From News Tribune staff writer Steve Maynard:

A Fort Lewis soldier and Federal Way native who was killed in Afghanistan was remembered Friday as a “sweet young man” with a quick sense of humor.

Pfc. Dennis M. Williams, 24, who was killed Tuesday, is survived by his wife, Maria, a young daughter and a newborn son, said Pat Adkins, a neighbor and former teacher of Williams.

Adkins said Williams “always had a funny comeback to everything.” She wants people to remember Williams for his “non-ending smile and his sense of humor.”

“He had a lot of friends because of that,” …

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My colleague Brent Champaco and I are at the funeral for 1st Sgt. Jose San Nicolas Crisostomo at Our Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Church in Spanaway. Brent is taking the helm on reporting for tomorrow’s paper (I’m here for a couple other reasons), and he just posted on our Word on the Street blog about the scene here.

Crisostomo was killed Aug. 18 when a roadside bomb detonated near his convoy in Kabul,  Afghanistan. Crisostomo was less than two weeks from his 60th birthday.

He was also a pillar of Washington’s Chamorro community, and that’s quite evident at …

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Some more information is coming in about the four Fort Lewis soldiers killed Tuesday by a bomb in Kandahar province, Afghanistan.

Capt. John L. Hallett III, a family friend tells The News Tribune, served as commander of Alpha Company of 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment. Another family friend tells us he was “not only a wonderful husband but also the father of three beautiful children.” The kids were are ages 3, 1 and 3 weeks. He never met the youngest.

The San Francisco Chronicle adds that Hallett is a native of Concord, Calif. (The Department of Defense release …

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A lieutenant with 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division who lost both of his legs in a roadside bomb strike last week — the same attack that killed two of his fellow soldiers — is recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

And a fund to help the family of Lt. Daniel Berschinski has been set up, according to The Citizen of Fayetteville, Ga.

That leads our local links today:

5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division:
Fund established to help fallen PTC soldier [The Citizen]

I Corps:
DoD News Briefing with Maj. Gen. …

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McChord Air Force Base’s 62nd Airlift Wing earned a satisfactory grade – the highest possible – following a weeklong surprise nuclear surety inspection, the wing announced Thursday.

The inspection took place Aug. 17-24 by officials from the Air Mobility Command Inspector General and studied four areas: management and administration, personnel reliability, safety and logistics movement.

The wing’s 4th Airlift Squadron is tasked with transporting the military’s nuclear warheads. McChord officials often describe the mission as their highest priority.

“This is another validation of the emphasis and professionalism we place on the (nuclear) mission,” wing commander Col. Kevin Kilb said in a release. “We take that responsibility very seriously … It’s such an honor to have this mission and I’m extremely proud of our airmen.”

For more information, click below to read the press release:

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A 24-year-old Federal Way native was among four Fort Lewis soldiers killed when a bomb detonated near their vehicle in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday

The soldiers were serving with 5th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, which is fighting the Taliban throughout southeastern Afghanistan. The Department of Defense, which announced the deaths Thursday, has not released any additional information about the attack.

The slain were identified as:

– Pfc. Dennis M. Williams of Federal Way

– Capt. John L. Hallett III, of California

– Capt. Cory J. Jenkins of Arizona

– Sgt. 1st Class Ronald W. Sawyer of Trenton, Mo.

The …

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It could be loud the next two weeks.

Units at Fort Lewis will be setting off explosives and demolishing stuff during the day and night on Sept. 1-2 and Sept. 8-9.

Usually this training takes place at Yakima, but sometimes they gotsta do it at Lewis.

Want to discuss it with someone on post? Call 253-967-0852.

My colleague Joe Barrentine pointed me in the direction of The Pickett Lens, a blog run by Holly Pickett, a former staff photographer at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane. (Joe and Holly were co-workers in Spokane.)

Pickett is in Afghanistan now, and her photos are nothing short of fascinating. Her most recent post is about an embed with U.S. Special Forces troops tasked with building and training a neighborhood watch-style system in Wardak province.

I’ll link to the page from the blogroll down the left rail. And I’m always looking for more quasi-local blogs to link to (hint, hint).