World Synchoronized Skating Championships in Zagreb, Croatia

Team Finland 2 performs their short program at the World Synchoronized Skating Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, on Friday, April 2, 2004. (AP Photo/Filip Horvat)

3 former military men among those killed in Fallujah

By Connie Mabin

The Associated Press

WILLOUGHBY, Ohio - Two Army veterans and a former Navy SEAL were among four American contractors killed in Fallujah, Iraq, their bodies mutilated and dragged through the streets.

Family members and a spokesperson said Thursday that Jerko "Jerry" Zovko, 32, Michael Teague, 38, and Scott Helvenston, 38, died with another civilian Wednesday after they were hit by rocket-propelled grenades in a rebel ambush. The victims worked for Blackwater Security Consulting, one of five subsidiaries of North Carolina-based Blackwater USA.

Zovko's mother said she and her husband had suspected their son might be among the dead, but their fears were confirmed Thursday morning when the president of Blackwater USA knocked on their door.

"It was the hardest day of my life," Donna Zovko said in her suburban Cleveland home.

"Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea," she said. "He loved people. He wanted the world to be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe."

Zovko's family wouldn't say whether he was married or had children.

"My brother was an exceptional individual," Tom Zovko said. "He did what he thought was right."

Jerry Zovko was 19 when he joined the Army in 1991. He spoke five languages fluently -- English, Croatian, Spanish, Russian and Arabic. He served with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Tom Zovko said.

Teague of Clarksville, Tenn., was a 12-year Army veteran who earned a Bronze Star for service in Afghanistan and served in Panama and Grenada, his wife, Rhonda, said in a statement. She called her husband a "proud father, soldier and American."

"I, his son Brandon and his friends and family will miss him without measure," her statement said.

Teague had worked in the security business since he left the Army six years ago, but he joined Blackwater Security only two months ago, WTVF-TV of Nashville reported.

Helvenston was identified by a family spokesperson who said the family would comment today. Helvenston lived in Leesburg, Fla., before joining the Navy when he was 17.

He served with the Navy SEALs for 12 years and later worked as a fitness promoter, starting a company called Amphibian Athletics. He also was an actor and stunt man for movies including G.I. Jane, according to a company Web site.

The names of the four victims were not officially released because all family members had yet to be notified, U.S. officials said.

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/special_packages/iraq/8338325.htm?1c

Croatian American, Ex-SEAL Among Four Killed in Iraq

Donna Zovko holds a photo of her son Jerry.

WILLOUGHBY, Ohio (April 2) - Two Army veterans and a former Navy SEAL were among four American
contractors killed in Iraq, their bodies mutilated and dragged through the streets.

Family members and a spokeswoman said Thursday that Jerko 'Jerry' Zovko, 32, Michael Teague, 38, and
Scott Helvenston, 38, died with another civilian Wednesday after they were hit by rocket-propelled
grenades in a rebel ambush. The victims worked for Blackwater Security Consulting, one of five
subsidiaries of Blackwater USA based in North Carolina.

Zovko's mother said she and her husband had suspected their son might be among the dead, but their
fears were confirmed Thursday morning when the president of Blackwater USA knocked on their door.

"It was the hardest day of my life," Donna Zovko said during an interview in her suburban Cleveland
home.

"Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea," his mother said. "He loved people. He wanted the world to
be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe."

Zovko's family wouldn't say whether he was married or had children.

"My brother was an exceptional individual," Tom Zovko said. "He did what he thought was right."

Jerry Zovko joined the Army in 1991 at age 19. He spoke five languages fluently - English, Croatian,
Spanish, Russian and Arabic. He was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North
Carolina, Tom Zovko said.

Teague, of Clarksville, Tenn., was a 12-year Army veteran who earned a Bronze Star for service in
Afghanistan and also served in Panama and Grenada, his wife, Rhonda, said in a statement.

She called her husband a "proud father, soldier and American. ... I, his son Brandon and his friends
and family will miss him without measure."

Teague had worked in the security business since he left the Army six years ago, but he joined
Blackwater Security only two months ago, WTVF-TV of Nashville reported.

A friend, Sgt. John Ratliff, told CBS' ''The Early Show'' that Teague ''told me to promise to take
care of his wife and his son ... He knew it was rough over there.''

