Roadside bomb in Iraq kills Elma 24-year-old

BY CHRISTIAN HILL | THE OLYMPIAN • Published January 31, 2007

Loving father

Their son was born Jan. 22, 2006, and Mickel took on a new mission in life.

"He wanted to be the best dad he could be, and he was," she said.

Natasha and her son moved in with her family in Nevada before he deployed to Iraq for a second time.

On Saturday, hours after she returned home from visiting his parents, casualty officers notified her of Mickel's death.

She turns 22 today. "I never see myself celebrating a birthday ever again," she said.

On Friday, the day before Natasha flew back to Nevada with her son, Mickel called his parents. After a brief conversation with his mother, he asked that she pass the phone to Ethan.

His son inadvertently hung up as Mickel spoke to him.

Mickel was unable to call back.

Christian Hill covers the city of Lacey and military for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5427 or chill@theolympian.com.

Other servicemembers with South Sound ties killed in Iraq

Here's a list of other U.S. servicemembers with ties to South Sound killed in Iraq:

Army Sgt. Justin Norton, 21, a native of Rainier, was killed June 24 when an improvised explosive device exploded near Baghdad. He was assigned to Fort Hood, Texas.

Marine Cpl. Joseph Bier, 22, of Centralia, died Dec. 7, 2005, from an improvised explosive device in Ar Ramadi. He was assigned to the I Marine Expeditionary Force based at Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Navy Reserve Petty Officer 1st Class Regina Clark, 43, of Centralia, was killed June 23, 2005, when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device exploded near her vehicle in Fallujah. She was temporarily assigned to II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Air Force Master Sgt. Steven E. Auchman, 37, who was living in Lacey while stationed at Fort Lewis, was killed during a mortar attack in Mosul on Nov. 9, 2004. He was assigned to the 5th Air Support Operations Squadron at Fort Lewis.

Marine Corps Capt. Gregory Ratzlaff, 36, whose parents live in Olympia, died Aug. 3, 2004, from a noncombat-related incident in Iraq. He was assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Cornell Gilmore, 45, formerly of Lacey, died Nov. 7, 2003, when his helicopter crashed in Iraq. At the time of his death, he was assigned to the Judge Advocate General Office at the Pentagon.

Today, Fort Lewis will hold a memorial service for Staff Sgt. Hector Leija, the 89th soldier from Fort Lewis killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion began in March 2003. Leija, 27, of Houston, died last Wednesday of wounds suffered during combat operations. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment of the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division.

Memorial on Saturday

A memorial for Sgt. Mickel Garrigus will be at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Assembly of God Church of McCleary, 208 W. Pine St.

The American Red Cross will fly his parents to his burial at Arlington National Cemetery.

Family friends have established a bank account for donations so his siblings can attend.

Donations can be made at any Timberland Bank branch under the Garrigus Fund.

If you have questions or comments, e-mail garrigusfund@comcast.net.