On Memorial Day, it seems everyone focuses on war heroes and those who died in combat. I do hold these people in high esteem and believe the focus on them is appropriate, but there are others who served, and died, in the course of their everyday duties. They may have never seen a battlefield, never heard a shot fired in anger, but they did die in service of their country.
So I'm taking a little time out of my day to remember Scott Rausch. He was a friend of mine, and I served with him on the Coast Guard Cutter Gallatin. We were spending a typically mundane duty day sitting around bullshitting on the rec deck, when we heard a strange sound. One of my shipmates went into the berthing area to investigate and came back out yelling to call an ambulance. When I went in to help, Scott was laying on the deck struggling to breathe. We tried CPR until the ambulance arrived, but despite everyone's best efforts, Scott passed away.
Scott was just a good guy, laid back and a person everyone liked. The way he died was as horrific as any combat death, but so mundane to seem like a sick cosmic joke. What happened to him? As best as they could figure it out he was coming out of the bathroom when he either tripped or slipped and cracked his skull on the edge of a locker. He suffocated to death on his own blood and fluids. I was one of the honor guard for his memorial service, the only time I ever wore my full dress uniform.
So let's take a minute to remember everyone who served and lost their lives. Whether they fell in combat or to a slippery deck and a locker, they all deserve our gratitude.
(I didn't go back and edit this, so if it's poorly written, sorry. I just wanted to get these thoughts posted.)
