Navy SEAL killed in Afganistan was part of Lynch rescue.

Philladelphia Inquirer ^ | 08/22/03 | By Maureen Graham and Troy Graham

[jaykay]

N.J. native faced danger regularly
Killed in Afghanistan, the Navy SEAL was part of the Iraq team that rescued POW Jessica Lynch.
By Maureen Graham and Troy Graham, Inquirer Staff Writers

By all accounts, Atco native David M. Tapper's SEAL team was an elite unit, even for the rarified world of military special operations.

Often called upon to conduct the most harrowing missions, Tapper took part in the April rescue of wounded POW Jessica Lynch, then helped recover the bodies of nine American soldiers buried near the Iraqi hospital where she was held, according to friends and the Tapper family.

After serving in Iraq for two months, Tapper, a father of four, returned to Camden County for a visit during a six-week leave in early summer. Tapper, who had spent most of his 13-year naval career as a SEAL, was reluctant to return to the war zone.

"He said it was too soon," said a sister, who spoke for the family. "He wanted to stay with his children and spend more time with his family in Atco."

But, duty called again last month, this time sending him to Afghanistan, where an increasingly overlooked and vastly dangerous mission to rout the Taliban and al-Qaeda terrorists grinds on.

Tapper, 32, died there Wednesday while conducting combat operations in a lawless province near the Pakistani border - an area where the military believes the terrorists are operating.

Friends here said Tapper was shot in the back during an ambush. He died later at a hospital at Bagram Air Base, the Navy said.

"David fought a good fight and accomplished his mission in life," said the sister, who asked not to be identified by name. "We know that he is in Heaven and it was the Lord's will to take him there."

A Navy spokesman declined to discuss Tapper's unit or its mission in Afghanistan.

Tapper's wife and four children live in Virginia Beach, Va., where his unit was stationed, but he has a large family in the Atco area, where he grew up and graduated from Edgewood High School in 1989.

The youngest of six children - and the only boy - Tapper was extremely close with his mother, Judi, an agent for Weichert Realtors, friends said. One sister died when she was young, they said. Judi Tapper was proud of her son's service, yet devastated by the loss of the family protector.

"We grew up with him protecting his mother and sisters," one sister said. "Then he grew up to protect his country."

Tapper's family, both here and in Virginia, have shunned most requests for interviews. Some friends said the Navy has cautioned them against speaking out because of the sensitive nature of Tapper's missions.

Services will be held for him in Atco and at Arlington National Cemetery, said the Rev. Joe Beggs, pastor of Atco United Presbyterian Church. Beggs said details had not been finalized. Tapper grew up attending the Atco church, where Beggs has been pastor for 17 years. Tapper's sister said he wrote the congregants, thanking them for their prayers while he was fighting in Iraq.

"He said he and everyone in his team could feel the prayers protecting them," Beggs said. "He's been an amazing hero for us."

Beggs said Tapper closely guarded the secrets of his missions.

"He said, 'Joe, don't ask me what I'm doing. Even if I was allowed tell you, you wouldn't want to know.' "

He said Tapper was a "lively kid" who came from a religious family. Tapper's sister said, "God's hand kept him safe when he was in Iraq."

Beggs said Tapper also had fought in Afghanistan shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Waterford Township, which includes Atco, was already awash in patriotism, with military families displaying banners furnished by the local American Legion post in their windows. The flag at the municipal building was lowered to half staff yesterday at the municipal building.

At the Atco Diner, a hub of community activity, Tapper's death dominated the conversations of a saddened lunch crowd yesterday. Owner Laurie Toussaint, who is also Waterford's mayor, talked about the death while holding a phone in one hand and serving a plate of scrapple and eggs with the other.

"It's hard to watch a family you've known for 30 years so devastated," she said.

Tapper was the fourth Navy SEAL from the Virginia Beach area to die in Afghanistan. Many of the 1,200 SEALs based in Virginia are stationed at the Little Creek Amphibious Base.

Lt. John Perkins, a SEALs spokesman, and a military expert both said the missions in Afghanistan can be extremely dangerous.

As opposed to some special forces that also collect intelligence, SEALs are designated almost primarily for combat, said Anthony Cordesman, with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

Tapper was listed as a photographer's mate first class petty officer, but Cordesman said "titles are meaningless" in the SEAL teams.