''In my opinion, Mike was caught in a situation to where he couldn't do anything for himself or his
counterparts,'' Ratliff said. He said he knew his friend ''would have done anything in his power'' to
save himself and the other three if it had been possible.

A third victim was identified as Helvenston by a family spokeswoman who said the family would comment
further on Friday.

Helvenston lived in Leesburg, Fla., before joining the Navy when he was 17. He served with the Navy
SEALs for 12 years and later worked as a fitness promoter, starting a company called Amphibian
Athletics. He also was an actor and stunt man.

He helped prepare actress Demi Moore for her role as the first woman to join the Navy SEALs in ''G.I.
Jane,'' and appeared on two reality series: ''Man vs. Beast'' and ''Combat Missions.''

But after years out of the service, friends said they weren't surprised to learn the former SEAL had
left the comfort of his life in California behind him and headed for Iraq.

''That's what, in a time of need, true American warriors like Scott would do,'' said Mark Burnett,
producer of the 2002 reality series "Combat Missions."

Helvenston's fitness company, Amphibian Athletics, promised to bring a Navy SEAL-style workout to his
customers. His wife, Tricia, appeared in some of the company's workout videos.

Fred Atkinson, a neighbor of Helvenston's in Oceanside, said he was a devoted father to his children,
Kyle and Kelsey, and often took them camping or surfing.

On the day of the killings, jubilant Iraqi residents dragged two of the charred corpses through the
streets and strung them up on a bridge, acts the U.S. government denounced as "horrific."

The identity of the fourth victim was not immediately known. The names of the victims were not
officially released because all family members had yet to be notified, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Blackwater Security, based in Moyock, N.C., provides security training and guard services to customers
around the world. President Gary Jackson and two other company leaders are former Navy SEAL commandos.

A statement on the company's Web site said officials were grieving for the employees.

''Our tasks are dangerous, and while we feel sadness for our fallen colleagues, we also feel pride and
satisfaction that we are making a difference for the people of Iraq.''

04/02/04 08:04 EST

Copyright 2004 The Associated Press
 

Families tell of 2 Iraqi mob victims

The slain security contractors were Army veterans from Ohio and Tennessee.

By Connie Mabin | The Associated Press
Posted April 2, 2004
Mom mourns her fallen son
Apr 2, 2004

Two Army veterans, one from Ohio and one from Tennessee, were among four American contractors killed
in Iraq, their bodies mutilated and dragged through the streets.

Family members said Thursday that Jerko "Jerry" Zovko, 32, and Michael Teague, 38, died with two other
civilians Wednesday after they were hit by rocket-propelled grenades in a rebel ambush. The victims
worked for Blackwater Security Consulting, one of five subsidiaries of Blackwater USA based in North
Carolina.

Zovko's mother said she and her husband had suspected their son might be among the dead, but their
fears were confirmed Thursday when the president of Blackwater USA knocked on their door.

"It was the hardest day of my life," Donna Zovko said during an interview in her suburban Cleveland
home.

"Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea," his mother said. "He loved people. He wanted the world to
be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe."

Jerry Zovko joined the Army in 1991 at age 19. He spoke five languages fluently -- English, Croatian,
Spanish, Russian and Arabic. He was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North
Carolina, his brother Tom Zovko said.

Zovko's family wouldn't say whether he was married or had children.

Teague, of Clarksville, Tenn., was a 12-year Army veteran who earned a Bronze Star for service in
Afghanistan and also served in Panama and Grenada, his wife, Rhonda, said in a prepared statement. She
called her husband a "proud father, soldier and American."

"I, his son Brandon and his friends and family will miss him without measure," her statement said.

Teague had worked in the security business since he left the Army six years ago. He joined Blackwater
Security two months ago, a Nashville television station reported.

The names of the victims were not officially released because family members had yet to be notified,
U.S. officials said.

Privately owned Blackwater USA's range of paramilitary services include providing firearms and
small-groups training facilities for Navy SEALs, police-department SWAT teams and former
special-operations personnel.

