Airman from F.E. Warren is also killed
the Star-Tribune staff | Posted: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 12:00 am
Two Wyoming servicemen and a third who was stationed in Cheyenne died in Iraq over the weekend, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Monday.
U.S. Army Pvt. Scott A. Miller, 20, of Casper died Saturday in Baqubah of injuries suffered from enemy small arms fire.
On Sunday, Staff Sgt. Brian M. Long, 32, of Burns died during an explosion in Baghdad.
The same day, Airman 1st Class Eric M. Barnes, who was assigned to F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, died after his convoy was attacked 100 miles south of the Iraqi capital.
Eleven Wyoming servicemen, and several more with links to the state, have been killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom since the war began in March 2003.
Miller died patrolling the streets of Baqubah on foot, said his grandmother, Mary Harris.
"He was killed, and now he's dead," she said, anger and sorrow in her voice.
Miller talked of joining the Army as a boy and did so in July 2004, after graduating from Natrona County High School.
He was supposed to have been discharged recently, but his tour was extended by three months. His family is devastated by his death, Harris said.
"Nobody, nobody wants to bury their children. Children are to bury us. So it's just, it's uncomprehensible, and it's the mystery of life."
Miller was the second of Bob and Suzi Miller's three boys and the grandson of Mary and the late Jim Harris and of Oral and Joan Miller, all of Casper.
Miller was assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, or the Stryker Brigade Combat Team, and reported to Fort Lewis, Wash. The brigade deployed to Iraq in June 2006.
Harris said the community should take time to think about the loss.
"It's this country that sent him to war, and it's this country and this town that needs to say, 'We appreciate what you have done,' whether or not they agree, but 'Thank you.'"
Miller was a big teddy bear, his grandmother said. He loved to eat, and loved to go on dinner dates with her.
"We used to e-mail, and of course now I look back and I wish I could have done more," Harris said. "They were very, very short: 'Hi, Grandma, I miss you. When I come home we'll go out to eat. Love, Scott.'"
When he came home for a visit in March, they went to Red Lobster.
"I ordered lobster, and he said, 'That's too expensive,' and I said, 'That's OK. I'm not leaving my money to your mother.' So we both had lobster."
Miller wasn't known for being a good student, but he had lots of friends and loved to laugh and talk and spend time with his family, deer hunting and barbecuing, Harris said. He hoped to go on a deer hunting trip when he returned from Iraq.
Funeral plans are pending through Newcomer Family Funeral Home, Harris said.
Brian M. Long
Similar to Miller, Long had deployed to Iraq in June 2006 and was originally scheduled to return home this month, but his tour was extended.
Long leaves behind a wife, Brenda, and three children: Sydney, 7, Shelby, 3, and Sage, 1. He regularly took advantage of a live satellite television link to read his children stories before bed.
"He was a good daddy, and a good husband and a good son," said his mother, Lynn Curtis of Burns. "You couldn't ask for anybody better."
Long attended elementary school in Burns and graduated from High School 3 in Cheyenne, where he was a wrestler and a football player. After high school, he joined the Navy, where he served four years. He was a member of an intramural Navy bull riding team until he severely injured his arm during competition.
Finding he enjoyed the military lifestyle, he later enlisted in the Army and served eight years. This was his second Iraq tour.
"It was just a life he came to know, and he really enjoyed doing his job," Curtis said.
He also was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, or the Stryker Brigade Combat Team, in Fort Lewis, Wash.
During his Army career, Long receive numerous awards and recognitions, including the Army Commendation Medal and the Army Achievement Award.
Funeral services have not been set.
Eric M. Barnes
Barnes, 20, was in the lead vehicle of an Air Force convoy that was hit by an explosion from an improvised explosive device. He died from his injuries as he was taken to a medical facility, according to a press release from F.E. Warren.
He had volunteered for a second tour in Iraq, his father, Tom Barnes, told The Associated Press
"It was like the Air Force was made for Eric, and Eric was made for the Air Force," Tom Barnes said. "He was very upbeat. He though that the United States had done a lot of good going over there."
Barnes, of Lorain, Ohio, joined the Air Force as an 18-year-old, according to his MySpace.com profile.
"I love it, wouldn't trade it for the world," he wrote on his profile, adding that he drove convoys in the Air Force. "It's fun, I guess. What a way to spend another summer."
Following his death, his friends flooded his MySpace page with remembrances.
"I've been balling (sic) my eyes out since I got the call," one friend wrote. "I know that you'd be mad at me for that because you hate it when I cry but I just can't stop! I miss you so bad!"
Barnes had been assigned to the 90th Space Wing at F.E. Warren.
"The loss of Airman Barnes weighs heavily on the hearts of our entire Warren Family," 90th Space Wing Commander Col. Michael Carey said in a written statement.
A memorial service for Barnes at F.E. Warren is set for Thursday at 1 p.m.
This story was reported by Star-Tribune staff writers Jared Miller, Barbara Nordby, Allison Rupp and Joshua Wolfson.