February 13, 2007, 7:54 PM EST
ASTORIA, Ore. -- A Fort Drum soldier has died in Baghdad of wounds suffered from small-arms fire, military officials said Tuesday.
Army Pfc. Brian A. Browning, 20, Astoria, Ore., died Feb. 6, apparently when a guard tower he was in came under fire, his father said.
His father, Perry Browning, told The Daily Astorian newspaper in Oregon that few other details about his son's death had been made available.
Brian Browning was serving his first tour in Iraq and was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division.
He had recently been in Astoria on leave, his father said. He said Browning was born in Florida but lived most of his life in Astoria.
He enjoyed driving and "working on things," as well as playing computer games, his father told the newspaper.
He joined the Army about three years ago. "He wanted to do something for his country," Perry Browning said. "He wanted to support the guys who were already there, and he believed in the mission."
The United States had already been in Iraq two years when Browning enlisted and he was fully aware he would likely be sent to the war-torn country when he signed up, his family said. But he believed in the mission and wanted to support his country and the troops already there.
He began his first tour of duty in Iraq in August, serving as the light-machine gunner for his infantry squad. When he came home on a two-week leave last month, Browning told his family he was considering making the Army a career.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
That is so heartwrenching. And what's worse, there are so many other stories like this one.
bring the boys back home
I met Brian at a New Year's eve party a few months ago when he was home on leave. He had come to the party straight from the Portland airport and was still dressed in his fatigues. He quietly dealt with the things he had seen in Iraq and the strangeness of suddenly being home. Seemed like a pretty nice kid.
Post a Comment