Normal terms of approbation like commitment, dedication, honor, and sacrifice take on a rarefied and solemn level of meaning when applied to men and women in the armed forces, especially during wartime.
From General Ray Odierno, the Army commander in Iraq, a 1972 graduate of Morris Hills High School in Rockaway, to soldiers in support roles or in combat, New Jerseyans serving in Iraq and Afghanistan deserve our admiration and thanks. In addition to full-time soldiers, 2,850 citizen-soldiers—the 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Army National Guard, representing all 21 counties in New Jersey—returned from a one-year deployment in Iraq last year. As of late February, another 2,294 Air National Guard, Army National Guard, and reservists remain on active duty in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations in Southwest Asia.
Armed Forces recruiting is up, although that is largely because of high unemployment at home. Last year, more than 1,000 men and women from New Jersey enlisted in the Marine Corps, compared to an annual average of about 700, according to Sergeant Chadwick DeBree of the Marine Corps Recruiting Station New Jersey.
Underscoring the price our troops are prepared to pay, in late February a 106th name—Army Sergeant Marcos Gorra of North Bergen—was added to the New Jersey Fallen Heroes Memorial in Trenton, which honors service men and women killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2002. Along with those who were injured, who came home safely, who went back for second or third deployments, and who continue to serve, they deserve to be counted among New Jersey’s best.