Today’s war news

Along NYS Route 97 in the settlement of French Woods, there is a U.S. flag flying on a tall pole set in an old, hilly pasture. There are Angus beef cows grazing near by. The hill slopes toward the stone walls and gnarled apple trees and weathered houses of an old farm.

The flag and bluestone monument that rests beneath it are on the farm of my neighbor, Randy Whiting, who is the father of Staff Sgt. Justin Whiting, a U.S. Army Green Beret medic who was killed January 19, 2008 in Iraq.

SSgt. Whiting grew up on the farm with his sister and brother. He liked hunting and football. He graduated from Hancock Central School. He served three tours in Iraq. He was killed when his vehicle was hit by an IED south of Mosel.

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