Garrison Charles Avery

West Point, 2004

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Nick Ziemba on September 12, 2007:

I was fortunate enough to have worked with Gary during our time at the academy. It may have been on a math project or something similar...no doubt he carried the group. I remember him as a team player we all expected to do amazing things for the people of the world. It was during a recent talk with civilians in Mahmudiyah, Iraq that I realized the magnitude of his character and the impact it had on literally everyone he came in contact with. The Brigade I'm assigned to, 2nd BCT 10th Mountain, assumed control of 2-101's sector last September. Since then we have been fighting the South Baghdad fight with mixed and moderate successes. Recently we have started to enlist the help of Sunni volunteers for security in Al Qaeda infested areas. During a talk with leaders from one of these areas, a couple of the Sheikhs brought up, out of the blue, an "LT Afry." It took me a couple seconds to see through the pronounciation, but it all clicked when they started to talk about how he had been their absolutely favorite American, had visited and worked with their local schools numerous times, had recognized the tribe's potential over a year before we stumbled upon them. As we exchanged our favorite stories about Gary, I could see that some of the sheikhs were shedding tears in his memory. I just wanted everyone to know that Gary's legacy as a kind, insightful, and amazing human being still lives strong even here, in what many of you know to be an utterly unforgiving and ruthless place.

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