The company's security-consulting business connects former special-forces troops with jobs that may
involve protecting people or places, or training foreign militaries.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-asecohiovictim02040204apr02,0,5924823.story?coll=or 

Posted on Fri, Apr. 02, 2004
Zovko always wanted to save the world

MASON STOCKSTILL

Associated Press
LOS ANGELES - After serving 12 years in the Navy, Scott Helvenston started a career as a fitness instructor and worked as trainer and stunt man for such movies as "Face/Off" and "G.I. Jane."

He helped prepare actress Demi Moore for her role as the first woman to join the Navy SEALs in "G.I. Jane," and appeared on two reality series: "Man vs. Beast" and "Combat Missions."

But after years out of the service, friends said they weren't surprised to learn the former SEAL had left the comfort of his life in California behind him and headed for Iraq.

"That's what, in a time of need, true American warriors like Scott would do," "Combat Missions" producer Mark Burnett said Thursday.

Helvenston, 38, was among four American civilian contractors killed in Fallujah, Iraq, in an ambush on Wednesday, their charred bodies mutilated and dragged through the streets. The contractors were working for Blackwater Security Consulting when their vehicle was hit by rocket-propelled grenades.

Two of the other victims have been identified as Jerko "Jerry" Zovko, 32, and Michael Teague, 38.

Zovko always wanted to save the world, his mother said. He joined the Army at 19 and spoke five languages fluently - English, Croatian, Spanish, Russian and Arabic.

"Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea," his mother, Danica "Donna" Zovko said in Willoughby, Ohio. "He loved people. He wanted the world to be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe."

Mrs. Zovko said she and her husband, Jozo, suspected their son was one of the dead late Wednesday evening because he had been working in Iraq. Their fears were confirmed early Thursday.

"He was the most self-motivated person," Zovko's brother Tom told ABC's "Good Morning America. "He grew up a skinny, little guy but wanted to be big, and he become big. He had desire and motivation and never gave up."

Teague was a 12-year Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, Panama and Grenada, said his wife, Rhonda Teague. She said he received a bronze star for his service in Afghanistan.

Rhonda Teague called her husband a "proud father, soldier and American."

"I, his son Brandon and his friends and family will miss him without measure," her statement said.

Teague, of Clarksville, Tenn., had worked in the security business since he left the Army six years ago, and joined Blackwater Security two months ago, WTVF-TV of Nashville reported.

A friend, Sgt. John Ratliff, told CBS' "The Early Show" that Teague "told me to promise to take care of his wife and his son ... He knew it was rough over there."

"In my opinion, Mike was caught in a situation to where he couldn't do anything for himself or his counterparts," Ratliff said. He said he knew his friend "would have done anything in his power" to save himself and the other three if it had been possible.

Helvenston's fitness company, Amphibian Athletics, promised to bring a Navy SEAL-style workout to his customers. His wife, Tricia, appeared in some of the company's workout videos.

Fred Atkinson, a neighbor of Helvenston's in Oceanside, said he was a devoted father to his children, Kyle and Kelsey, and often took them camping or surfing.

The identity of the fourth victim was not immediately known. The names of the victims were not officially released because all family members had yet to be notified, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Blackwater Security, based in Moyock, N.C., provides security training and guard services to customers around the world. President Gary Jackson and two other company leaders are former Navy SEAL commandos.

A statement on the company's Web site said officials were grieving for the employees.

"Our tasks are dangerous, and while we feel sadness for our fallen colleagues, we also feel pride and satisfaction that we are making a difference for the people of Iraq."


http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/8333366.htm

Donna and Jerko "Jerry" Zovko

Jerry Zovko poses with his mother, Donna, in this undated photo. Zovko, a northeast Ohio Army veteran, was one of the four American contract workers killed in Iraq Wednesday, March 31, 2004, their bodies dragged through the streets, family members said Thursday. The family of Jerry Zovko remembered him as a man who wanted to work for peace in the world. (AP Photo/Courtesy of the Zovko family)

THE CROATIAN MUSICAL HERITAGE SERIES IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

The Croatian House, The Embassy of Croatia and
The Association of Alumni and Friends of Croatian Universities -
National Capital Group (AMAC-NCG)

have the honor to present the distinguished Croatian pianist

Ljubomir Gasparovic

Wednesday, April 7, 2004
7:30 p.m.

