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CWA Mourns Member's Death in Iraq
CWA has learned of the first reported death of one of its members serving in Iraq. U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Jason Lehto, 31, died on Dec. 26 in what the Department of Defense classified as a "non-hostile incident" in Al Anbar Province. So-called non-hostile actions, according to DOD statistics issued Jan. 6, have accounted for more than 21 percent of 1,340 service-related deaths in that country since Operation Iraqi Freedom began on March 19, 2003.
"All of our hearts go out to Jason's family during their time of grief," said CWA President Morton Bahr. "Words cannot express our gratitude for Jason's service to his country or our sorrow at the loss of a union brother."
"It's ironic that such a high percentage of U.S. military deaths in Iraq do not come as a result of facing enemy fire," said CWA District 4 Vice President Jeff Rechenbach. "But that in no way diminishes the courage or sacrifice of service members like Jason who pay the ultimate price to make our world more secure."
Officers and members of Local 4018 attended a funeral Mass held for Lehto Jan. 6 in St. Mark's Parish in Warren, Mich., where Lehto's family lives. His interment in Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington, D.C., had not yet been scheduled at Newsletter press time.
Lehto joined the Marine Corps immediately after completing high school in 1992 and served four years of active duty before joining the reserves.
He met his wife, Michele, while detailed for explosive ordnance disposal training in Maryland, reported the Detroit Free Press. They were married almost four years ago.
That was around the time he joined SBC as a service technician. Lehto worked out of the Trenton Garage near Detroit along with Local 4018 President Todd Lekity. Each technician is assigned a service number for identification in SBC's computer system. Lekity said the company retired Lehto's number 511 in his honor.
A member of Marine Wing Support Squadron 471 in Harrison Township, Mich., where he was-well liked on base because of his charisma and sense of humor, Lehto volunteered for deployment to Iraq with a different unit several months ago. Trained to disarm explosives, his job there was to help maintain an airfield in hostile territory.
While the family declined to discuss the details of his death, his stepfather, Chuck Walsh, told Free Press reporter Alexa Capeloto it was a "total accident" during a routine mission. "Unfortunately, something just went off."
In addition to his wife, Lehto is survived by three sons: Nathan, 11, Joseph, 3 and Joshua, 2.
"All of our hearts go out to Jason's family during their time of grief," said CWA President Morton Bahr. "Words cannot express our gratitude for Jason's service to his country or our sorrow at the loss of a union brother."
"It's ironic that such a high percentage of U.S. military deaths in Iraq do not come as a result of facing enemy fire," said CWA District 4 Vice President Jeff Rechenbach. "But that in no way diminishes the courage or sacrifice of service members like Jason who pay the ultimate price to make our world more secure."
Officers and members of Local 4018 attended a funeral Mass held for Lehto Jan. 6 in St. Mark's Parish in Warren, Mich., where Lehto's family lives. His interment in Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington, D.C., had not yet been scheduled at Newsletter press time.
Lehto joined the Marine Corps immediately after completing high school in 1992 and served four years of active duty before joining the reserves.
He met his wife, Michele, while detailed for explosive ordnance disposal training in Maryland, reported the Detroit Free Press. They were married almost four years ago.
That was around the time he joined SBC as a service technician. Lehto worked out of the Trenton Garage near Detroit along with Local 4018 President Todd Lekity. Each technician is assigned a service number for identification in SBC's computer system. Lekity said the company retired Lehto's number 511 in his honor.
A member of Marine Wing Support Squadron 471 in Harrison Township, Mich., where he was-well liked on base because of his charisma and sense of humor, Lehto volunteered for deployment to Iraq with a different unit several months ago. Trained to disarm explosives, his job there was to help maintain an airfield in hostile territory.
While the family declined to discuss the details of his death, his stepfather, Chuck Walsh, told Free Press reporter Alexa Capeloto it was a "total accident" during a routine mission. "Unfortunately, something just went off."
In addition to his wife, Lehto is survived by three sons: Nathan, 11, Joseph, 3 and Joshua, 2.