What unit(s) did you serve in with the 2d Cavalry?
C Co. "Crusaders" 2-37 Armor (1st AD Organic) Assigned to 2/2 Cav in 2003-2004 Sadr City/Baghdad primarily with Ghost and Eagle Troop. Later extension after insurgency started was with 1/2 CAV in Najaf/Kufa.
Where were you stationed?
Baghdad, Sadr City, Al Kut, An-Najaf/Al-Kufa
What MOS or job description did you have?
19K, M1 Armor Crewman
What was your rank/title?
PFC/SPC and tank crewman
What years were you assigned to the 2nd Cavalry?
2003-2004
Tell us a little about your cav days.
My cav days with the 2nd Dragoons or 2nd Cavalry was purely combat based as our battalion was detached from our parent unit, 1st Brigade 1st Armored Division, and was assigned to 2nd Cavalry throughout the duration of our 15 month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Given 2nd CAV no longer had heavy armor we were the armor contingent assigned to 2nd CAV during their deployment. Being detached we were ADCON and OPCON to 2nd Cavalry. We served and fought along troopers from both 2/2 and 1/2 CAV in Baghdad (Martyrs Monument/Camp Muleskinner (Cuervo)), then Sadr City (Camp Marlboro) after the Oct. 2003 ambush until April 2004 when 2/2 CAV began their redeployment. After the insurgency started and 2/2 CAV back at Polk, we were then serving/fighting alongside 1/2 CAV in the Najaf region. Growing up around horse cavalry living history then joining the real thing and serving with 2nd CAV during the first year of OIF was truly an honor to be part of the historic unit. We received our combat spurs from 2/2 CAV. Later in my career after 2nd CAV moved from Fort Polk to Vilseck, Germany I was their covering agent as I was one of the four Counterintelligence Special Agents (reclassed after 9.5 years) and would often visit the 2nd Cavalry memorial as several of our 2-37 AR tankers from that deployment made the ultimate sacrifice under the guidon of 2nd CAV. When the memorial fell and broke, and replace it was honestly disheartening to see our guys removed as then we were one family with the organically assigned troopers from both 2/2 and 1/2 CAV and were treated as an organic element. But fast forward 15-20 years, much like history of units it fades into the past as the names were removed when the new memorial wall was installed. That was quite disheartening for our guys. Nonetheless, I and our fellow tankers take great honor and pride serving with 2nd CAV for 15 months in active combat in those early GWOT years and still proud of our time together.
Tell us a little about you now.
Retired from the Army in 2022 as a Senior Non-Commissioned Officer after reclassing from 19K after my Platoon Sergeant time to 35L (Counterintelligence Special Agent) in 2011. Retired out of the Directorate of Operations, Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington D.C. Now serve as a military historian in Florida full time managing a large fleet of historic fully operational WWII armored/reconnaissance vehicles. We take our fleet to various military events where we teach the history and service/sacrifices of the U.S. Army's mounted force. On the hobby side of my historian life, I also am active in other mounted time periods teaching the history of Civil War cavalry and Second Seminole War here in Central Florida. A pretty cool 2nd Cavalry history bit is I live nearby Fort Mellon (now Sanford) the initial home of the the 2nd Dragoons were stationed at in Florida during the Second Seminole War. The Civil War living history unit I am part of is also the 2nd Florida Cavalry (both US and CS). So since I first enlisted in 2002, my life has always been around 2nd Cavalry one way or another haha!
Phone number (Optional).
4434650978
Name a few buddies you served with that you would like to find.
All the guys I was friends/associates with in 2/2 and 1/2 already associated with.
