03/31/09 Greenwich Grandmother Has Lost Beloved Grandson Who Has Paid The Ultimate Sacrifice For The Freedoms We Often Take For Granted

Afghan casualty mourned in Greenwich
Connecticut Post

By Colin Gustafson

GREENWICH -- He grew up near Los Angeles, but as a boy Francis Toner would spend his summer days in Greenwich -- roving the beaches of Greenwich Point Park, playing baseball at a Brunswick School summer camp and swimming in the pool near his grandmother's home.

A Navy lieutenant who had been serving in northern Afghanistan since October, Toner was shot to death Friday, just days before he was scheduled to return home to visit family and friends.

The 26-year-old was fatally wounded after an insurgent disguised as an Afghan soldier opened fire on U.S. service members stationed at a base in Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, the Department of Defense said.....

Navy lieutenant Francis Toner was clearly a dedicated and professional officer, and was doing vital work to bring stability to Afghanistan and, by extension, greater security to us all.

.....Toner, who attended the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy on Long Island and served in the Navy as a garrison engineer, had been assigned to a blended military unit there, called "Combined Security Transition Command," used to train Afghan soldiers.

He was set to arrive home today to reunite with his wife, Brooke, according to his grandmother, Peggy Maynard, a town resident of nearly 30 years.

Maynard fondly recalled hosting her grandson, "Frankie," and his younger sister, Amanda, now 22, as children during their month-long summer visits to her condominium on Greenwich Hills Drive where Maynard still lives.....

When you travel through Greenwich tomorrow and see the American flags at half mast please stop a think about the extraordinary challenges faced by young men like Lieutenant Francis Toner and the strain on their families Should always be on our minds, and today our thoughts and prayers are the family of Lieutenant Francis Toner.

...."He really cherished his grandmother so much," said Toner's sister, Amanda, who added that during college, "he would go up [to Greenwich] whenever he could, just to get away for a while and visit Grammy."

In fact, Maynard was one of the last people in the family to hear from Toner, who called around 1:30 a.m. March 21 (10 a.m. in Afghanistan) to "check in" with his grandmother and chat about his work at the base, where he was helping train Afghan soldiers.

During the conversation, Maynard said, "I remembered sending him a card that said, 'I believe, I believe, I believe in you.' And when I asked him about it, he said, 'Grammy, I have your card sitting on my desk.' ... He was just a very caring, gentle person that way.".....

No words can bring Ms. Maynard's "Frankie"' back. Yet what all of in Greenwich do hope is that that she can draw strength from the fact that Lieutenant Francis Toner was well-respected and admired. Lieutenant Toner died serving his country, helping to secure abroad the kind of freedom and liberties that so many of us take for granted here in this country.

....The California native decided to attend the Merchant Marine Academy to play for its football team and study engineering while remaining close to family members out East, according to his father, Frank Toner, of Narragansett, R.I., where Francis last lived.

When Toner graduated in 2006, President George W. Bush presented him with a plaque and shook his hand during the ceremony, Maynard said. The young man also enjoyed his work in Afghanistan, she added, and even tried to teach some of the Afghan soldiers how to play softball, recording video footage of the effort and later e-mailing it to relatives.

Since his death, Toner has also been remembered in articles appearing in newspapers across the country, from the Los Angeles Times and the San Jose Mercury News, to the Providence Journal and the Boston Globe ­-- another point of pride for his grandmother.

"He was always a hero to us," she said. "Now, he's a hero to everyone."

Toner is survived by his wife, his father and stepmother, Sharon Toner; his mother, Becky Toner; his sister; and brothers, John and Michael. He requested to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

It shouldn't take the death of another fine military officer for us to realize that we are free and we are thankful.

And to all the military men and women , past present and future: We sincerely thank you for doing what you've been ordered to do without complaint.

We thank you for every blistered foot, for mud-filled boots, for the long hot marches, for sleepless days and nights.

We thank you for leaving your family behind with fear of death in the back of your mind.

And most importantly, we thank you for protecting us and my country.

May God Bless And Look Out For

Lieutenant Francis Toner's Kind And Gentle Soul