Nathan B. "Nate" Bruckenthal (July 17, 1979April 24, 2004) was a

United States coast guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

sman who was killed in the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

, becoming the first to die in wartime action since the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Bruckenthal and two

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

sailors were killed while intercepting a waterborne suicide attack on an offshore oil terminal off the coast of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in the northern

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

in 2004. Bruckenthal was posthumously awarded the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious a ...

with Combat Distinguishing Device and the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

for his actions."Nathan Bruckenthal", Our Military Heroes, U.S. Department of Defense

Early life and education

Bruckenthal was born in

Stony Brook, New York Stony Brook is a political subdivisions of New York#Hamlet, hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, Town of Brookhaven, New York, Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York, United States, on the No ...

, the son of Ric Bruckenthal of

Northport, New York Northport is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in the Huntington, New York, Town of Huntington in Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County, on the North Shore (Long Island), North Shore of Long Island, New York (state), New ...

, and Laurie Bullock of

Ashburn, Virginia Ashburn is a unincorporated settlement and census-designated place (CDP) in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, its population was 46,349, up from 3,393 in 1990. It is northwest of Washington, D.C., and par ...

. While growing up he had also lived in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, and

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. Bruckenthal and his family lived in

Ridgefield, Connecticut Ridgefield is an affluent New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains and on the New York state border, Ridgefield had a population o ...

from 1992 to 1995, where he was a volunteer firefighter from 1997 to 1998. Bruckenthal was a graduate of Ridgefield High School and intended to follow his service in the U.S. Coast Guard by subsequently going to college and becoming a policeman or a fireman.

Career

United States Coast Guard

Bruckenthal joined the U.S. Coast Guard on January 5, 1999. He served on , based out of

Montauk, New York Montauk ( ) is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in East Hampton, New York, East Hampton and Suffolk County, New York, on the eastern end of the South Shore (Long Island), South Shore of Long Island. As of the 2020 Un ...

, prior to attending Damage Controlman "A" School. After his schooling, he was assigned to Station Neah Bay in the northwest corner of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

on the

Makah Indian Reservation Makah Reservation is an Indian reservation of the Makah Native Americans located on the northwestern tip of the Olympic Peninsula in Clallam County, Washington, United States. The northern boundary of the reservation is the Strait of Juan de Fuc ...

. His next assignment was to Tactical Law Enforcement (TACLET) Team South, at

Coast Guard Air Station A Coast Guard Air Station (abbreviated as CGAS or AirSta) provides aviation support for the United States Coast Guard. The Coast Guard operates approximately 210 aircraft from 24 Coast Guard Air Stations in the United States. Fixed-wing aircra ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. Bruckenthal's first tour to the Persian Gulf region was from April to June 2003. He departed home for his second deployment in February 2004 and was due to return that June. During both tours his detachment, LEDET 403, was assigned to the . On his first deployment to the Persian Gulf region, Bruckenthal was awarded the

Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces, which was first created in 1961 by Executive Order of President John F. Kennedy. The medal is awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces who, a ...

and the

Combat Action Ribbon The Combat Action Ribbon (CAR) is a United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States Marine Corps military decoration awarded to United States sea service members "who have actively participated in ground or surface combat." Coast ...

Attack in the Persian Gulf

On April 24, 2004, Bruckenthal and two U.S. Navy sailors were killed while intercepting a waterborne suicide attack on the

Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal Khor Al Amaya Oil Terminal is an Iraqi oil port. It lies southeast of the Al Faw peninsula in the Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of wate ...

off the coast of Iraq in the northern Persian Gulf. An account of the attack was included the May 2004 issue of ''U.S. Coast Guard Reservist'' magazine:Silverstein, Judy L., "A Coast Guard Hero is Laid to Rest...", ''U.S. Coast Guard Reservist'' Magazine, U.S. Coast Guard Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi of

al-Qaeda in Iraq Al-Qaeda in Iraq (; AQI), was a Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization affiliated with al-Qaeda. It was founded on 17 October 2004, and was led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi until its disbandment on 15 October 2006 after he was killed in a targ ...

claimed responsibility for the attack. Bruckenthal was posthumously awarded the

with Combat Distinguishing Device and the

, and the

Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal (GWOT-EM) is a United States Armed Forces award created by George W. Bush on 12 March 2003, through Executive Order 13289. The medal recognizes those military service members who have deployed over ...

. He is buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Awards and decorations

Personal life

In 2001, Bruckenthal met his future wife, Pattie, while serving at U.S. Coast Guard Station

Neah Bay Neah Bay is a census-designated place (CDP) on the Makah Reservation in Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 935 at the 2020 census. It is across the Canada–US border from British Columbia. Europeans originally called ...

. Pattie was a university student studying the Makah Indian tribe when Bruckenthal gave the students a tour of the station. Bruckenthal is survived by his wife, Pattie, and his daughter, Harper Natalie Bruckenthal, who was born after his death.

Legacy

He is the first U.S. Coast Guardsman to be killed in action in military conflict since the

. Bruckenthal's death is noted in an article listing Jewish U.S. service members killed in Iraq. The Unaccompanied Personnel Housing building at Coast Guard Station Montauk and Training Center Cape May, is named in honor of Bruckenthal. He served as a

fireman A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...

on USCGC ''Point Wells'', which was homeported in Montauk, New York. On April 24, 2014, the

Commandant of the Coast Guard Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

, Admiral

Robert Papp Admiral Robert Joseph Papp Jr. (born 25 March 1953) is a retired admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 24th commandant from 2010 to 2014. He led the largest component of the United States Department of Homeland Security, wit ...

, announced that the 28th

Sentinel-class cutter The Sentinel-class cutter, also known as the Fast Response Cutter or FRC due to its program name, is part of the United States Coast Guard's Deepwater program. At , it is similar to, but larger than, the lengthened 1980s-era s that it replaces. ...

would be named after Bruckenthal.Lagan, Christopher, "Coast Guard to name cutter for DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal", Coast Guard Compass: Official Blog of the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard The Coast Guard commissioned the fast response cutter, , in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...

in honor of Bruckenthal.

Notes

Citations

References cited

* * * *

External links

Nathan B. Bruckenthal
at ''TogetherWeServed''
Nathan B. Bruckenthal
on

ODMP The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc. (ODMP) is a non-profit organization that maintains a website listing American law enforcement officers, prison officers and police dogs who have died in the line of duty. History The ODMP was established i ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bruckenthal, Nathan B. 1979 births 2004 deaths Jewish American military personnel American military personnel killed in the Iraq War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Coast Guard non-commissioned officers People from Stony Brook, New York People from Montauk, New York