Army Ranger/S.I. cop hurt in war

[SR-25]

'2 of my men are gone'

BY BILL FARRELL and ROBERT F. MOORE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

A Staten Island cop on active duty in Iraq was wounded in battle by an explosion that killed two of his fellow soldiers, his relatives said yesterday.
NYPD Officer Jonathan Herbst, an elite Army Ranger, broke the sobering news to his grandfather Wednesday morning, but was more concerned about the men who died than his own pain.

"Pop, I'm in trouble," Herbst told his grandfather, Ben Lobaito, by phone. "Two of my men are gone. They didn't make it."

Herbst, 24, suffered head, back and arm injuries and is expected to be transferred to an Army hospital in Germany for treatment before returning to Staten Island, his grandfather said.

Details on the explosion that wounded Herbst were not available. Lobaito said his grandson had trouble speaking after telling him about the soldiers who were killed.

"He clammed up," Lobaito said. "He just clammed up."

After talking with his grandson, Lobaito called the cop's mother, Paula Herbst. She raced to her Dongan Hills home and frantically made phone calls to find out how bad her son was hurt.

"I spoke to him briefly," she said. "That's all I needed to do. I needed to hear my son's voice."

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said officials had no information on the soldier's condition. "Officer Herbst remains in our prayers for a speedy recovery," Kelly said.

Herbst, who joined the NYPD in July 2003, is assigned to the 120th Precinct. He is on active duty with the Army National Guard's First Battalion, 101st Calvary Division, based on Staten Island, police officials said.

He recently received sniper training with his Army Ranger unit before being redeployed to Kuwait on Sept. 27, his family said. It's not clear when he entered Iraq.

His mom is determined to meet him in Germany.

"I just want to go look into his eyes," she said. "As soon as I do that, I know I'll feel better."

Originally published on December 3, 2004

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/loca...p-221357c.html

Originally Posted by SR-25

'2 of my men are gone'

BY BILL FARRELL and ROBERT F. MOORE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

A Staten Island cop on active duty in Iraq was wounded in battle by an explosion that killed two of his fellow soldiers, his relatives said yesterday.
NYPD Officer Jonathan Herbst, an elite Army Ranger, broke the sobering news to his grandfather Wednesday morning, but was more concerned about the men who died than his own pain.

"Pop, I'm in trouble," Herbst told his grandfather, Ben Lobaito, by phone. "Two of my men are gone. They didn't make it."

Herbst, 24, suffered head, back and arm injuries and is expected to be transferred to an Army hospital in Germany for treatment before returning to Staten Island, his grandfather said.

Saw this in todays Staten Island Advance. As soon as he arrives home my local chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart will be here to greet him.

Our goal here in Staten Island is that we will not allow our local men/ women to come back home and be forgotten. We shall do everything we can to assist him in filling his papers withn the dav and the VA.