2010, May 18 - Colonel Geoff Parker, The RCR - VBIED in Kabul

[DadofRCR]

My condolences to the Parker family.  Colonel Parker was CO of 2Btn when my son did his first tour of Afghanistan.  I thank the Colonel for bringing him and the rest of the Btn back on once piece.

You may be gone...but you'll NEVER be forgotten.


Ken Brady, Maj
Regional Cadet Advisor (RCSU - WOA)

[Tim McCully]

RIP Col Parker, the CAV/VAC will stand bye at Re-Pat Row in Trenton to receive you home!  Cassino Unit-1CAV sends it's deepest condolences Col Parker's Family and also to the Regiment. Pro Patria

Tim

[Mike Blais]

Slain Canadian colonel was 'hand-picked' for Afghan posting
 
 
By Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service May 19, 2010 11:02 AM


KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Col. Geoff Parker, who died in a suicide car bombing in Kabul on Tuesday along with five American soldiers and 12 Afghan civilians, was travelling in a convoy with four other Canadians including a general who is to become deputy commander for NATO operations in southeastern Afghanistan this fall.

Brig.-Gen Andre Corbould, two other Canadian officers and a corporal were in the five-vehicle convoy with Parker when a suicide bomber exploded a minivan loaded with nearly a tonne of explosives. None of the other Canadians was injured in the blast.

Parker was to have taken up a position co-ordinating humanitarian aid and development across southern Afghanistan at the same time that Corbould was to become deputy commander of RC South, which has its headquarters at Kandahar Airfield.

Along with an American colonel killed in the same blast, Parker was the highest ranking NATO officer to have died in Afghanistan since U.S. forces invaded the country in the fall of 2001.

Parker was on a fairly typical mission in Kabul for officers soon to be deployed to Afghanistan when the convoy was hit near Canada's old base in Kabul. It was closed when the former Liberal government of Paul Martin government turned its military focus to Kandahar four years ago.

Parker was in the Afghan capital with some of those he was to work with when he took up his duties as deputy director for stability for NATO's Regional Command South. The posting at Kandahar Airfield was to have been for one year.

Parker was "hand-picked" by the Canadian army for the RC South posting, according to Col. Simon Hetherington, deputy commander of Task Force Kandahar. Parker was to have replaced Col. Jim Wall, a Canadian engineer currently serving with NATO at its main southern base at Kandahar Airfield.

"He was really, really smart and had a huge capacity to get things done," Hetherington said Wednesday of his friend, whom he first got to know during a year that they spent together in Toronto on a course for senior officers. They were later posted together at CFB Petawawa in the Upper Ottawa Valley where their wives became good friends.

"Geoff's wife, M.J, ran the show, that's for sure, and I mean that in a very good way," Hetherington said. "This is going to be tough for everyone. He was a great family man."

Four other Canadians were in the same convoy as Parker. The other Canadians were not injured in the blast.

Parker was born and raised in Oakville, Ont. The 42-year-old career infantry officer had been based since last summer at CFB Downsview in Toronto, where he worked for Land Forces Central Area. Before that he commanded 2nd battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment, in Gagetown, N.B.

India Company of the RCR's, which Parker commanded until a few months ago, has just arrived in Kandahar to provide force protection and mobility for Canada's city-based Provincial Reconstruction Team.

In Gagetown, Parker's death left those who knew him shocked and saddened, said Mayor Fay Tidd.

"When it happens to someone you have met, you can't believe it," said Tidd, who talked to Parker last year during a change-of-command ceremony as he completed his term as commanding officer of 2RCR.

"It really hits home. He was someone very prominent here and to know something like this has happened is a shock.

With a file from Fredericton Daily Gleaner
© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

[Mike Blais]

Repatriation likely to arrive in Durham mid-Friday afternoon

May 19, 2010 - 11:45 AM

DURHAM -- The convoy carrying the body of the most recent Canadian military casualty in Afghanistan is likely to make its way down the Highway of Heroes Friday afternoon, with the repatriation tentatively slated to arrive at Durham's easternmost edge just after 3 p.m.

