deliver Keith's ashes to his final resting place in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.

Several veterans and civilians stood along U.S. 301 with an American flag saluting Sgt. Fiscus as he left Delaware for the last time, said Dove.

Dove said the entire ride was foggy until they reached Arlington, when the fog lifted, giving way to a clear blue sky.

Keith was interred in the cemetery's columbarium with full military honors conducted by the Army's Old Guard including a 21-gun salute followed by the 24 solemn bugle notes that compose Taps.

"It was absolutely amazing. Everything from the viewing to the funeral was how it should be," Dove said about the number of people who paid their respects. A Dec. 12 memorial service was held at the Volunteer Hose Company of Middletown, where friends, family members and members of the community gathered. "He deserved every bit of that. I just think Keith would have been like 'this is so cool.' He would love it."

Dove said Keith told others that if he were to die, he wanted it to happen while he was serving his country.

"We think it's really what he wanted," she said. "As much as we hate to say it, we're glad in that respect, but we just miss him."

Pamela spoke with Spc. Matthew Murray, who was with Keith and was injured when the bomb exploded. She said the two soldiers were close and were "watching each other's backs" all the time.

"He wanted me to know that my son was not afraid," Pamela said. "He kept telling me it was such an honor to be with him."

Dove and her husband, Devin, spent last week with the Fiscus family and several of his other buddies. Devin enlisted in the Army with Keith in 2002.

She said a bit of Keith's character could be seen in each of his friends. Humor, rowdiness, maturity and intelligence were all traits he possessed. He also loved his hair.

"His hair was his baby," she said, adding that Keith would not approve of the way it was styled before the viewing. Devin and another friend of Keith's "went to the funeral home and did his hair" to ensure he looked like himself.

Dove also created an online tribute to Keith on the popular networking Web site Myspace.com.

Several of his friends have gathered on the site posting poems and well wishes, connecting with each other and sharing memories.

"He was really a gentleman, if you could put it all in one word," Dove said. "Always thoughtful, he was quick to forgive people and just a remarkable man. If you ever meet his family, you can see where that came from."

Pamela said her heart goes out to anybody who has lost someone overseas. She said she wants the U.S. troops to come home and the war to stop, but she has a deep respect for everyone who has served in the military.

"You can't help but be proud because we wouldn't be living in the land of the free if it wasn't for them," Pamela said. "The world has lost a good person, and I lost one my best friends."

ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY

Soldier 'Loved His Country'

Sergeant on 2nd Iraq Tour Had Childhood Interest in Military

By Fredrick Kunkle

Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, December 15, 2006; Page B03

A thin shroud of mist veiled Arlington National Cemetery yesterday as a line of soldiers in dress uniforms waited for the mourners to arrive.

A bugler stood at the entrance of a stone funerary vault, muffling his horn with a white-gloved hand while blowing a few practice notes.

 

Then a car drove up, and the soldiers snapped to attention, presenting arms.

One soldier removed a folded U.S. flag from the car. Another removed a box-like urn containing the remains of Army Sgt. Keith E. Fiscus.

Then Darrell and Pamela Fiscus, who had tried to dissuade their 26-year-old son from joining the military, fell in behind the escorts, followed by other family members and mourners.

The urn flashed in the sunlight as they turned toward the columbarium, a fortress-like vault where the cremated remains of military personnel are interred.

Then they stopped in a stone court, where the Army's Old Guard conducted a military funeral for Fiscus, the 285th Iraq war casualty to be laid to rest at Arlington.

Fiscus, of Townsend, Del., had reenlisted -- he renewed his commitment during his first combat tour in Iraq. He died during his second tour, when a roadside bomb hit his Humvee on Dec. 2 in Baghdad.

"It was just something he decided to do," Darrell Fiscus said in a telephone interview. "He loved his country. He just wanted to go."

Keith Fiscus was born in Glendale, Calif., the second of four children. His father said that his son's interest in the military began with G.I. Joe action figures when he was a boy. Fiscus also enjoyed golf and bass fishing and taught himself to play the electric guitar.

"He was a prankster. He was always wanting attention," Darrell Fiscus said.

Fiscus grew up mostly in Littlerock, a small town about 60 miles north of Los Angeles, before moving with his family to Delaware when he was in high school.

"He was a straight-up kid," said James Keily, an automotive teacher at Littlerock High School. Keily said that Fiscus showed a level of care for detail that was rare for students his age.

After graduating in 1998 from Glasgow High School in Delaware, Fiscus worked at a supermarket and as a credit card customer service representative. He enlisted in the Army in 2002.

Fiscus was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, based in Hawaii. Before returning to Iraq, he told his parents not to worry -- this time, the mission would be less dangerous. Then his unit recently moved to Taji, a place that was more restive, his father said.

"They had to watch their backs very closely, because they had snipers shooting at them. He had some close calls," Darrell Fiscus said. "It's senseless. It's so senseless."

During yesterday's brief ceremony, six soldiers unfolded the flag and pulled it taut over the urn. Three rifle volleys cracked, and the first plaintive notes of taps floated toward the mourners with the odor of gunpowder.

The soldiers refolded the flag, their white-gloved fingers smoothing each crease along its length, moving from the red stripes to the blue field of white stars. They tucked its folds and shaped each point. A soldier pressed it to his chest.

Then, with a salute, the flag was given to Maj. Gen. Timothy P. McHale. The general strode to the family, bent down on one knee and handed it to Pamela Fiscus, his mouth shaping words that could not be heard from the other side of the velvet rope.