Bradley Robert Draper

Bradley Robert Draper,

35, of Phoenix, AZ, passed away on June 22, 2006. Brad was born on September 13, 1970 in Elmhurst, IL., to Tom and Carol Draper. The family moved to Phoenix, AZ in 1972 and then overseas to Hong Kong in 1985. While in Hong Kong, Brad attended and graduated from the Hong Kong International School and enjoyed playing snooker, darts and broom ice hockey. After graduation he held a job as a bartender “extraordinaire” at Dan Ryan’s Bar and Grill until 1990 when the family relocated back to Phoenix. In 1991, Brad moved to San Francisco, CA and held positions as bartender and restaurant manager over the course of the 11 years he was there. He served honorably for 8 years with the California National Guard while attending Heald College; School of Technology where he obtained an Associates Degrees in Computer Science and Networking Technology. He enjoyed surfing, boogie boarding and indulged in his favorite obsession-Play Station. After the events of September 11th 2001, Brad joined the U.S. Army and as an active member served overseas in Germany as part of the Military Police. In 2003, he was honorably discharged and returned to Phoenix where after a short period of time he joined the Arizona National Guard Military Police Division. At the time of his death, Brad held the rank of Specialist E4 and was scheduled to be deployed to Iraq in August 2006. He had applied to and had been accepted for OSC-Officer’s Candidacy School where he intended on fulfilling his dream of becoming an officer. Brad was working as a bar/restaurant manager at Gallagher’s and was attending DeVry Institute of Technology with the goal of obtaining his Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology. He was loved by all. He will be deeply, deeply missed. He is survived by his wife, Regina; his father, Tom, his mother, Carol, his sister Laura, his stepmother Debbie, his stepbrothers, Adam and Jason Millard; grandmothers, Nellie Draper and Alvina Kotowski; uncles and aunts, Bob and Nancy Draper; David and Donna Kott and numerous cousins. He is also survived by his two cats, Stirfry and Oscar. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, June 27, 2006 from 5:00-8:00 P.M. at Whitney & Murphy Funeral Home, 4800 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. Funeral Services will be on Wednesday, June 28, 2006 at 10:30 A.M. at Whitney & Murphy Funeral Home. Burial with full military honors will take place at 1:00 P.M., at the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona, 23039 N. Cave Creek Road, Phoenix.
     Published in The Arizona Republic on 6/26/2006.

Spc Phillip D. Brown

SPC Philip D. Brown

Age: 21
Jamestown ND
KIA 5/8/2004, Balad, Iraq
Co B, 141st Eng Com Bn, Jamestown, ND

Spc. Brown was one of those guys that could cheer up anyone. I remember I couldnt stand him when I first met him as he had so much energy it annoyed me. I remember walking to the make-shift PX at camp virginia, kuwait before going to Iraq, and he was just so happy go lucky. My opinion changed of him that day as he was so kind and warm, even to me while I was giving him a hard time. Spc. Brown passed way before his time. If he could change me and my thoughts on how I (an arrogant pesimistic person) looked at ppl, he could have change the world. He did, he changed my world. I often forget what I learned from him, but when I see or hear of him, I get taken back to that day taking the long stroll over to the px in hot sand, realizing what a fool I was.

Thanks Brown, I will never forget.

Spc Phillip D. Brown