The Embassy of Austria,
3524 International Court NW, Washington,
D.C. 20008-3027

PROGRAM

W.A. Mozart
Sonata in A major, K 331
Andante grazioso
Menuetto-Trio
Alla Turca. Allegretto

L. van Beethoven
Sonata in C sharp minor, op. 27, No. 2 ("Moonlight")
Adagio sostenuto
Allegretto-Trio
Presto agitato

Intermission

F. Chopin
Ballade in A flat major

B. Kunc
Six bagatelles, op. 44

C. Debussy
Pour le piano
Prelude
Sarabande
Toccata

A funeral service will likely be held at St. Paul Croatian Church in Cleveland
 

Ohio veteran is among the four civilians killed in Iraq

By JENNY MAY and JOHN ARTHUR HUTCHISON , Journal Register Co. 04/02/2004

TIMBERLAKE, Ohio -- He was determined to do what he felt was right, despite what others thought, and that made former Euclid and Timberlake, Ohio, resident Jerry Zovko stand out, his younger brother said.

Zovko, a 32-year-old Euclid High School graduate, was one of four civilians killed Wednesday in Fallujah, Iraq.


The deaths made headlines for the brutality surrounding them. After the four Americans were killed in an ambush by insurgents, residents of the unruly town burned and mutilated the corpses, according to the U.S. military.

Zovko had been in Iraq for about a year, working as a security consultant for Moyock, N.C.-based Blackwater Security Consultants.

Among other jobs in Iraq, members of Blackwater Security help guard L. Paul Bremer, head of the U.S. occupation authority in Iraq.

Zovko served in the Army's 82nd Airborne unit and Rangers from 1991 to 1997, said his brother, Tom Zovko, who lives in Timberlake. Zovko's parents, Jozo (Joe) and Danica (Donna) of Eastlake, did not wish to comment.

Donna Zovko, however, told the Associated Press she and her husband suspected their son was one of the dead late Wednesday evening because he had been working in Iraq. Their fears were confirmed early yesterday when the president of Blackwater USA knocked on their door and told them their son had died.

''It was the hardest day of my life,'' Donna Zovko said.

''Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea,'' his mother said. ''He loved people. He wanted the world to be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe.''

Tom Zovko said his brother had an independent streak and always followed his dreams.

''He was a great person,'' Tom Zovko said. ''He did everything to the highest. He was a truly exceptional person. He did what he wanted and no one could stop him.''

Zovko performed several duties in Iraq, including being a military police officer and a bodyguard and setting up security where it was needed, his brother said.

Although the family had been concerned when Zovko went to Iraq, he insisted on going because he enjoyed his work, said Tom Zovko.

''He really took it very seriously,'' Tom Zovko said. ''He made a career out of it.'' The Zovko brothers grew up in Euclid, and the family later moved to Timberlake.

Tom Zovko said the family is waiting to hear when Zovko's body will be flown home. A funeral service will likely be held at St. Paul Croatian Church in Cleveland, he said.

Timberlake Village Mayor John Roskos extended his sympathy to the family yesterday.

''My condolences go out to the family,'' Roskos said. ''They've got a hard time with it right now. It's a shame.''

U.S. Rep. Steven C. LaTourette, R-Madison Village, spoke with the family yesterday and expressed his condolences and offered his assistance, said spokeswoman Deborah Setliff.

Out of respect for the family's privacy, LaTourette would not provide any additional details about his conversation, Setliff said.

Gov. Bob Taft said Zovko's service was important to his country.

''Jerry Zovko was performing a very vital role in Iraq,'' Taft said. ''His tragic death underscores the fact that the United States must continue to do everything possible to provide stability to a deeply troubled region and to prevent Iraq from becoming a haven for international terrorism.''

Blackwater is one of a number of security firms, many comprised of former special forces troops from the United States and Britain, that have won contracts with the U.S. occupation authority to provide security services.

The company did not release the names of the four victims.

''We grieve today for the loss of our colleagues, and we pray for their families,'' according to a statement posted yesterday on the company's Web site.

''The graphic images of the unprovoked attack and subsequent heinous mistreatment of our friends exhibits the extraordinary conditions under which we voluntarily work to bring freedom and democracy to the Iraqi people.

''Coalition forces and civilian contractors and administrators work side by side every day with the Iraqi people to provide essential goods and services like food, water, electricity and vital security to the Iraqi citizens and coalition members. Our tasks are dangerous and while we feel sadness for our fallen colleagues, we also feel pride and satisfaction that we are making a difference for the people of Iraq.''