Tapper enlisted in the Navy after high school, in November 1989, with the intention of making the highly competitive SEAL teams, friends said. He graduated from SEAL training in San Diego in 1991.

He met his wife, Tracy, in California, said Tapper's sister. The couple had two boys and two girls, ages 3, 5, 8 and 11.

While overseas on missions, his family had no way to contact him, either through mail or by phone. But Tapper had called his wife and children on Sunday and Monday. One of his sisters was visiting then and spoke to him - for the last time.

Tapper turned 32 on Aug. 16, four days before the death that has left his family reeling.

"We got to spend quality time with him when he was home. He came down one weekend and then he surprised us and came down a second weekend," the sister said. "He was a loving and dedicated father. He lived for his children and his wife."

Contact staff writer Troy Graham at 856-779-3893 or tgraham@phillynews.com

© 2003 Philadelphia Inquirer and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.

http://www.philly.com

[jaykay]

The mostly forgotten war in Afganistan continues to claim the lives of America's finest. One of the Navy SEALs who helped rescue Pfc. Lynch was killed while on a mission against al-Qaeda and Taliban terrorists in Afganistan. He had a wife and four children.

He was shot in the back during an ambush, typical tactics of the great al-Qaeda and Taliban warriors.

[jaykay]

More from http://www.courierpostonline.com/news/southjersey/m082303b.htm

`Everyone in this town will grieve' for David Tapper

By JASON NARK
Courier-Post Staff
WATERFORD

Shaded beneath a massive oak tree at American Legion Post 311, three marble monuments in a bed of moss honor three local men killed while serving their country.

David M. Tapper's name will be etched into marble and placed there as well.

Tapper, a 32-year-old photographer's mate first class petty officer in the Navy SEALs, was killed on Wednesday after his convoy encountered enemy forces near Orgun in Afghanistan's Paktika Province, near the Pakistan border.

In the quiet, rural Atco section of Waterford where Tapper grew up, family members gathered to console his mother, Judith, a local real estate agent, at her home. Some praised Tapper's heroism.

A few miles away, near the red, log-cabin rancher where Tapper grew up, neighbors tried to recall the athletic boy who entered the Navy immediately after graduating from Edgewood High School in 1989.

"I remember he used to wait for the bus with my daughter," said 54-year-old Fran Schaaf, whose home is three down from the red rancher, which Tapper's mother still owns.

Schaaf said Tapper, a 13-year Navy SEAL veteran, was in Atco earlier this summer after being involved in the rescue of POW Pvt. Jessica Lynch.

"I said to my husband, you hear of deaths all the time, but when it's one of your neighbors, it really hits home," Schaaf said.

On Atco Avenue, the town's main street, small-business owners offered emotional support for the family.

"He comes from a very nice family," said Joe DiDio as he fixed a chair in his small barbershop. "Everyone in this town will grieve."

DiDio said the death of Tapper, a married father of two boys and two girls, brings the war into perspective.

"You really wonder why we're in this thing sometimes," DiDio said.

Tending bar at the American Legion less than a block away, 74-year-old Frank Snuffin said Legion members gave Judith Tapper a blue-star banner to show she had a family member serving.

Legion members said Tapper can be posthumously inducted.

At the Atco Diner on the White Horse Pike, owner and township Mayor Lorie Toussaint offered her support to Tapper's family. She said the township will honor the former high school wrestler in some way.

Tapper was stationed in Virginia Beach, Va.

---

Reach Jason Nark at (856) 486-2473 or jnark@courierpostonline.com


"You really wonder why we're in this thing sometimes," DiDio said.

"this thing? fighting al-Queda and Taliban?

[livius]

Very sad about this fine man. Prayers for him and his family.

And the press really shouldn't report stupid comments like that of the barber. Not only is it demoralizing to others, it reveals how ignorant the person making the comment is.

[livius]

Here, by the way, is an article I found in the Spanish press about one of their navy officers who was killed in the UN bombing. I posted it because it was a beautiful tribute, to him and to all fallen military personnel.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/969124/posts

[The_Media_never_lie]

I often wonder if instead of trying to convert these people to American style democracy, we shouldn't instead try to quarantine them and render them ineffective.

The loss of such a good man as this is a terrible loss.

[Pro-Bush]

Respect Bump for Tapper!