Colonel Geoff Parker, 42, an Oakville native, was among 18 people, military and civilian, killed in a suicide attack in Kabul May 18. He was the 145th Canadian soldier to die since the mission began in 2002, and the seventh this year.

He's Canada's highest-ranking casualty to date.

It's anticipated his body will arrive at CFB Trenton around 2 p.m. Friday, May 21. After a ceremony there, the procession will head out onto Hwy. 401. It takes just over an hour to go from the Quinte base to the east end of Durham.

Durhamregion.com will have more details as they become available.

[Mike Blais]

Be advised that a contingent from the The RCR Assoc Niagara will be parading at the coroners office in TO for the repat. I would take this moment to invite all interested Royals to join us under the banner of The Royal Canadian Regiment and RCR Association to salute our fallen comrade.

Pro Patria   

[Mike Blais]

'An officer and a gentleman, that was what Geoff was'
Published Wednesday May 19th, 2010

By MICHAEL STAPLES
staples.michael@dailygleaner.com

The Royal Canadian Regiment is still absorbing news of the violent death Tuesday in Afghanistan of one of its former leaders.

THE CANADIAN PRESS

Col. Geoff Parker, who commanded the Second Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment (2RCR) at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown from 2007 until June 2009, was killed early Tuesday morning by a suicide bomber.

"He was a real sweetheart of a guy and a real personable guy," said Ryan Jestin, a former CFB Gagetown commander. "I loved working with him."

Parker, based at Land Force Central Area Headquarters in Toronto, was travelling in a NATO convoy when a suicide bomber drove a car packed with explosives into his motorcade during Kabul's morning rush hour.

The attack, the deadliest in more than seven months, also claimed the lives of 12 Afghan civilians and five U.S. soldiers. The incident occurred at around 8 a.m. Afghanistan time.

Parker, the highest ranking Canadian officer to die in the Afghanistan theatre of operations, was in Kabul as part of a NATO team preparing for an upcoming mission. He leaves behind his wife M.J. Parker and two young children, Charlie and Alexandria.

Parker is the 145th Canadian soldier to die in the wartorn region since the mission began in 2002.

Parker, 42, a native of Oakville, Ont., had a rich history with the Royal Canadian Regiment, having spent time with all three battalions.

There are more than 300 Gagetown soldiers in Afghanistan, including India Company from 2RCR.

Jestin said he was shocked by the news of his friend's death. He said he knew Parker well, having worked with him at CFB Petawawa prior to coming to New Brunswick.

Jestin said when 2RCR took multiple casualties during its 2007 mission in Afghanistan, Parker was right beside him, helping affected families and their comrades.

"He was an absolute voice of calm during all that turmoil in 2007. He was a stellar officer and superb guy. I go a long, long ways back with Geoff. He's just a fantastic, calm cool collected guy. I would say he was loved as a soldier's soldier and equally respected and loved by his officer brethren ... When you talk about an officer and a gentleman, that was what Geoff was."

Jestin said his friend was a down-homer who always fit in well within whatever community he was living in, including Oromocto.

"His larger military family - the RCR - are reeling at this moment because he is really well known, was well respected and was really truly loved as an officer."

Couple that with the impact on his family and the loss is even more tragic, he said.

Jestin said Parker had a bright military career ahead of him.

"Unfortunately, it shows the almost cowardice of the Taliban in terms of attacking people who are honestly trying to make Afghanistan better and that was what he was doing," Jestin said. "I hear lots of folks everywhere say, 'It's another reason why we shouldn't be there.' But I kind of look at it in another way and say that is the reason we need to be there."

David Charters, a senior fellow and terrorism expert at the Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society at the University of New Brunswick, said the loss is a tough blow for the Royal Canadian Regiment.

"It's one thing to be killed in battle, but to have your life taken in a situation where there was really not even a chance for you to fight back makes it that much more traumatic."

Bob Lockhart, a retired lieutenant-colonel with the reserves, said violent acts such the one that claimed the life of Parker and the others represent desperation by the Taliban.

"The Taliban are retreating to their basic weapons," Lockhart said. "It doesn't make any difference who gets killed, they still get their headlines. The message is: the government can't protect everybody."