A memorial fund has been established by Blackwater to support the victim's families.

All memorial gifts will be documented and appropriately acknowledged with due regard to the wishes of the donor and the nature of the contribution, the statement said.

Contributions may be mailed to Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 159, Moyock, NC 27958. Make checks payable to ''Memorial Fund.''

The Associated Press contributed to this report

ŠThe Morning Journal 2004

http://www.morningjournal.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1699&dept_id=46371&newsid=11229320&PAG=461&rfi=9

Donna Zovko holds a photo of her son Jerry Zovko, 32, of Ohio. He was one of four American contract workers killed in Fallujah, Iraq, on Wednesday. JOHN KUNTZ/ASSOCIATED PRESS.


By JOANNE KIMBERLIN, The Virginian-Pilot
Š April 2, 2004

Special ops guys live their lives under the radar.

They die that way as well – unless their families choose otherwise.

On Thursday, Blackwater Security Consulting refused to release the identities of its four employees killed and mutilated Wednesday in Iraq.

The Moyock, N.C.-based company said its decision was made to protect the privacy of the families of those killed.

By Thursday night, three families had come forward to publicly acknowledge the loss of their sons. The three men have been identified as Jerry Zovko of Ohio, Michael Teague of Tennessee, and Scott Helvenston of Florida. Zovko and Teague were with the Army’s airborne special forces before joining Blackwater.

The victims:
Jerry Zovko of Ohio had been a member of the special forces in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

Michael Teague of Clarksville, Tenn., had been a 12-year Army veteran. Teague was a member of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment.

Scott Helvenston of Florida served with the Navy SEALs for 12 years. He also was an actor and stunt man.
Helvenston was a Navy SEAL.

Reports say the unidentified contractor was also a former SEAL. Blackwater would not comment on those reports.

Moyock lies just across the state line from Chesapeake, and employs many former military and police officers from Hampton Roads. Most work as independent contractors, gathering information and guarding VIPs and convoys in hot spots around the globe.

The nature of what they do fosters a culture of secrecy already ingrained by years of undercover work for the government.

The four ambushed Wednesday were said to be escorting food shipments in the Fallujah area, about 30 miles west of Baghdad.

Jamie Smith, a former vice president of Blackwater who left the firm in 2002 to start his own security company, says he wrote Blackwater’s “no names” policy – a practice also followed at Smith’s new business, SCG International Risk, based in Virginia Beach.

Compassion for the families is uppermost, Smith said. Safety is right on its heels.

“The enemy may have contacts in the U.S.,” Smith said, “and if you start putting names out there – any names – and they start finding out who your friends are and asking questions, it could become a security problem.”

Speaking by satellite phone Thursday, Smith said he was in the Middle East, but would not say exactly where – only that he was “close” to the area of the ambush.

Smith said his company has 51 contractors in the region doing similar work as their counterparts at Blackwater.

The private security industry is a tight-knit community overseas, he said.

“At some point, you’ve worked or trained with just about everyone over here,” Smith said. “You become friends.”

Smith described the contractors he works with as “extremely patriotic, extremely motivated.” Fear is not a factor.

“They’re not like little boys who suddenly want to go home because they didn’t expect this,” Smith said. “All of them – myself included – worked for the federal government before this. We’ve been taking these risks for years. We accept them.” Zovko’s mother said she and her husband had suspected that their son might be among the dead, and their fears were confirmed Thursday morning when Gary Jackson, the president of Blackwater USA, knocked on the door of their Willoughby, Ohio, home.

“It was the hardest day of my life,” Donna Zovko said during an interview in her suburban Cleveland home. “Jerry was a man with a principle, an idea.

He loved people. He wanted the world to be without borders, for everybody to be free and safe.”

Zovko’s family wouldn’t say whether he was married or had children.

Jerry Zovko joined the Army in 1991 at age 19. He was a member of the special forces in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, his brother, Tom Zovko, said.

Teague, of Clarksville, Tenn., was a 12-year Army veteran who earned a Bronze Star for service in Afghanistan and also served in Panama and Grenada, his wife, Rhonda, said in a prepared statement.

