Soldier's last mail: If I die, no regret

www.philly.com - Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | Nov. 08, 2005 | Bonnie L. Cook

[Mo1]

An Army captain wrote an e-mail to his family and friends just before his death in Iraq.
By Bonnie L. Cook
Inquirer Staff Writer

In a remarkable e-mail written just prior to his death in Iraq late last week, a career soldier raised in Montgomery County told his family he would have no regrets if he lost his life in battle.

Capt. Jeffrey P. Toczylowski, 30, a Special Forces detachment commander assigned to First Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), asked that friends and family not "be sad for me."

"It was an honor to serve my country, and I wouldn't change a thing. It was just my time," he wrote.

Toczylowski fell from a helicopter during combat operations Nov. 3, the Army said yesterday.

The e-mail, read by his father, Philip M. Toczylowski of Ambler, during a telephone interview, exhorted relatives and friends to "be happy for the time we had - not the future we won't."

He left instructions for a party in Las Vegas and said "$100 K" would be available to pay for travel and accommodations.

It may be hard for the dead soldier's companions to treat his death lightly any time soon; his father cried repeatedly as he read aloud his son's last wishes.

Philip Toczylowski said his son had been in Iraq only 17 days when he was killed. The younger man had recently lost a buddy from a heart attack. The loss made Toczylowski aware of his own mortality, his father said, and prompted his son to write an e-mail for friends and family in the event of his death.

Toczylowski perished of injuries suffered in a fall from a helicopter during a combat "infiltration" in Anbar province.

He was pronounced dead at an undisclosed military treatment facility after being airlifted from battle, said a statement issued by the Army.

Maj. James O. Gregory, public affairs officer for the Special Forces and a friend of Toczylowski's, said in an e-mail that the incident was under investigation by the Army. He declined to divulge any details.

"It would be inappropriate for me to speculate as to the cause of his fall," said Gregory, from the Army Special Operations Command Center at Fort Bragg, N.C.

"I can tell you that he will be missed by many on both sides of the [Atlantic] Ocean, to include his fellow brothers in arms here at Fort Bragg," Gregory said.

In the message, Toczylowski adamantly defended the military aims of this country in Iraq.

"Don't ever think that you are defending me by slamming the global war on terrorism or the U.S. goals in that war," he wrote. "As far as I am concerned, we can send guys like me to go after them, or we can wait for them to come back to us again.

"I died doing something I believed in and have no regrets, except that I couldn't do more."

Toczylowski's father and mother, Margaret R. Toczylowski, were making arrangements for a funeral service Friday at Valley Forge Military Academy and College, and burial Monday at Arlington National Cemetery.

Virginia Frantz, director of alumni relations at Valley Forge, said Toczylowski was commissioned in 1995 as a second lieutenant through the academy's Reserve Officer Training Corps.

Frantz said he was vice president of his class.

"He was an all-round good cadet, and a very nice young man, and we are devastated by his loss," Frantz said.

Toczylowski earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, in 1997.

That same year, he took his first assignment, leading a platoon with the 554th Military Police Company in Vaihingen, Germany. He deployed to Bosnia and elsewhere.

He served three years as a force protection officer at Special Operations Command Europe in Stuttgart, Germany. After that, he trained with the Army's Special Forces, and was serving in that capacity when he was killed.

Since he went to Texas, Toczylowski had hardly been home, but he was always a presence, said lifelong friend Tom Schneider. An infectious laugh and a genuine interest in others made him an instant hit wherever he went.

"Anything that was challenging he wanted to do - then he'd move on to the next challenge," said Schneider, who remembered his friend passing up the good time of senior week in high school to attend a special camp to help him get into Valley Forge Military Academy. "That's how he started his career, and that's how he ended his career - putting himself out for the next challenge."

[boinaverde]

Thanks for the ping. I will soon post details concerning how individuals may contribute to the Maj Jeffrey Toczylowski Memorial Scholarship fund to benifit youth wishing to attend the Vallley Forge Military Academy. De Oppresso Liber.

[denydenydeny]

"Don't ever think that you are defending me by slamming the global war on terrorism or the U.S. goals in that war,"

Yeah, but Michael Moore and Chris Matthews know better.

[Fury]

Good post. Thanks for making.

[OldCorps]

The email reflects the soul of a true soldier.

[Edgewood Pilot]

Thank you.

Mixed emotions of gratitude and sorrow.

Soldiers, thank you.

[Hand em their arse]

Jeff will be in my prayers, as will you, Bighead...

Be Well... Dave

[operation clinton cleanup]

"It was an honor to serve my country, and I wouldn't change a thing. It was just my time," he wrote.

Thanks for posting Mo. Yet another story of an amazing American who gave all for his country and fellow citizens and asked nothing in return. People like him will ensure we win against the Islamofascists.