While it's unfortunate "such a fine young man was lost," those are the risks combat soldiers take when they go out in the streets and villages, Lockhart said.

"Once you go outside the wire, your life is at risk. It's amazing that we have such outstanding and dedicated and well-trained professional soldiers that do that every day - 24 hours a day. They don't like to go out and risk their lives, but they know in some way they are helping the people."

[Mike Blais]

Slain colonel begins long journey home
 
 
By Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service May 20, 2010 6:46 AM


KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Col. Geoff Parker was bid an poignant farewell Thursday by scores of infantrymen from his Royal Canadian Regiment and 2,000 other NATO troops in a solemn ceremony beside the camouflaged transport plane that was to take the colonel on the first leg of his last journey home.

Parker was the 145th Canadian to die in Afghanistan and the most senior officer NATO soldier to have fallen here since U.S. forces ousted the Taliban from power in 2001.

The colonel, who commanded 2nd battalion, the Royal Canadian Regiment in Gagetown, N.B., until last summer, was killed when a suicide bomber attacked a convoy Tuesday in Kabul that was transporting a group of soldiers on a "recce" visit before deploying to Kandahar this fall.

Five American soldiers and 12 Afghan civilians were also killed in the explosion.

"We are all devastated by this sudden loss," said Parker's friend of 20 years, Lt.-Col. Conrad Mialkowski, who commands 1st battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment from Petawawa, Ont., which has just arrived in country for a seven month tour of duty. "Geoff was the consummate professional."

As so often happens in Canada's tiny combat arms community, the careers of Parker and Mialkowski overlapped many times. They spent four years together in the same battalion in their twenties as platoon commanders and were together again for two years as company commanders in the same battalion until 2005. Their tours as battalion commanders also overlapped by one year.

The two men had so many shared secrets from those days "and now only I have to keep them," Mialkowski said.

Eight generals including two "one-leafs" from Canada were among the mourners who silently saluted on the sun-baked tarmac as two lieutenant colonels, two majors and four captains carried Parker's flag-draped casket into the aircraft.

The pallbearers were followed across the airport ramp by a soldier playing Flowers of the Forest (the Pipers' Lament).

"Despite his obvious talent, Col. Parker was humble and shared a genuine concern for all those with whom he served," Padre Andre Gauthier told the gathering. "His infectious smile revealed his gentle character and was appreciated by those around him."

Born and raised in Oakville, Ont., Parker leaves behind his wife, M.J., and his son, Charlie, and his daughter, Alex. The 42-year-old infantryman was posted to the army's headquarters for Central Canada at Canadian Forces Base Downsview in Toronto but was to take up a 9-month posting with NATO's Regional Command South this fall as the deputy for aid and development to a civilian director.

"The job he was going into wasn't to carry a rifle and clear the grape fields of Panjwaii," Mialkowski said. But because Parker was "really smart" and had a "very analytical" mind, he was "actually ideally suited" for his next assignment assisting Afghan civilians.

Learning of Parker's death as he did while in the field with his own troops was probably easier to deal with than if he had found out at home, Mialkowski said.

"It is a bit different than in Canada," he said. "We have a job to do so we grieve briefly and get on with it. It is easier maybe than being at home."

Of the blast which killed Parker and 17 others, the Canadian battle group commander said, "Our sense of it is that it must have been an attack on something that was foreign." The "indiscriminate" attack "demonstrates to us that they (the Taliban) don't really care about civilians. They will kill civilians to get at us."

This was, Mialkowski said, in sharp contrast to NATO's approach, which was to take extraordinary measures to try to prevent civilian casualties.

Details of when Parker's body will arrive at CFB Trenton, east of Toronto, after a journey through airports in the Middle East and Europe have not yet been released by the Department of National Defence.
© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Slain+colonel+begins+long+journey+home/3050903/story.html#ixzz0oTBgIX4o

[Greg "Slim" Whitman]

RIP Col Parker

It was an honour and a pleasure to serve will him in the 1st and Finest!

Condolences to his family!

His sacrifice will not be in vain!

