Call Me Crazy...
{but I feel I should be there...}
By Jack Franke
he number 23 has a strange irony. On 23 March 2003 PFC Lori Ann Piestewa became the first woman killed
in combat in Iraq near Nasiriyah. She was 23 years old. A year and a half later, 23 Oct 2004, that
number came up again. That was the day that Sgt Jamie Michalsky was killed in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Jamie was also 23 years old.
Unfortunately, many of us have become numb to death and bloodshed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Jamie,
however, was a different story. She was not Pat Tillman or Lori Piestewa. She was Jamie. She was my
student. I had encouraged her to go to Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and become a Russian interpreter.
Jamie's death brought home all the pain and sadness that all families experience for their fallen
heroes. And now I had to come to grips with the reality of war. At what price? The ultimate sacrifice.
Jamie had been visiting a doctor for a hand injury she had suffered when the car she was in rolled
over. She went to the local market in Kabul and was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Across from
a NATO truck was a street vendor. Jamie just happened to be there at that time. The Taliban suicide
bomber set off the grenades strapped to his body and flung himself at Jamie. She would never wake
again after falling into a coma.
This was Jamie's second time in Afghanistan. In 2002 Jamie served for nine months with her Army
Reserve unit. After she returned to the U.S., Jamie was offered a job as a Russian-language
interpreter by Worldwide Language Resources, a company doing business under a U.S. military contract
in Southwest Asia. Jamie had just learned Russian during a year of intensive language training in 2001
at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Langauge Center in Monterey, California. Sgt. Michalsky had
a large circle of friends during her 23 years on this planet. Below is a small sample of the lives she
touched:
"When Jamie was deployed we stayed in contact by e-mails. When she was back in the states we would get
together for coffee or a meal. In one of the last messages I sent her I notified her of two fellow
soldiers that had been killed in Iraq. In her reply she expressed her sorrow but also said, "Call me
crazy, but I feel that I should be there."
I've been in the military for 26 years. In that time I have had the privilege to work with many
talented and special individuals. Out of all that talent there are a few that stand out. Jamie was one
these few individuals. She not only represented what an American soldier should be, but also what you
look for in a decent person."
Ronnie Miller
With all the "I can't get this Russian "------", "I'm not going to pass the test", to "I can do it" to
"I did it, Grams!" She was the same when it came to her dance lessons, and that was for twelve years.
She always headed for something challenging and got a little afraid she might not be able to do it,
but with a push from here, you, and others that gal went all the way. My husband and I are so proud of
her and what she has done in such a short time. The push and shove I gave her she also did to me. She
was my driving source and I will miss her very much.
Thank you for your condolences.
As I signed all of Jamie's letters, Take care, to Jamie -- love you much
GRAMS
Alice Michalsky, her grandmother in Cokato, Minnesota
The fact is, it was her intelligence, kindness, humor, HONESTY, and lust for life that made me admire
her. I have never met anyone so full of life and just so much darn fun to be around. She truly lived
life to the fullest, saw the world, met people everywhere, and always brings a smile to everyone's
face. My boyfriend, Lars, couldn't have said it better, "Jamie is the coolest girl I have ever met". I
am glad we gave our friendship a chance to blossom; I would have really missed out. She gave me some
of the funniest moments of my life. She is truly the most beautiful person.
Jamie, We miss you.
Marie Fredieu
I have the utmost respect for Jamie and her desire to serve our great nation. Jamie and I talked about
the Military on many occasions since I am also a combat veteran from the first Gulf War. I remember
the last time I talked to Jamie when she came back from her first tour to Afghanistan; I had asked her
if a second tour which was completely voluntary was the right choice. Jamie told me that she enjoyed
the country and was looking forward to doing her part in the fight against terrorism. That was the
last time I had the opportunity to talk with her as she was leaving the next day. I will miss Jamie
dearly for she was a true friend and I have been truly blessed for having her touch my life.
Jamie will always be in my heart as friend, a soldier and most of all an Officer in Blue.
Carl Trussell, Police Officer, Kileen, Texas
Now that the pain has subsided I feel both overwhelming sorrow and tremendous pride in Jamie, who
represented all that was good in us. Jamie penned the lines of this prayer to her folks in 2003, and
I would like to end on this note.
…Thanks to my family for believing in me!
…Thanks to my friends for closeness of spirit!
…Thanks to God for my experiences…
…my successes…
and the angels in my life!
--- Sgt. J. M. Michalsky
Jack Franke teaches Russian basic at DLI