Our thoughts and prayers go out to Chief Warrant Officer Clark’s loved ones:

A Newton soldier killed in Iraq last week will be laid to rest Monday at Sunset Memorial Park in Dothan.

CW3 Donald Clark, 37, was killed in action when his OH-58 Kiowa Warrior helicopter went down on Nov. 15 in the eastern part of Mosul, Iraq.

Final arrangements were still being worked out Friday, but family members say preliminary plans have Clark’s body being flown to the cemetery via a Huey helicopter, with a horsedrawn caisson carrying the casket to the graveside. Organizers were also hoping to arrange for a Kiowa flyover.

Clark was born in Boardman, Ohio, but has lived in Newton for several years with his wife, Jamie.

The funeral is set for 3 p.m. The family requests that donations be made to the Donald V. Clark Memorial Fund at Army Aviation Federal Credit Union in lieu of flowers.

Also killed in the accident was Army Chief Warrant Officer Christian P. Humphreys, 28, of Fallon, Nev.

A full obituary can be found inside today’s Dothan Eagle.

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A friend of mine emailed me this morning about something published yesterday in the Dothan Eagle. A very touching story detailing the recent return of the 164th Theater Airfield Operations Group at Fort Rucker, including one couple who met through Soldiers’ Angels!

Read the entire story here.

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Courtesy of the Patriot Guard Riders, the 1203rd guard unit from Dothan will be coming home this Sunday, June 8th. Details are currently not available, but if you want to participate, please contact your local PGR captain.

UPDATE: 06/04/2008 — This has also been covered on the WVTY News 4 site:

A National Guard unit from Dothan could return home this weekend after nearly nine months in Iraq.

170 members of the 1203rd Engineer Battalion’s headquarters company was scheduled to return this week to Fort McCoy, Wisconsin.

After a few days at Fort McCoy, the unit should head home to Dothan and could arrive this Sunday.

The 1203rd’s mission overseas included road-side bomb patrols, helping communities erect security barriers and working with Iraqi soldiers to repair bomb-damaged roads.

UPDATE: 06/06/2008 — The Birmingham News also chimes in:

The Alabama Army National Guard’s Headquarters Company, 1203rd Engineer Battalion, is scheduled to return to its armory in Dothan on Sunday afternoon.

The unit, which has about 170 soldiers, was in Iraq for about nine months, based at Logistics Support Area Anaconda near the city of Balad. It has spent several days at Fort McCoy, Wis., where it trained before deploying.

While at Anaconda, the 1203rd headquarters company had about 900 additional soldiers and airmen under its command. Its mission in Iraq included roadside bomb patrols, helping nearby communities erect security barriers, and working with Iraqi soldiers to repair bomb-damaged roads.

Welcome home, heroes!!!

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