Bøger af Mary Ellen Cortellini

Merriam Press Military Monograph Series. First Edition 2013. Shortly after 9/11, in November 2001, the seventeen members of the 710th left San Diego for Afghanistan to help in the search of the perpetrators of the worst terrorist attack on American soil. They answered the call during one of the most frightening times in our nation's history. Three would not come home again. The members of the 710th were some of the first boots on the ground in Afghanistan during the early days of Operation Enduring Freedom. Tragically, on April 15, 2002, the 710th lost three of their soldiers in an explosion of a booby-trapped weapons cache while supporting the 19th Special Forces group north of Kandahar. Killed in Action: SFC Daniel A. Romero, SSG Justin J. Galewski, SSG Brian T. Craig, and SGT Jamie O. Maugans. Only one soldier, SSG Jeffrey Pugmire, escaped death. The names of the three fallen Soldiers of the 710th were added to the EOD Memorial Wall at Eglin AFB in May 2003. The members of the 710th Ord Co (EOD) made history once again by their service and presence in Iraq on December 15, 2005 during that nation's first democratic elections. Other past deployments include operations in Bosnia and Kuwait as well. The former CO Major Keith Nelson, and SSG Jeff Pugmire (Ret) have worked at the Joint IED Task Force in Washington, DC. This interservice task force is developing new methods to defeat IEDs and their threat to our troops overseas. A Monument honoring the four killed in Afghanistan as well as Fort Rosecrans Soldiers, past and present, now stands at 1895 Tattnal Way. Open to the public, the Memorial is located along Harbor Drive in San Diego, within Lincoln Military Housing at Liberty Station. It was dedicated in April 2007 on the Fifth Year Anniversary weekend of the loss of the men from the 710th Ord Co (EOD) in Afghanistan. 103 B&W and color photos and documents.

Merriam Press Historical Fiction Series. First Edition 2013. Residing in 100-year-old military quarters on board an active Naval Submarine Base, a young military wife uncovers a bygone era of Army glory in San Diego at the turn of the twentieth century. "Sacred Trust" brings the first occupants of "Officers' Row" back to life during the heyday of the former Army post of Fort Rosecrans. The forgotten soldiers had slipped silently into the shadows, only to be rediscovered, a century later. "Sacred Trust" vividly captures and seamlessly integrates the current war on terror and an historic romance between handsome West Point graduate, Captain Ernest Scott, and San Diego debutante Ella von Engel. When Ella chooses this young Army officer over her childhood sweetheart and Naval Academy graduate, Lieutenant Tom Windsor, a rivalry begins. Jealousy and tensions mount throughout their military careers, colliding in one pivotal moment of historic proportions. During an early morning, pre-deployment start-up, two boilers explode aboard the Navy gunboat USS Bennington. Clouds of black smoke and steam and the scent of death rise over San Diego's waterfront. Bodies are spewed over the length of the ship and into the harbor. The Army's role in the aftermath of the explosion is significant, and has been overlooked for one hundred years... Inspired by a true story, "Sacred Trust" is a unique story (originally developed as a screenplay) about one woman's fight to tell an Army story in a modern-day Navy town. The characters are interwoven throughout the magnificent social events that took place in San Diego at the turn of the 20th century, highlighting the beauty, elegance, and military pageantry in the city. The settings overlook the beautiful entrance to San Diego Bay, the majestic island of Coronado, and the sparkling blue waters of the Pacific Ocean. Men in uniform accompany ladies to formal balls at the opulent seaside resort, Hotel del Coronado. There are yachting excursions to the boardwalk at Tent City, picnics at the Point Loma lighthouse, fireworks above Glorietta Bay, Friday night hops at the new Army post ... and in an instant, the resonance of terror, and one of the deadliest peacetime disasters in the history of the Navy. The parallel stories of the Soldiers of Fort Rosecrans 1902-1905 and their successors of 2002-2005, culminate in the fulfillment of a 100 year-old historic Army/Navy promise. 106 photos, illustrations, documents (many in color).

Merriam Press Military Biography Series Second Edition 2017 Kneedler is a compilation of historical documents. It brings Major William Ludwig Kneedler and his family back-to-life for the reader and highlights the strong Army presence in the City of San Diego at the turn of the twentieth century. During Kneedler's Army career he crossed paths with General Arthur MacArthur (General Douglas MacArthur's father), Admiral Caspar Goodrich, President William Howard Taft and others. He served as Post Surgeon at West Point and Fort Rosecrans (known today as Naval Base Point Loma). And he played a key role in the aftermath of one of the worst peacetime disasters in Naval history, the USS Bennington explosion. After attending Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, William Ludwig Kneedler entered the Army as a surgeon and served 27 years. He saw service in the Indian Wars of the Northwest, the Spanish American War, and as Executive Officer of the United States Hospital Ship Missouri, traveling around the world. Upon his return to San Diego in May 1902, he was Post Surgeon at Fort Rosecrans until November 1905. His last charge was in the Philippine Islands where he served as Attending Surgeon. Major Kneedler retired from the Army in July 1906, returning to Coronado and entering private practice. His home was designated a Coronado Historical Landmark in 1978. The old post hospital building at Fort Rosecrans still stands today. Contents Introduction The Early Years The Kneedlers Head to West Point The Spanish-American War and the Philippine Commission San Diego Barracks The Kneedler Home Along Ocean Blvd. on Coronado Across the Bay at Fort Rosecrans Captain Ernest D. Scott, Future Commanding Officer of Fort Rosecrans and Society Wedding to Ella von Gerichten, 1903 Ensign Newman K. Perry, Officer on the U.S.S. Bennington and Society Wedding to Vipont Doane, 1903 Buildup of Fort Rosecrans Army and Navy Socializing at San Diego U.S.S. Bennington Tragedy in San Diego Bay, 1905, Death of Perry and 64 Sailors, and Efforts by Kneedler and Scott Directing the Rescue of Survivors, Funerals and Burials, with Establishment of Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery and Bennington Memorial Major Kneedler's Retirement and Later Years Daughter Jessie Kneedler's Society Wedding Major Kneedler's Granddaughters Major Kneedler's Gravesite Epilogue: 710th Ordnance Company (EOD) Honoring the Promise 100 Years Later William Cronan, Medal of Honor Heber and Jerauld Ingle The Fort Rosecrans-Chi Omega Connection (Col. Frederick L. Dengler and Jean Vincenheller Dengler) Rear Admiral Caspar Goodrich and Lt. Caspar Goodrich Jr. Songs "Army Blue" and "Benny Havens, Oh!" Kneedler House Designated Coronado Landmark 2007 Dedication of Monument to Fort Rosecrans Soldiers, Past and Present Including Major Kneedler Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Six Memorial 200 color and B&W photos, illustrations, and documents