Greg "Slim" Whitman

[David Ward]

I just got my computers back. My condolences to the family and my prayers to everyone. I am sorry that I cannot be at Highway of Heroes but I will be at the main Ceneotaph in downtown Vancouver. Another soldier, man, father and husband has gone. It goes with the uniform that we elected to wear and serve in.

PRO PATRIA

[Mike Blais]

09:59 AM ET

7 arrested for suicide bombing that killed 6 NATO troops

KABUL, Afghanistan - Seven people have been arrested over a suicide bombing that killed six NATO troops in Afghanistan last week, Afghan intelligence spokesman Saeed Ansari said Monday.

Five Americans - including a colonel and two lieutenant colonels - a Canadian colonel, and at least 12 Afghan civilians were killed in the blast on May 18.

The arrests took place last week, Ansari said. He said the people arrested were working for a Taliban "shadow governor," Daoud Surkha.

The militant Islamist movement has a system of "shadow governors" assigned to order operations in Afghan provinces.

Ansari told CNN Surkha was "across the border," presumably in Pakistan.

The suicide bombing last week occurred on a busy road near a NATO-led military convoy and a registration center for the Afghan Army.

The five U.S. soldiers were Col. John M. McHugh, 46, of New Jersey; Lt. Col. Paul R. Bartz, 43, of Wisconsin; Lt. Col. Thomas P. Belkofer, 44, of Ohio; Staff Sgt. Richard J. Tieman, 28, of Pennsylvania; and Spc. Joshua A. Tomlinson, 24, of Louisiana.

Canada's Ministry of National Defence named the Canadian soldier as Col. Geoff Parker of the Royal Canadian Regiment, 42, of Oakville, Ontario.

Local medical officials said at least 12 civilians were killed and 48 injured. The British Foreign Office put the civilian death toll at 19.

Five U.S. military vehicles were destroyed along with 13 civilian cars. One of the civilian cars was a bus filled with people, a spokesman said.

Zabiullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, confirmed the operation and said the attacker was able to "destroy five foreign vehicles and damage one more."

The U.S. Embassy decried the attack, saying it demonstrates the Taliban's "callous disregard for the well-being of the Afghan people."

Profiles of the 5 U.S. troops killed

[Mike Blais]

PARKER, Colonel Geoff CD Land Forces Central Today I am bringing Parker home to the regiment and all other'swhose paths we have crossed Visitation will be held at the Murphy Funeral Home 296 Isabella Street, Pembroke on Wednesday, May 26, 2010 from 1:00 - 3:00 PM and 6:00 - 8:00 PM A celebration of Parker's life will be held on Thursday, May 27, 2010 at 10:00 AM at Y101 CFB Petawawa Parker's final posting will be on Friday, May 28, 2010 in Arundel, Quebec at 2:00 PM

http://www.legacy.com/can-ottawa/Obituaries.asp?Page=LifeStory&PersonID=143108199

[Fred Doucette]

Rest in peace Geoff, my sincere condolences to your family. Thank you for your service to Canada and the Regiment you will not be forgotten.
Pro Patria
Fred Doucette

[Mike Blais]

Col. Parker laid to rest

By ERIC NICOL, QMI Agency

Last Updated: May 28, 2010 7:52pm



ARUNDEL, Que. - The highest ranking soldier to die in Afghanistan was buried on Friday afternoon at a cemetery in the small municipality of Arundel in the Laurentians.

Col. Geoff Parker, 42, who was killed on May 18, was laid to rest at the foot of the monument belonging to his in-laws, the Baugh Family.

Nearly 300 people - family, friends, a few curious onlookers and members of the military - attended the brief ceremony.

Parker's wife, Mary Jane Parker, and their two children, Charlie and Alex, sat a few feet away from the casket during the ceremony. The family owns a cottage in the Arundel area and had spent summers there in the past.

During the ceremony, Parker's decorated uniform was placed on casket and both it and the Canadian flag draped on the casket were folded and presented to his widow.

The three Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR) battalions were represented at the ceremony. Among them were several high ranking soldiers that had known Parker throughout his career.

"He was a gentleman," said Maj. Russell King, who had known Parker for 21 years. "(He was) a family man and a devoted husband."

