3rd BCT, 25th Infantry Division (Light)
US Army 1st Lt. Dimitri Del Castillo, a 2009 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, was killed on June 25th when his unit was conducting a massive counter insurgency operation in Kunar Province, Afghanistan.
He was just 24 years old, a newlywed, and just starting his career as an infantryman.
The news reached his bride just minutes after his death. She was just a few miles away at a Forward Operating Base in Jalalabad, Afghanistan.
US Army 1st Lt. Kathleen Pulliam, or Katie as her friends know her, met Del Castillo during summer training after their Plebe (freshman) year at West Point. The Academy wasn’t the most conventional place to start their story, but there was nothing conventional about them.
"Katie liked Dimitri instantly, but I remember her playing hard to get," one of Pulliam’s friends – US Army 1st Lt. Theresa Todd of Norman, Okla. said from an outpost in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan. "Of course there were so many male cadets that wanted to date Katie, I’m sure Dimitri enjoyed winning the competition."
Things didn’t change for the two and their feelings only grew stronger despite the gruelling academic curriculum, mandatory events, and rugby practices at West Point.
Del Castillo spent the couple’s Cow (Junior) year of school studying abroad in Spain, but the distance only fortified the ever-growing bond the two shared. Pulliam would start every day in New York with a call from Spain.
At the end of their time at West Point, just before graduation, Todd sat with Pulliam at a restaurant in nearby Central Valley, NY. where they talked about their future.
"Katie wanted to be with Dimitri." said Todd. "She wanted to fulfil her five-year commitment to the Army and take care of Dimitri and their kids that she dreamed of having."
Upon graduation, Del Castillo attended the Army’s Ranger School and was to be assigned to Fort Bragg, NC, with the hopes of a deployment to Afghanistan while Pulliam was to be assigned to Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.
A few months later, the couple was able to have Del Castillo reassigned to Hawaii where the couple started making plans for their future together.
"I remember Katie and Dimitri took a weekend trip to Maui where Dimitri proposed during their breakfast on the beach." recalled US Army 1st Lt.
Denise Quigley of Junction City, Kan. A classmate and friend of the couple, also serving in Afghanistan with Pulliam, explained the two started planning their wedding for after their tours in Afghanistan but were legally married prior to leaving.
Not only proud of her husband and the service to her country, Pulliam was extremely honored to be part of the dual military population (both husband and wife actively serving in the military), as she expressed recently. She wrote:
"I work late nights with the threat of indirect fire looming in the back of my mind." said Pulliam. "I dream of the day when my husband and I can settle down and I can start having children, but for now that dream is on hold." "The Army is about sacrifice, and I know that I am beyond blessed to be able to deploy with my husband."
Pulliam will never know the future she may have had with Del Castillo.
She only has the memories of the life they shared together before the war to help her through these painful days.
Within hours of being notified of Del Castillo’s passing, Pulliam was on her way back to the United States where she will spend the next several days preparing for the arrival of his body and making arrangements for his memorial.
So as you prepare for your picnics, parades and fireworks this 4th of July, remember Katie Pulliam and Dimitiri Del Castillo’s story.
Think about the Del Castillo family, his wife Katie, their classmates, and fellow soldiers today as you read Katie’s words: "The last time I saw my husband was from a helicopter after a memorial ceremony for a fallen Soldier in his battalion." Pulliam explained. "As the helicopter lifted off, he waved and waved until he became so small that I couldn’t see him anymore- yet he kept waving."
"Suddenly, my view changed to mud huts, mountains, and a giant meandering river." "I was gone so quickly, left only with the memories of a four hour long visit." "The vision of him waving will stick with me as long as I live."
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
