52 year old female reservist killed in Kabul, oldest female soldier

[Caoimhe]

to be killed in either Afghanistan or Iraq.

----

Sgt. 1st Class Merideth Howard loved being near water, whether it was off the coast of Mexico or Hawaii, or even her hometown.

Howard, a former Corpus Christi resident, was killed Friday in Kabul, Afghanistan, after a car bomber smashed into an American Humvee carrying 15 other people. Howard and another U.S. soldier were killed in the attack, the Afghan capital’s deadliest suicide attack since the 2001 toppling of the Taliban.

<snip>

Susan Utley, 53, another of Howard’s cousins, said Howard was always optimistic but was uneasy about her deployment to Afghanistan.

Howard joined the Army Reserves in 1988 but never expected her unit to be called up, Utley said.

"Her joining the reserves was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing," Utley said, adding that Howard received much of her training a short time before she was deployed.

"She thought it was a bad idea for her unit to go," Utley said. "She turned out to be right."

----


RIP Merideth

[BOSSHOG]

1. I'm 52 years old and have been retired from the military for four years

God Bless ya Meredith. And george bush you will never know or meet Meredith because you will burn in hell for eternity.

A 52 year old female slaughtered in the desert thousands of miles from home because george bush is a liar. And so many chickenhawks sitting on their asses doing nothing for their country. The ignorance and arrogance of bush's base is overwhelming.

[Caoimhe]

4. I really like your signature line

and thank you for your service!

[BOSSHOG]

5. It comes from the heart

And you are very welcome, I and the rest of my fellow vets were just doing our jobs.

[Jazzgirl]

12. Boss.....I'm 52 as well.

I can't imagine how I'd feel about now if I'd been deployed. That is so sad. :cry:

[saigon68]

13. SHE DIED FOR NOTHING BUT LIES

AND LEST I FORGET-----"Halliburton profits"

[Ilsa]

18. I used to live in Corpus Christi. They lost another native son

about a week ago. Bless you Meredith. I hope someone will consider a burial at sea for you -- your element.

I'm 48 and a RN, and the enlistment age is higher for nurses. I can't imagine going at my age. I wake up with a stiff back most mornings and need my homemade yoga and pilates to work the kinks out. I self medicate with a large glass of wine about three times a week, sitting back in the cool a/c, fighting off hot flashes and hormone surges. If someone told me I had to leave my kids to take care of the injured, I'd tell them to go themselves, I have people to take care of already; I am needed more here than there.

Fuck this shit about going to war for lies. This just breaks my heart. Forgive me for my ranting.

[displacedtexan]

2. Heartbreaking.

Simply heartbreaking.

[Vinca]

3. How sad. What the hell has happened when grandmas are sent

to war and come back in body bags?

[sarge43]

6. RIP soldier. You deserved better. n/t

[mcscajun]

7. I know it's too late for an edit, but...Link?

Please. :)

[damntexdem]

8. Joined 18 years ago. 52 years old. And they sent her.

Conservatives without consciences indeed.

[Miss Chybil]

16. Ex-military myself and deeply saddened by this story, but

she was in the reserves, she was getting a paycheck for it. If she was too old to go, she was too old to be in the reserves, and she was too old to get paid. For the record, I'm almost 46. I spent nine years in the Army. I wouldn't go. I got out. (Not like I was clairvoiant, or anything. I got out when Bush I was still in office - right before the Gulf War. I was lucky.) She should have gotten out. It's a horrible shame. She should have gotten out. I'm sure she was hoping for retirement. May she rest in peace and may peace come soon for us all.

My son is in Afghanistan right now, for the third time. I'm sick about it. These stories make it worse.

[Bridget Burke]

17. Why are you "sick" about your son in Afghanistan?

After all, he's getting a paycheck.

Yes, that's too harsh--but so was your judgment.

[Miss Chybil]

20. No. It wasn't my "judgement."

There is nothing to judge about this lady - how she lived, or how she died. My remark was in response to other remarks on this lady's age. Apparently she didn't think she was too old to be in the Army. She stayed there and she got paid. Maybe, I shouldn't have mentioned the money part, it always seems to irk people that some people do a job and get paid for it. She was a 1st Sgt.. She was in the Army for 18 years. I'm sure she noticed when the war broke out and she decided to stay. Does this make her death any less tragic? Hell no. It is tragic, but don't act like she was some kind of lamb sent off to the slaughter. She was a soldier. I'm sure that's why she decided to stay in - unless she was just rolling the dice for retirement. (Which is what I was also addressing in my post.) A lot of people do that, you know? A lot of people in dangerous jobs, do that. It's not a sin. It's a risk. She rolled the dice and lost. I think she should've gotten out, but who am I? It's not a judgement, it's an observation.

Just for the record, my son is not sick about being in Afghanistan. He's doing his job. He doesn't like it and he's getting out when his time is up. I'm his mother and I worry - in case you needed an actual explanation.

[rodeodance]

9. she had been living in Waukesha WI--it was on the news last night.

[rodeodance]

10. Local woman dies in Afghan attack-----Waukesha soldier .. LINK here:

http://www.gmtoday.com/news/local_stories/2006/Sept_06/09112006_02.asp

Local woman dies in Afghan attack
Waukesha soldier died in car bomber’s attack on Humvee



September 11, 2006


In this undated photo released by family, Merideth Howard, 52, of Waukesha, Wis., is shown. Sgt. 1st Class Merideth Howard was killed Friday when a car bomber slammed into a Humvee filled with people in Afghanistan, said her husband, Hugh Hvolboll. Howard joined the Army Reserves in 1988 and went to Afghanistan in April with the 364th Civil Affairs brigade, said Hvolboll.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Sgt. 1st Class Merideth Howard loved being near water, whether it was off the coast of Mexico or Hawaii, or even her hometown.

Howard, 52, of Waukesha, was killed Friday in Kabul, Afghanistan, after a car bomber smashed into an American Humvee carrying 15 other people. Howard and another U.S. soldier were killed in the attack, the Afghan capital’s deadliest suicide attack since the 2001 toppling of the Taliban.

Called to active duty Dec. 8, the Army reservist was assigned to the 364th Civil Affairs Brigade in support of the 10th Mountain Division.

Her husband, Hugh Hvolboll, said he and his wife enjoyed traveling the world together - Mexico, Spain and Hawaii, where the two went snorkeling together.

[bronxiteforever]

11. RIP-another sad day

kick and nom.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

14. 15 other people in one humvee?

maybe I read that wrong.

Did I read 15 people in a Humvee?

[Anakin Skywalker]

15. They are underequipped over there.

Everything from vehicles like the Humvee to body armors to weapons. This "War on Terror" was never meant to be won. The hawks don't want it to be over. They are profitting too much from it.

[Stella_Artois]

21. Not really

The story didn't make it clear, but the other 15 people were civilians who just happened to be there.

[0007]

19. junior should be absolutely ashamed of himself....

for letting the news media expose how needy and hard up he is for warm bodies.