The ceremony was followed by a reception at the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion near the cemetery.

A native of Oakville, Ont., Parker was killed in a suicide bombing by the Taliban. Five American soldiers and 12 Afghan civilians were also killed during the attack.

Parker is the seventh Canadian soldier to be killed in Afghanistan this year and the 145th to die since the mission started.

[Mike Blais]

CFB Petawawa says farewell to colonel killed in Afghanistan

 
By Jennifer Pagliaro, The Ottawa Citizen May 28, 2010
 
 
CFB PETAWAWA — Only the whir of fans overhead could be heard as the crowd sat in silence, awaiting the arrival of the colonel's casket.

More than 1,000 friends, family and soldiers gathered in the drill hall at CFB Petawawa Thursday morning to pay their respects to Col. Geoff Parker, the highest-ranking Canadian officer to die in Afghanistan.

As the casket entered the building, cloaked in the Canadian flag, a single drummer saluted the procession, striking a beat every few seconds.

Parker's wife M.J. and their two children Charlie, 11, and Alexandria, 9, followed. Fellow officers adorned the casket with a wreath and the soldier's retired uniform.

Parker, a 42-year-old Oakville, Ont., native, was a member of the Royal Canadian Regiment. He was killed by a roadside bomb on May 18 while participating in a NATO mission in Kabul. He was the 145th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan.

His ceremony began with the singing of the hymn The Old Rugged Cross, which Parker's wife sang along to, head held high, from her seat in the front row. She had made clear to participants beforehand that the ceremony should be a celebration of life, rather than a time of sorrow.

Those who took the podium in the sun-lit hall remembered Parker as both a dedicated soldier and family man.

Parker achieved his greatest ambition, said brother David, by becoming a soldier like their grandfather.

"He was a humble man and a man who called a spade a spade," David Parker said.

"He was so very proud to be your comrade in arms," he told the officers in the crowd, choking back tears. "Knowing that he died bravely in Afghanistan serving his country, should be solace to us all."

The crowd heard from officers who served alongside Parker, about his dedication to the service.

"Col. Geoff Parker was a prince of a man. Perhaps the finest officer I ever knew," Brig.-Gen. Jean Collin told the crowd. Collin said he remembers Parker pushing him to go to Afghanistan.

"He (went) not because he wanted another medal on his chest. Not because he wanted the extra money. And not for the glory of it all. He did so because he believed it was the right thing to do," Collin said.

He recalled how Parker helped train hundreds of other soldiers for deployment to Afghanistan. He often had to welcome home soldiers who had been injured and receive those who had been killed.

"His view was simple. If they were to go, he too must go," Collin said.

Chief Warrant Officer K.V. Burgess concluded his eulogy by turning to Parker's wife and children -- who together with Parker became a part of the regimental family and were a "command team" of their own, he said.

"Know that your husband, your father, was well-respected and admired by all members of his former battalion," Burgess told them. "He is sincerely missed by me and all others who served with him. We will not forget him."

But despite tears, colleagues honoured the widow's wishes for a lighter mood. Many cracked jokes in remembering fonder times with the colonel, receiving hearty chuckles from the crowd.

Maj.-Gen. A.J. Howard remembered how he and Parker would sneak away from the base to fish on the Ottawa River. Howard also recalled being beaten at chess by both Geoff and Charlie Parker on a recent cruise in the Caribbean. He hadn't realized the colonel had passed on his chess skills to his son -- "his equally wise and talented apprentice," Howard said.

To conclude, he read a message from wife M.J., which she had asked him to deliver on her behalf.

"To the Taliban: Parker always said, 'I left a wreckage in my wake.' Who knew you would trump me," she wrote.

She also reminded her children how much their father loved them. "Your strength and courage through this puts me to shame," she wrote.

Her final message was for her late husband: "Parker-Parker, I'll see you at the gate."
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Petawawa+says+farewell+colonel+killed+Afghanistan/3077940/story.html#ixzz0pGze5pfZ

[Fred Doucette]

Rest in Peace Col, than you for your service to RCR and Canada and sincere condolences to the Parker family. Pro Ptria