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Iraq war veteran Marine Corps Corporal (retired) Ryan Lamke visits the grave of friend and fellow Marine Corporal Benny G. Cockerham III on the 10th anniversary of the start of the Iraq war at Arlington National Cemetery, March 19, 2013, in Arlington, Virginia. Lamke lives in Washington, DC, and visits Cockerham's grave once a month. He made this visit specifically because of the anniversary.
Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, contains graves of soldiers from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, March 13.
Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
Celeste Mills of El Paso, Texas, kneels beside the grave of her youngest son, Joshua Mills, who was killed in Afghanistan, at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, March 13.
Related:
Family grieves for soldier who died after six tours of duty
John Moore / Getty Images
Family members and U.S. soldiers embrace following a welcome home ceremony for troops returning from Iraq on Nov. 10, in Fort Carson, Colo. More than 100 soldiers from the 549th Quartermaster Company, 43rd Sustainment Brigade returned after a seven-month deployment. They played a key role in removing excess equipment from Iraq as other troops withdrew from the region.
John Moore / Getty Images
U.S. Army Pvt. Sulala Thompson cheers as fellow soldiers arrive for a welcome home ceremony for troops returning from Iraq.
The Colorado Springs Gazette reports:
The Iraq war’s cleanup crew came home to Fort Carson on Thursday, leaving behind former American bases that soldiers described as “ghost towns.” ...
The soldiers cooked countless meals, did 101,000 loads of laundry for the dwindling number of American troops left in Iraq, and packed up 1,200 shipping containers of Army gear to send home.
As the United States winds down two wars, stories will this are becoming more common.
Related:
New York Times: Looking After the Soldier, Back Home and Damaged
Marine claims PTSD, brain trauma led to fatal DUI crash
Photojournalist Chris Hondros, who died covering the war in Libya this year, produced memorable pictures of the Tal Afar checkpoint shooting incident mentioned below.
John Moore's work appears frequently in PhotoBlog: Colorado family evicted after rent dispute; US Army soldiers look for Taliban fighters from mountaintop outpost in Afghanistan
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond watches as the sun sets over the Rocky Mountains on September 23 in Lakewood, Colorado. Seven years after returning home from a year-long deployment in Tal Afar, Iraq, Hammond continues to experience severe post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the effects of traumatic brain injuries he sustained in combat. He suffers from chronic anxiety, headaches, night terrors, hallucinations and frequent bouts of aggression and cannot hold down a full time job. He helps his wife Dani care for their three children, while also taking a private mentoring classes to help improve his attention and cognitive skills. Hammond was on a team of U.S. soldiers who opened fire on a carload of Iraqi civilians on January 18, 2005 in Tal Afar, Iraq, killing two, when they did not stop at a checkpoint.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond watches as his wife Dani helps their daughter Devin, 14, prepare for a homecoming dance on Sept. 24 in Lakewood, Colorado.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond struggles with a memory quiz during a private session with "brain trainer" David Whatley on September 26 in Denver, Colorado. Hammond is taking a 6-month course, paid for by the Veterans Administration, to improve his memory and cognitive skills.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond takes a memory quiz during a private session with "brain trainer" David Whatley on Sept. 26, 2011 in Denver, Colorado.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond (L), takes a memory quiz during a private session with "brain trainer" David Whatley on Sept. 26 in Denver, Colorado.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond holds his son Cooper, 18-months, on Sep. 24 at their house in Lakewood, Colorado.
John Moore / Getty Images
Iraq War veteran Brad Hammond pauses to rest while in the basement of his house on Sept. 24, in Lakewood, Colorado.
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