Wednesday Hero ~ SFC Gregory A Rodriguez

Sgt. 1st Class Gregory A. Rodriguez & Jacko
35 years old from Weidman, Michigan
K-9 unit of the 527th Military Police Company
709th Military Police Battalion, 18th MP Brigade
September 2, 2008


"I asked Greg if anything ever happened to him where he'd prefer to be buried," Sgt. Rodriguez's wife, Laura, told the Morning Sun of Mount Pleasant, "and he told me Arlington, as he wanted to be among the best and the brave."

"Rod," as he was known to his Army buddies, was a Red Wings fan who loved to hassle fans of other hockey teams he met during his military career, said Laura. "Greg loved to push everyone's buttons and get people going with his rare, unique sense of sarcasm," she said. At the same time, her husband, a military police dog handler whose dog, Jacko, survived the fatal ambush, was "a very committed, loyal individual and could be counted on whenever needed."

Sgt. 1st Class Gregory A. Rodriguez died of wounds suffered in Ana Kalay, Afghanistan, when his mounted patrol came under small-arms fire.

"My brother liked to be the law," said Lisa Dombrowski. "He liked justice. If it wasn't right, he made it right."

He is survived by his sister, wife and three children.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives
so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday.
For that, I am proud to call them Hero.

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