This photo is from 2004. It was taken while Allan and I were deployed to Iraq. We were both assigned to a Mobile Collection Team. There were originally 16 members on our team: me, Allan, our L.T., Lowery, Max, Ski, Dryden, Junior, Torbert, Mac, Doc, Val, Rook, G.I. Boney, High Speed, and Sam, our interpreter. Over time, the names changed and the numbers fluctuated as a result of personnel transfers, casualties, leadership changes, operational demands, etc. But Allan and I continued serving together right up until the time his deployment ended in 2005 and he returned to the States. Anyway, our team primarily conducted site exploitation missions. Allan and I would often buddy up and go out on missions together. He would drive our gun truck and I would usually be in the gunner's hatch on the machine gun. Our convoy typically consisted of three vehicles and our truck would usually provide rear security as the trail vehicle. We constantly found ourselves traveling through hostile territory, faced with the real prospect of death as a result of a roadside bomb, an insurgent ambush, or an RPG attack. Miraculously, after driving through hell together for more than a year, Allan and I survived to tell the tale. Not all of our teammates were as fortunate. And although both Allan and I managed to dodge the proverbial bullet, the war took a toll on our bodies nonetheless. This was especially true in Allan's case. He had been struggling with serious health issues over the last several years, as have most of the surviving members from our team. His daughter, Savannah, called to tell me his health had taken a drastic turn for the worse and that there was little the doctors could do for him. The next day, I got the heart-breaking news. My good friend and my beloved battle buddy was gone. I'm going to miss him very much. He will always be in my most precious and endearing memories.

This is a photo from my coast-to-coast book signing tour last year.  It was taken on May 19, 2025 at the Exchange on Barksdale Air Force Base.  Allan attended my book signing that day as my honorary guest.  We  had served together in Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and I very much wanted him to be on my guest panel that day to sign his photo in the book.  Naturally, he signed as "Tex" which was the name he went by while serving his tour in Iraq.  With the exception of our team's O.I.C., everyone on the team called him Tex.  Our O.I.C. would address Allan as Staff Sergeant Templeton as a matter of formality.  That's what's required by the regulations regarding military courtesy.  Anyway, I was so happy when Allan showed up for the book signing.  And I'm pretty sure he was happy to be there.  I think he really had a rewarding experience that day signing books and talking about his wartime experiences with the young soldiers and airmen who were there to buy a copy of our book.   I say "our" book even though I was the one to write it.  I call it "our" book because it doesn't just tell my story.  It includes the stories of many of the people I served with during the recent Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns.  I have always felt it's not just my story but all of "our" stories.  I think the shared experiences, both good and bad, of the veterans from those wars makes it so.  I'm very sure of this because everyone I've talked to who has read the book tells me there are stories in the book that remind them of similar situations they either witnessed or experienced personally.  It just seems like there's always some part of the book that resonates with the reader.  In any case, I'm glad I wrote the book and I'm glad I was able to talk about Allan and our time together in Iraq.  I only hope that the things I wrote about Allan help to preserve the memory of his selfless service to our Nation.

In memory of and in gratitude for his honorable military service. May God bless him and welcome him home. Peace be with his family and friends at this time

OBITUARY

Allan Stanley "Tex" Templeton

June 17, 1960 – August 7, 2026

East Funeral Home

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