Madden

Sgt. Brendan Madden U.S. Army's 101st Airborne/Air Assault of Fort Campbell, Ky., is a 1999 graduate of Aiken High School. He is the son of Dennis and Robin Madden of Finneytown. His wife is Stephanie, a 1999 graduate of Cincinnati Christian School. The couple has two children, Abbie, 4, and Alex, 16 months.

His parents write:

Our son grew up in Winton Place and College Hill. He always had a whole lot of energy and could work long and hard when he felt it was needed.

He received basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. He trained as a combat engineer and, after a year in Korea, he became part of the 101st Airborne. He now knows how to jump out of helicopters with 160-pound pack. The rappelling equipment is not as nice as the stuff he used in Boy Scouts, but then they don't plan on reusing it once they are down.

The news coverage is amazing, but it is hard to listen to much of it. For a while we could even get e-mails from Brendan. The Internet has been great. We could see pictures of what was happening at the camp where he was stationed. Sometimes, we can still locate his division and get a glimpse of what it must be like for him.

Our deepest sympathies and love go out to all who have suffered the loss of loved ones in this conflict. We are praying loud and long for a swift end to this, and the best possible outcome for everyone.