Deepest Sympathy's to Michael Brancato and family on the loss of his grandmother on thursday and the loss of his cousin Marine Lance Cpl. David Raymond Baker killed in Afghanistan
Michael playes for Flyer's Count out of the Stadium Lounge.

The below is taken in part from the News Herald:
Marine Lance Cpl. David Raymond Baker, 22, of Painesville Township, was killed by an improvised explosive device Tuesday in the Helmand Province of south Afghanistan. He was a mortar man for the First Battalion, Fifth Marine Regiment. It was his first tour in Afghanistan.

He is survived by his father, Mark Baker, his mother, Laurie Lewkowski, brother, also named Mark Baker, and twin sisters, Lauren and Taylor Genovese.

But David Baker grew to accept his responsibility. When he went on security rounds in Afghanistan, he would volunteer to take the point.

As the first vehicle in a convoy, this left him exposed. When his family asked him why he would put himself in danger, he told them, “That’s my job.”

He explained to his grandfather — a retired Army colonel, also named Jim Baker — that taking the point allowed him to control the tempo of the security rounds. By going first, he could do a thorough job and prevent someone else from stumbling on a land mine.

David Baker’s body is expected to be flown into Dover, Del., today. His family plans to bury him in Arlington National Cemetery after a local funeral.

Jim Baker served in the Army and Central Intelligence Agency. He was a prisoner of war for 13 1⁄2 months. He marvels that he survived all that but his grandson didn’t live to see 23.

“He had a crucifix on his back,” his grandfather said. “I asked him why he got it there, and he said, ‘Because Jesus has got my back.’ That told me a lot about his character.”