Gifted Human Being

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Hundreds Mourn Fallen Soldier in Alameda

Brigadier General (P) Paul La Camera (right) presents a flag to Vanessa Fogarty (left), wife of Staff Sgt. Thomas K. Fogarty, as Caden Fogarty (second from right), 3, son of Staff Sgt. Thomas K. Fogarty watches during Military Honors at a public memorial for Army Staff Sgt. Thomas K. Fogarty at Kofman auditorium on Monday, May 21, 2012 in Alameda, Calif.
Photo: Lea Suzuki 

by Henry K. Lee

Monday, May 21, 2012
(05-21) 13:52 PDT ALAMEDA -- Army Staff Sgt. Thomas Fogarty knew he wanted to be a soldier ever since he was a little boy growing up in Alameda. The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks cemented his resolve, and in 2004 he enlisted.

On Monday, several hundred friends and family gathered to mourn the loss of Fogarty, a married father of two sons who was killed May 6 in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.

Fogarty's death is "so crushing and so unbearable, that the only appropriate response is silence," his uncle, John Fogarty, told mourners before leading them in a moment of silence at a funeral at Alameda High School, the soldier's alma mater.

Fogarty, 30, was commanding a vehicle when enemy forces attacked his unit. Three other soldiers were wounded. Rory Fogarty said his brother, who "valued freedom above everything else," would "rest easier knowing they survived."

Thomas Fogarty joined the Army in January 2004 and deployed to Afghanistan in April. Before his deployment, he had been a recruiter for the military, the Pentagon said.

Even as a child, Fogarty knew he wanted to serve in the Army. He had a penchant for wearing camouflage shirts and flight jackets and liked to turn his room into a fort, his uncle said.

Thomas Fogarty, "Tommy" to his friends, had a "disarming and mischievous grin" and wanted to adopt every stray dog he saw, his uncle said. He enjoyed snowboarding, mountain biking and fast cars and motorcycles, friends said.

His love for his family included allowing himself to be dragged to shopping trips and swap meets by his wife of six years, Vanessa Fogarty, Deacon David Young of St. Joseph Basilica of Alameda said to laughter.

Fogarty's flag-draped casket sat at the front of the auditorium at what was billed as a "celebration of life."

Military officials posthumously awarded him the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star Medal, which recognizes heroic or meritorious achievement or service.

Outside the high school, he was honored with a 21-gun salute. A bugler played "Taps," and a bagpiper played "Amazing Grace" and "America the Beautiful."

Alameda police motorcycle officers led a contingent of "Warriors Watch Riders," a troop-support group consisting of mostly military veterans on motorcycles, and hearses away from the school. Fogarty will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

Besides his wife and brother, Thomas Fogarty leaves behind his sons, Kellan, 5, and Caden, 3; parents Thomas Fogarty and Stephanie Fisher; and stepfather Mike Fisher, a former interim chief of the Alameda Fire Department.