[Molly Pitcher]

May God bless this fine patriot, and keep, protect and comfort his family.

[Molly Pitcher]

May God bless this fine patriot, and keep, protect and comfort his family.

[Molly Pitcher]

May God bless this fine patriot, and keep, protect and comfort his family.

[mystery-ak]

Prayers for his young family.

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

May God Welcome him Home and comfort his family and friends.

[csvset]

David M. Tapper

[Pro-Bush]

bttt

[oldironsides]

Another member of the rescue team was lost this summer. His vehicle hit a tree and he died. He was home on leave.

[Freedom'sWorthIt]

Amen.

[GirlShortstop]

R.I.P. David M. Tapper May God Welcome him Home and comfort his family and friends.

BTTT

[Libertarianize the GOP]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[DUMBGRUNT]

A Sailor


By Alfonso Ussía


Manuel Martín-Oar, captain in the Spanish Navy, died in Iraq. One line sums up the entire tragedy. He escaped alive from the terrorist attack on the United Nations headquarters and was found dead in a dirty, run-down temporary morgue. He has gone to his rest with honor, that lofty and sacred thing no longer valued in our time. The politicians have declared their regret and respect, with the usual abstentions. The grubby minds of Llamazares and Anasagasti [Basque Marxist separatists] have tried to take advantage of the death of a Spanish sailor to stir up the muddy waters of partisanship: Llamazares and Anasagasti, of all people, two who have trumpeted their disgust and contempt for our armed forces.


I have had the good luck to know the Spanish Navy well. A great Navy man introduced me to them. And I felt the death of Manuel Martín-Oar as the death of someone very close to me. The people who are attempting to take advantage of his death for their own benefit, those who are trying to use the body of a hero for their demagoguery, those who are trying to stir up civil society with the first Spanish soldier to die in Iraq, are going to find that they have run up against a brick wall. The women and children of the Navy are as much a part of it as their sailors, and accept the risks and the fate of their loved ones with the same sense of vocation and dedication. They are reserved even in their display of grief.


No weeping and wailing of false mourners. Good soldiers know that they are gambling with their lives; even on a mission of peace, as in the case of Capt. Martín-Oar. And they also know that if they die they will be received with the solemn grandeur of silence. Military men do their duty because they know that their families know how to deal with grief. They live surrounded by women, children and parents who support them and are with them in each and every one of the places that their lives take them. They are the great lords of the sea, who have grown used to sailing beyond all horizons and better than we are for it. But they are also their families, and if death touches them, they are still with us in the serene and courageous attitude of their families, and never die.


The sun has set in the West for a Spanish sailor. Never again will he see it rise in the lonely dawns of the sea. His fate awaited him on earth, in a violent and turbulent city, when he was on a mission of mercy to those who were suffering. He has given his life for humanity far from Spain, and he shall return to his country sleeping and at rest, to become clay of its clay while he awaits the great day of hope, that day that they say will be full of unbelievable light and seas that are always blue.


He died in the desert, which was not his place. But heroes always make their tomb a place of honor. He has taken his place again and is back with us. Wicked is the man who does not respect Capt. Martín-Oar’s greatness or the strength of his loved ones. Yet some of the wicked have already emerged, and others will follow their unworthy and deceitful lead. They will never understand soldiers, whether of the sea, the land or the air. The integrity of soldiers is beyond the understanding of the poisoned and corrupt minds of thugs. The surrender of one’s life and dignity in death, that is, heroism, is an indecipherable hieroglyphic for those who have never respected the soul of soldiers.


The Virgin of Carmen has opened her arms over Iraq to shelter one of her children in this first loneliness. And the Star of the Sea has brought a Spanish sailor from Iraq to his homeland.

---

A Spanish naval officer was killed in the UN bombing. He was brought out of the building alive and evacuated to a field hospital, where he died of loss of blood and head injuries. This is the first Spanish military man to be killed in Iraq. Naturally, the press there - with the exception of the conservative newspaper ABC - is acting just the way the press here does, trying to use it to undermine their country's presence in Iraq.


I translated this and am posting it because I thought that it was a very beautiful tribute to this particular fallen soldier and to all of those who have lost their lives doing what was right.


1 posted on 08/23/2003 5:57 AM CDT by livius

[MissAmericanPie]

Sad news, my heart goes out to his family.