To request a copy of this photo for your own personal use, please contact our state coordinator. If you are not a family member or the original photographer — please refrain from copying or distributing this photo to other websites.
Thank you for visiting the Arkansas Gravestone Photo Project. On this site you can upload gravestone photos, locate ancestors and perform genealogy research. If you have a relative buried in Arkansas, we encourage you to upload a digital image using our Submit a Photo page. Contributing to this genealogy archive helps family historians and genealogy researchers locate their relatives and complete their family tree.
Submitted: 2/19/12 • Approved: 2/21/12 • Last Updated: 5/27/20 • R651035-G651035-S3
SPECIALIST US Army
Company F 700 Brigade Support Battalion 45 Infantry Brigade Combat Team
Afghanistan
Operation Enduring Freedom
Iraq War
November 13, 1991 - November 1, 2011
National Defense Service Medal
Army Service Ribbon
Oklahoma National Guard Good Conduct Medal
Killed In Action
WASHINGTON, DC -— The US Department of Defense announced Wednesday afternoon the deaths of two soldiers in Afghanistan, including a former Arkansan with family ties to Blevins, who were killed in action on Tuesday. Private First Class Sarina N Butcher, 19, of Checotah, Okla, formerly of Crossett, and Specialist Christopher D Gailey, 26, of Ochelata, Oklahoma, were killed Tuesday in Paktia province, Afghanistan while serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, the US Department of Defense announced.
Private First Class Butcher and Specialist Gailey were assigned to the 700th Brigade Support Battalion, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Oklahoma National Guard in Tulsa, Oklahoma, according to the DOD statement.
“They died November 1, in Paktia province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked their vehicle with an improvised explosive device,” the DOD statement said. Oklahoma National Guard Captain Geoff Legler, public information officer for the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, said this morning that arrangements to repatriate Butcher's body to the United States are currently being completed. Military repatriation of fallen soldiers is typically conducted through Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware. Butcher was posthumously promoted to the rank of Specialist E-4, according to Legler.
He said she took her military basic training at Fort Lee, Virginia, and served from October 26, 2010, through April 6, 2011, as an Automated Logistical Specialist at Fort Lee prior to deployment to Afghanistan, where she was assigned similar duties.
“A logistical specialist figures out what supplies go where and how they are stocked,” Legler said. The Associated Press in Oklahoma reported Wednesday that Butcher is the youngest Oklahoma National Guard member to die in combat and is the youngest to have been killed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The Muskogee Phoenix reported Wednesday that Butcher attended Checotah Public Schools for two years before joining the Army National Guard in April, 2010. The newspaper reported that she had graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, SC, in March. The newspaper said that Butcher was the granddaughter of James C and Martha Mills, of El Dorado, and that she was the mother of a two-year old daughter, who lived with the Mills during Butcher's deployment.
“The Oklahoma National Guard family is deeply saddened by the loss of these two outstanding Citizen-Soldiers,” Oklahoma Adjutant General Major General Myles L Deering said in a press statement. “Their commitment and willingness to serve our nation during a time of war is indicative of their tremendous character and courage.”
Fourth District US Representative Mike Ross, D-Ark, issued a statement Wednesday concerning the Crossett native.
“Another American hero was tragically taken from us in the line of duty,” Ross said. “Private First Class Sarina Butcher was a mother, daughter, and a brave and dedicated soldier who put her life on the line in service to her country.
“We will be forever grateful for her selfless sacrifice,” Ross said. “My thoughts and prayers are with her mother, father, daughter and the rest of her family and friends during this very difficult time.
“As we approach Veterans Day, we must remember the sacrifices our troops make every day in service to this great country and thank them for what they do.”
Contributed on 2/19/12 by mryal8
Email This Contributor
Suggest a Correction
Record #: 651035