Geronimo Bad ass of the week SSG Thomas K. Fogarty 27JAN1982-06MAY2012 Thomas was born and raised in Alameda, California. As a kid, Thomas was always fond of the Military and was often seen wearing camouflage. He was also a kind person with a “disarming and mischievous grin”, who wanted to take care of every stray dog he came across. he was also a lover of the outdoors and loved snowboarding and mountain biking. Like most Americans, Thomas was affected by the events of 9/11. He joined the Army in January 2004. After a short time as a hometown recruiting tour, he reported to his first unit and deployed to Iraq in April. He was known as a kind and generous person who loved to take small family trips to swap meets. Thomas’s dedication and hard work allowed him to rapidly rise to the rank of SSG. His final assignment was Charlie Company 3-509th PIR, where he would deploy with to Afghanistan. While on patrol in Ahmad-Kheyl, he was a vehicle commander when the convoy was attacked. He was fatally wounded when his vehicle was struck by an IED, which also wounded three other occupants. Thomas left behind a huge family, including his wife and two sons. But not just his personal family, but also his Geronimo family, which have a get together put on every year for any member of Charlie Company. Jimmy and Amanda Etro, have kept this tradition alive for the last 10 years. When deciding where to bury Thomas, his Family had chosen Arlington, so that it would be easier for his brothers to visit. Charlie Walks