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On patrol, suicide bomb kills Tinnell

On patrol, suicide bomb kills Tinnell
By Sara BiskerFriday, April 21, 2006 11:33 PM MDT


When Patrick Tinnell told his mother he was joining the United States Army, she never thought he'd do it.“He said he wanted to fight for his country. I didn't believe him, it sounded too cliché. But when he got over there, when he saw the camaraderie and the friendship and how those boys were over there fighting, he wanted to be a part of what those boys were doing. He wanted to serve his country and he was proud of the Army,” Debbie Tinnell said.

Pfc. Patrick Allen Tinnell, 25, died at 5:24 a.m. Wednesday when the humvee he was riding in was blown up by a suicide bomber in Siniyah, Iraq. He was positioned as a scout leading a troupe of vehicles when the car bomb detonated. He was the only military personnel killed, according to Tinnell's grandmother, Dorothy “Dottie” Tinnell. The Humvee's driver, L.J. Youngquest was severely injured.Patrick Tinnell was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, Ky. He joined the Army in September 2005; this was his first tour of Iraq.

“He could have done anything he wanted but he chose infantry,” Debbie Tinnell said. His last assignment was to train the new Iraqi army.He is the first known Havasuvian to be killed in Iraq. According to the Associated Press, at least 2,383 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003.A mother's soldierPatrick Tinnell was a dedicated soldier. He will be awarded posthumously with a Bronze Medal, Silver Star and Purple Heart, according to his mother.When Debbie Tinnell spoke with her son's squad leader, she was told, “You should be proud of your son. He gave his life for all. Because he was the first truck that took the impact of the bomber, he saved the lives of all of us.”“He would like us to celebrate his life. I want to tell his story,” she said. “When we sent him off to go to war, we partied with him and he would like us to party with him now.”He graduated from Lake Havasu High School in 2000. In the period between graduating and joining the Army he worked for a Havasu pest control company and also as a BMX rider for MBK Bikes.“His bike was like his purse. He had to take it everywhere with him. BMX riding was his sport,” Debbie Tinnell said.He would volunteer his time at Teen Break, a Park and Rec alternative for spring break students.“He was a great kid. We were proud of him. He set a good example,” said Donna Carlton, recreation management specialist for Parks and Rec.He was the first person to jump his bike over an elephant during Teen Break 1999.“The kids still remember. Those kids who weren't even at Teen Break had heard of it. They were the boys all the kids wanted to be,” she said.Debbie Tinnell said her son would be remembered most for his meticulously clean habits and also as a comedian.

“I purposefully sat him next to my desk because he would come to class and entertain me. He was always out for the comedic edge,” said Tania Gray, Patrick Tinnell's senior English teacher at LHHS.“He was one of those types of kids who had a jokey front but his journal questions were heartfelt and loving for his girlfriend. I was surprised by the real feelings he expressed compared to the outward jokey appearance he gave off,” she said.His cleanliness - to the point where he would use a toothbrush and Windex to clean his tennis shoes on a daily basis - earned him a “neat freak” reputation in Iraq.“He was a whiner. He was critical. They teased him in Iraq for sweeping all the time.

He would say, ‘When I come home, I'll show you girls how to clean,'” Debbie Tinnell said.Patrick Tinnell was an anchor for his mother. She said in every letter he wrote home and in every phone call she received, he ended conversations with “I love you” and never stopped providing for her.“Pat acted like he was distant, but he loved me. I know in my heart he loved me the most. He was my anchor,” Debbie Tinnell said. “He had a different way with me. He told me every day he loved me and he's not like that - he's very private.“It was a catch 22. Even if it was him who caused my grief, I could turn to him for support. He would make me laugh.

I always knew in my heart and soul he would take care of me, even if he didn't have two nickels to rub together,” she said.He is survived by his parents, mother Debbie Tinnell and father James Tinnell Jr.; brother Phillip Tinnell, grandmother, aunts and uncles Brian and Donna O'Conner and Susan and Tom Rawlinson, many cousins and his adoptive family, the Manlay's.

The family expects Patrick Tinnell's body to return to the United States within the next two weeks. Funeral services are pending.

LHHS - soldier - "Class of 2000" DIES!!!!

LHC soldier dies in Iraq

Thursday, April 20, 2006 10:06 PM MDT

Patrick A. Tinnell, a 2000 graduate of Lake Havasu High School died late Wednesday while serving in Iraq, according to the family.He was a private first class infantryman with the U.S. Army and departed from Fort Campbell, Ky., and has served since September 2005. The cause of death is uncertain. It was his first tour of Iraq. Tinnell was 25.

This is the first recorded death of a Lake Havasu City resident due to the War in Iraq, according to local records.

At least 2,381 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

The figure includes seven military civilians. At least 1,869 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military's numbers.

Happy Easter!!!!

Yeah! He Is Risen!!!! - Happy Easter!!!!