Community remembers Oregon soldier

The Associated Press

WARRENTON, Ore. — Hundreds of people gathered to remember Spc. Brian A. Browning, 20. He was killed Feb. 6 south of Baghdad when a guard tower he was in came under fire.

Browning is from the Olney area near Astoria.

While some attended the memorial, others paid tribute as Browning’s body was carried down U.S. 101. Local firefighters hung flags from ladder trucks, and Oregon State Police troopers led the solemn procession.

Brian Browning is said to have found purpose in the Army.

After being rejected because he didn’t have a high school diploma, Browning finished his education at the Tongue Point Job Corps site, lost 40 pounds and enlisted in June 2005. He was stationed with the 10th Mountain Infantry Division at Fort Drum, N.Y., following boot camp at Fort Benning, Ga.

When he enlisted, Browning joined a military tradition in his family. One grandfather retired from the Navy, his father Perry Browning served in the Navy, and an uncle, Doug Carson of Tigard, retired from the Army. A cousin is serving in the Oregon National Guard and recently completed a tour in Iraq.

His parents, Perry and Paula Browning, sobbed quietly at the memorial.

“Brian stood up for what’s out there and what’s right,” his father said before the funeral. “He went there knowing full well what he was facing.”