She called her husband a “proud father, soldier and American.”

Teague was a member of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment – known as the Nightstalkers – out of Clarksville, Tenn. Teague had worked in the security business since he left the Army six years ago, but he joined Blackwater Security only two months ago, WTVF-TV of Nashville reported.

Helvenston was identified by a family spokesperson who said the family would comment today.

Helvenston lived in Leesburg, Fla., before joining the Navy when he was 17. He served with the Navy SEALs for 12 years and later worked as a fitness promoter, starting a company called Amphibian Athletics.

He also was an actor and stunt man for movies including “G.I. Jane,” according to a company Web site.

In Moyock, the news trucks and cars that crowded the narrow road to Blackwater’s gate had disappeared by Thursday afternoon, though company guards still watched warily.

Many of the town’s homes displayed yellow ribbons knotted on porch posts and faded paper flags taped to windows, most remaining from the beginning of the war in Iraq or various deployments.

Staff at Moyock United Methodist Church said there has been talk of organizing a memorial service. Yet no one seemed quite sure how to mourn, not knowing the names of all those who died.

“I hope it’s none of our friends,” said Ralph Holder, 60, a retired torpedoman who spent 26 years in the Navy.

One of Holder’s granddaughters said the news was disturbing to the town’s children, because some of them had parents serving in Iraq.

“We didn’t talk about it in school because some kids got very emotional,” said Amber Hunt, 13.

Some Moyock veterans were saddened but not surprised by the deaths of the four contractors.

“I’m sorry as I can be that our neighbors were involved yesterday,” said Edward “Earl” Brickhouse, who lives down the road from the Blackwater training facility. But, he said, remembering his own experience in the Air Force in Vietnam, “that’s just one of those things that happens. It’s wartime.”

If the United States tries to police the world, “you can expect to take hits like that,” Brickhouse said, gazing solemnly up the road toward Blackwater. Like Blackwater, Zel Technologies LLC of Hampton has workers in Iraq, as well as in many other hot spots, according to Jack L. Ezzell Jr., the company’s president and chief executive officer. The company provides IT services to the military for intelligence collection and battle management, among other things.

Most of his employees in Iraq are doing office-related work, he said, but some are in harm’s way.

“We always factor that in when we think about doing work abroad,” Ezzell said. “Safety is always looked at.”

Many defense contractors have prior military or law enforcement experience and are prepared for the conditions they face.

The deaths of the Blackwater employees has not and probably will not cause defense contractors to pull out of Iraq, said John Williams, spokesman for the National Defense Industrial Association, an Arlington-based trade group that represents 1,200 defense contractors.

With 15,000 contractors on the ground in Iraq, most are working without incident, he said.

“These people have been killed before, and it did not cause a mass movement in that direction,” he said.

About 30 contractors have been killed in Iraq since fighting began a year ago.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, insurance policies for these workers have increased significantly. Global Underwriters Inc. of Cincinnati covered many of the workers who were killed in Iraq, and has written policies for defense contractors from Hampton Roads.

Its policies go beyond medical and travel insurance, and cover accidental death and dismemberment, kidnap and ransom, terrorism and 24-hour evacuation assistance. Staff writers Melissa Scott Sinclair and Allison Connolly and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Reach Joanne Kimberlin at 446-2338 or joanne.kimberlin@piloton line.com  
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=68349&ran=22767
 

Croatian American Killed in Falluja

One of the four people who were brutally killed in Falluja, Iraq was Croatian American Jerry Zovko from the Cleveland, Ohio area. A short announcement just made the wires.

John Kraljic
*************************************

Ohio Civilian Killed In Iraq

April 1, 2004

An Ohio native was among the four civilians killed Wednesday in Iraq.

Thirty-two-year-old Jerry Zovko grew up in Euclid. His parents now live in nearby Willoughby.

Zovko's family says he was one of the four security contractors ambushed Wednesday by Iraqi rebels. The bodies were dragged through the streets and two of them were strung up from a bridge.

Zovko's mother says her son was a former Army man who dedicated his life to making peace in the world.

He left the Army in 2001 to work abroad for North Carolina's Blackwater Security Consulting.

