Jason Meyer
Private First Class, United States Army
March 14, 1980 – April 8, 2003
Age – 23
Howell, MI
Operation Iraqi Freedom
B Company, 11th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, GA
PFC Meyer was killed by a U.S. tank round that blasted through a building, ricocheted off a tank and struck him.
PFC Meyer graduated from Howell High School in 1999 and worked construction jobs before joining the Army in 2001. He drove an M113 armored personnel carrier. He married his wife Melissa in 2002 and they moved to Fort Stewart to begin their new life.
Eight days after his first anniversary, PFC Meyer was killed in Iraq. Meyer’s mother, Kathy Worthington, said she last heard from him on Valentine’s Day in a phone call from Kuwait City. She said the worry and fear came mostly from her, and he sought to reassure her. “He was always upbeat and he couldn’t wait to return to his wife, return to his family. But he also knew he had an obligation as a soldier. He died doing what he wanted to do. He felt very strongly about the service.”
He was remembered by his fellow soldiers as following.
“Jason, we were in the same squad in basic training together, both ended up in the same squad again in ft. Stewart after training. You used to drive me to the airport and pick me up on leave. Our time in the military was inseparable until the deployment in 03 when I was changed to a different platoon to replace Martin who couldn’t deploy. Your death impacted me deeply. No one knew this but I actually swapped my kevlar for yours after you passed (swapping the nametape/cat eyes was simple) and wore your kevlar for the rest of the deployment. I’ve always felt that it should have been me that night and not you and had I not been shifted away to a diff squad maybe you could have lived. I know that’s ridiculous but I can’t count how many nights I’ve stayed up thinking that both initially and over the passing years. You were a true friend and I appreciate you always.”
Jeff of Tokyo, Japan
Hey Jason. It’s been six years now since that night. I remember it like it was yesterday. I couldn’t believe it when I heard man down and found it to be you. I often blame myself for your death. I was the one who put you in the Lts drivers seat. The last thing I ever thought would happen did. I lost one of my soldiers. I didn’t want to believe the doc when they said you were gone. At that moment I lost my mind. I regret some of the things I said to you two days prior when I was mad about the situation between you and the LT. I wish I hadn’t. I remember when you fired the MK 19 over Sgt Smith, SSG Harmon and my head when we were engaging the guys coming through the wall. I was mad but I know you were just covering our asses. I’ll never forget evacuating you through a mine field. We were going to get you back to the CCP no matter what. I didn’t want to leave you there alone with people who didn’t know you even though they were US soldiers. Well I just wanted to tell you I miss you and I’ll never forget all the good times and all the times you were a smartass and I smoked the crap out of you. I’ll be talking to you soon. Keep your eye on me. I know you are! If you see Jay Boye tell him I said hi and I love him. Wolfpack for life.”
Tommy Richardson of Jackson, NJ