Army Sgt. 1st Class James S. Ochsner

Died November 15, 2005 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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36, of Waukegan, Ill.; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.; killed Nov. 15 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during a supply distribution mission in Orgun-E, Afghanistan.

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Fort Bragg soldier from Illinois killed in Afghanistan

The Associated Press

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A Fort Bragg soldier from Illinois who was on his fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan was killed when a roadside bomb exploded near his Humvee.

Sgt. 1st Class James S. Ochsner, 36, of Waukegan, Ill., died Nov. 15 in Orgun-E, Afghanistan, when the improvised explosive device detonated during a supply distribution mission, the Defense Department said.

Ochsner, assigned to the Army’s 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group, came from a family of soldiers. His older brother, Robert Ochsner II, is a Special Forces member based at Fort Knox, Ky. and recently returned from Iraq. His father was a Special Forces member during the Vietnam War and his mother, Sandra, was an Army sergeant.

“I was in for five years, and ever since the time they were five years old they wanted to be in the military,” said his father, Bob Ochsner. “I asked them why, and they said, ‘Dad, you never said anything bad about it.’ ”

James Ochsner left behind his wife, Ann, and two children, Nicholas, 16, and Meagan, 14, who live in Hope Mills, N.C., near Fort Bragg. This year marked his 18th in the Army, while his brother has logged 20.

Both planned to retire after they reached 24 years of service, their father said.

“All of us were airborne [soldiers], and all of us belonged to special units. We all did special things,” his father said. “And Jim was a great guy, a fantastic friend, a great son and a great father.”