Echo in Ramadi Symposium

Come aboard the USS Yorktown on Thursday, September 6 for “Echo in Ramadi” as panelists discuss the persistent and heroic efforts of Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines during the second Battle of Ramadi in support of the surge in 2006 and the impact of the battle on the men who fought, their families at home, and sympathetic Iraqis who helped the Americans. The symposium will be based on the book written by Echo Company Commander Major Scott Huesing, “Echo in Ramadi” – a ten-month snapshot of the battle on the ground in Ramadi and the evolution of tactics used on the battlefield.

The panelists for the symposium will bring a wealth of first-hand knowledge about the 2006 Battle of Ramadi and how it affected all who were involved – from the families at home, to anti-Al Qaeda Iraqis, and the Marines fighting on the ground.

The panelists will be:

• Major Scott Huesing – Echo Company Commander who led 248 men from the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines into battle in Ramadi, which has widely been considered the most dangerous place in Iraq, if not the world.
• John McLaughlin – Platoon commander in Echo Company during the second Battle in Ramadi and actively served in the Marines from 2005 to 2015
• Chris Libby – The Gold Star Brother of Corporal Dustin Libby, who in December 2006 was the first of the 248 Marines under the leadership of Major Huesing to be killed in an intense firefight in Ramadi.
• Samawi “Big Sam” Al Helli – Born in Baghdad, Iraq in 1987, while in fear of Al Qaeda, “Big Sam” decided to use his language skills to help the U.S. Marines and Army as an interpreter during the surge in 2006. He worked for different military units in Iraq for three years and eventually was forced to leave Iraq for his own safety and became a U.S. citizen in June 2018.
• Staff Sergeant Brian McKibben – Joined Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines in January 2005 and served on the ground in Ramadi during the battle in 2006.