Š Associated Press and Dispatch Productions, Inc., 2004. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
 

"Gekic rides the charismatic edge of genius"
 

Richard Dyer, The Boston Globe
 

Kemal Gekic, pianist

Flamboyant, daring, provocative, exciting, seductive and sensitive are some of the words used to describe one of today’s most formidable pianists, Kemal Gekic, whose playing has been acclaimed worldwide by public and critics alike.

www.kemalgekic.info
 

Born in Split, Croatia in 1962, Gekic amazed his family by accurately picking out melodies on the
piano at age one and a half. The young prodigy received all his early musical training from his aunt,
Lorenza Batturina. In 1978 he entered the class of Prof. Jokuthon Mihailovich (a graduate of Moscow Conservatory) at the Art Academy of Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. He graduated in 1982 with the highest mark ever granted a diploma exam recital, and was immediately given a faculty appointment by the piano department which he eventually directed until 1999. During his school years he won prizes at the Franz Liszt Competition in Parma (1981), the Viana da Motta in Lisbon (1983) and the Yugoslav Artists’ Competition in Zagreb (1984).

He earned his Master’s degree in 1985, the same year he created a sensation at the Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Although panned by the jury he won the hearts of audience and critics alike, and began receiving many invitations to perform abroad, including several from the Chopin Society of Hannover, Germany which had awarded him a special prize for best sonata performance at the competition. A recording of his Warsaw performances sold 60,000 copies in Germany by the end of the year, and the Victor Entertainment Corporation, Japan (JVC) sold 80,000 copies of a CD version in their home country. The Warsaw Philharmonic invited Gekic to perform the Chopin E minor Piano Concerto in Philharmonic Hall in their regular series that season. In the same hall, with the same orchestra as he would have done in the competition finals, Gekic wowed the Warsaw audience once more, and for an encore gave Chopin’s Third Sonata in B minor in its entirety!

In the years following the 1985 Warsaw Competition, in addition to extensive concert activity in
Germany, Denmark, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Spain, France, Italy, Canada and of course
Yugoslavia, he completed tours of the USSR and Japan-Southeast Rim. Programs on his life and his
performances were broadcast by RAI Italy, TV Portugal, TV Yugoslavia, NHK Japan, POLTEL Poland, RTV Lower Saxony West Germany, RTV USSR, Intervision, CBC and PBS.

But it was during the early 1990’s that Gekic drastically curtailed his concert activity, going into
seclusion for a further period of intensive study, seeking even higher levels of perfection in his
art. The ‘first fruits’ of this retreat was the landmark recording of the complete Liszt
Transcendental Etudes, generally considered as the best recording of the set ever made. Shortly to
follow were the Naxos recording of Liszt-Rossini transcriptions (including the William Tell Overture)
which won the “Rosette” Prize from the Penguin Guide to Music, and live recordings from Yugoslavia
(VAI), Montreal (Palexa), and Liszt’s Années de Pelerinage Book II from The International Piano
Festival Williamstown, Pennsylvania.

In 1999 he was invited to perform at the Miami International Piano Festival. Minutes before he was to walk on stage, a chance glance at a television showed houses burning in his hometown of Novi Sad. It was March 24th; the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia had begun. Instead of canceling, he went out on stage and played what many consider to be the best recital he ever gave, one that launched his current re-emergence as one of the major pianists of our century.

Over the past few years, Gekic’s appearances worldwide have consistently generated frenzied audience enthusiasm. There are concert recordings from Japan where audible weeping can be heard among members of the normally reserved Japanese public. His sound is constantly evolving, setting a new standard for other pianists to aspire to. His daring approach to interpretation is often perceived as provocative or quixotic, but this is the price he pays for breaking new ground – to “boldly go where no pianist has gone before” might well be taken as his motto. Of one thing you can rest assured – at a Gekic recital you will not receive ‘standard’ interpretations but renditions of the great masterworks that have been subject to his razor-sharp musical scrutiny, his flamboyant imagination, his amazing digital dexterity, his stunningly colorful, wide and varied tonal palette and his ever-deepening comprehension of the spiritual elements of these works. For sure, a Gekic recital will wow you, seduce you, overwhelm you, delight you, transfix you, but in the end Gekic sees the process of musical communication as something even more: as the transmission of spiritual material. In this as well he is sure to give you an unforgettable experience.

http://www.kemalgekic.info/main.htm