24, of Richford, Vt.; assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment (Mountain), Vermont Army National Guard, Jericho, Vt.; killed Jan. 25, 2006 when a rocket-propelled grenade struck his vehicle during combat operations in Ramadi, Iraq.
We honor his service and his life on Memorial Day and always.
From an AP article by David Gram
Sgt. Joshua Allen Johnson, 24, of Richford, died in surgery in Iraq on Wednesday, about six hours after being injured while riding in an armored Humvee just west of Ramadi, National Guard officials said Thursday.
Johnson was in the right front seat of the vehicle, wearing armor, when a rocket-propelled grenade smashed through the windshield in front of him.
“It’s hard for a small state, particularly here in Vermont, where we’re all family. We all know each other,” said Maj. Gen. Martha Rainville, commander of the Vermont National Guard, at a news conference announcing the death.
Johnson, a graduate of Richford Junior-Senior High School, lived in Richford with his grandparents Phyllis and Harold Johnson. Officials identified Johnson’s mother and stepfather as Laura and Kevin Royea.
“We are very proud of his service. He joined the Army to make something of his life and worked really hard to become a sergeant,” Johnson’s family said in a statement released by the Guard. “He loved his family and always put others before himself. He was so strong - the bravest person - (and) never said anything to make us worry.”
Patrick Murphy who teaches art at the high school and was one of Johnson’s favorite teachers, recalled the 1999 graduate as “a quiet student. He worked very hard for everything he got. Things didn’t necessarily always come easy for him.
“He was his own person,” Murphy added. “He didn’t run with the crowd. He had his friends. He was very patient, a humble young man. Nothing ever bothered him.”
When Johnson was home on leave, he would come by the school and visit, Murphy said. He said military service “really raised him to a higher level. He was really proud of that, belonging to something so important.”
Johnson was deployed a year ago with Task Force Saber. He was due home on leave next month and was to return for good during the summer. Johnson formerly was a member of the active duty Army where he served from 2001 to 2003 before joining the Vermont Guard. He worked for Century Arms in Franklin County.
From an AP article by Wilson Ring
Vermont Army National Guard Sgt. Joshua Johnson was a volunteer who put the needs of his fellow soldiers ahead of himself, the commander of his stateside unit said Sunday at his funeral.
Johnson volunteered four times, said Major Nathan Lord who assumed command of the 3rd Battalion of the 172 Infantry Regiment earlier Sunday at a separate ceremony in Underhill.
Johnson volunteered to join the Army, he volunteered to join the infantry, and after a combat tour in Afghanistan he volunteered for the Vermont National Guard. Then he volunteered for Iraq.
“Josh didn’t have to go. He’d already served his country once. No one would have held it against him if he stayed back. But he didn’t,” Lord said. “His country called. He picked up the phone.”
Lord said he didn’t think Johnson was motivated simply by patriotism or a desire to help bring democracy to Iraq.
“I submit to you that Josh volunteered to go into harm’s way because he didn’t want to let his fellow soldiers down. He went not for the romantic notion of honor and glory, but for the soldiers around him,” Lord said. “He knew that as a combat veteran he knew he had experiences that could help save other peoples’ lives.”
Johnson was killed on Jan. 25 when the vehicle he was riding in was hit by an insurgent rocket in the Iraqi city of Ramadi.
From a Burlington Free Press article by Mariana Lamaison Sears
[Spc. Charles] Ames, 21, from Maine, was in the Humvee with Johnson when a rocket-propelled grenade hit the vehicle and exploded. He said Johnson survived the blast and was taken to the hospital. "We had a good feeling that he was gonna make it," Ames said. Johnson died during surgery hours later.
"He was a great leader," Ames said, and always "looked after us." Ames, who suffered various burns in his legs at the explosion, said he was glad to be in Richford for the funeral. He came back to the United States on leave Feb. 1 and is expected to return to Ramadi on Feb. 17, he said.
Vermont National Guard Adjutant General Martha Rainville said that Johnson was an "extraordinary young Vermonter" who "took with him his rural Vermont values."
She remembered him as a man of "quiet strength and humble dedication." Rainville shared breakfast with Johnson a couple of days after Christmas in Iraq and said that it was his "inner strength" that meant so much to the people he served.
