23 Ohio families mourn lost sons

Some families of troops killed in Iraq question war; others stay firm in support.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- More than 6,000 miles from small hometowns such as Orient and Wintersville, sons of Ohio continue to fight and fall in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Borne in body bags out of hard-to-pronounce places such as Iskandariyah and Mahmudiyah, Ohio servicemen have arrived home in a coffin an average of once every three weeks since the war began.
On Memorial Day 2003, slightly more than two months into the fighting, there were six Ohioans' graves to decorate with flowers and American flags.
As the nation pauses a year later to again honor the dead of wars past and present, the toll now touches 23 Ohio families.
Amid the numbing numbers of U.S. war dead in Iraq -- which last week surpassed 800 killed in action and accidents -- some Ohio families are questioning the painful price paid.
Although supportive of the troops, some question President Bush's decision that sent their relatives to die in a war prolonged by insurgents.
But with four more years on the line this fall amid the crucible of Iraq, some support the embattled commander in chief.
Near the Pickaway County community of Orient sits the home of Charles and Amy Ott, where the red, white and blue triangle that cradled their son's coffin remains tucked away.
Reminders of the death of Kevin, a 27-year-old Army private first class, are unnecessary.
"We're not ready to do that yet," Mrs. Ott, 69, said of displaying the flag. "He's gone. He's in a better world. We personally believe he is with God."
On June 25, Kevin Ott was abducted with another soldier near Balad, Iraq, and later executed with five shots in the back.
Asked whether he supported Bush's decision to invade Iraq to oust Saddam Hussein and hunt for weapons of mass destruction, Mr. Ott, 74, said: "Not wholeheartedly.
"I thought a lot of it was politics, mostly due to his father. Old Dad, he didn't get the job done. It's embarrassing they haven't found those weapons. Now it's hard to get out of there."
Mrs. Ott, a lifelong Republican who refuses to support Bush, echoed his sentiments.
"Too much oil, too much money," she said of the war's origins. "But now you just can't get up and leave. What do you think will happen when we leave? The terrorists will move in and take over."
Another view
A bitter David Van Dusen, of Groveport, says his parents are still in too much pain to discuss the death of his brother, and he wonders whether the sacrifice was "a waste of life."
Army Chief Warrant Officer Brian K. Van Dusen, 39, of Columbus, was killed May 9, 2003, when his medical helicopter snagged a power line and plunged into the Tigris River.
"If it all works out like it was supposed to, it was worth it," said the 42-year-old Van Dusen, a concrete worker. "If not, it was for nothing. I'm all for the other fellows in the military 150 percent ... but their leadership leaves a lot to be desired."
Alice Minto, of Wintersville, can't yet visit the grave of her grandson, Michael C. Smith Jr., a 21-year-old Marine lance corporal killed April 17, 2004.
"In the beginning, I supported [the war], but I don't think they are accomplishing what they supposedly set out to do -- finding the weapons and the terrorists," said the Republican, "ambivalent" about Bush.
"They've been killing each other for years [in Iraq], and they are going to keep doing it," the 73-year-old retired nurse said. "Americans now are the target. I think we should be out of there before we lose more young lives."
'We're stuck'
Only six weeks after burying his son, Allen Vandayburg of Mansfield laments that A.J.'s memory might be buried amid growing casualty numbers.
"I was like everybody else," he said. "At first, I thought it was the right thing to do ... We succeeded in what our main objective was: Get Saddam."
Army Spc. Allen J. Vandayburg, 20, died April 9 when his Bradley Fighting Vehicle was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade in Barez.
"Now, nobody knows what our mission is," his father said. "We're stuck."
The elder Vandayburg, a police lieutenant, supports Bush but doubts he will vote for him because he lacks an exit plan.
"Be a human being first; worry about re-election second. I don't want politics to be part of these kids' lives who are still over there. We're losing one or two a day, and it adds up -- more families who will go through grief for the rest of their lives."
Shirley Bates, 56, of Bellaire, says the life of the grandson she reared "was wasted over there."
Army Spc. Todd M. Bates, 20, drowned Dec. 10 when he dove into the Tigris to rescue his Ohio National Guard squad leader, Staff Sgt. Aaron T. Reese, 31, of Reynoldsburg. Reese also drowned.