Army Spc. David A. Croft Jr.

Died January 5, 2010 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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22, of Plant City, Fla.; assigned to the 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Jan. 5 in Balad of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device and small-arms fire.

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He wanted to help kids back home

The Associated Press

David Croft managed to avoid drugs, gangs and trouble — things that swallowed up so many kids in the tough neighborhood where he grew up.

And when he returned from his deployment to Iraq, he wanted to work in law enforcement in an anti-gang task force, where he hoped to help kids.

“He wanted to make a difference over there,” said Croft’s best friend, Jacob Hollifield. “But he wanted to make a difference here, too.”

Croft, 22, of Plant City, Fla., was killed by a roadside bomb Jan. 5 in Baghdad. The 2005 graduate of Durant High School was assigned to Fort Hood, Texas.

Hollifield recalled going riding go-carts and fishing with Croft — who once caught a bass weighing at least 5 pounds in a pond behind a Walmart.

Croft’s fiancée, Susie Clark, said her high school sweetheart loved cooking and trying new restaurants. They got engaged in the day after Christmas 2008. Croft also was a gun enthusiast and was close to his family, who knew him as “Little David” — his nickname to differentiate him from his father, David Sr.

The soldier was eager to come home and see his family — “that’s all he talked about was coming home,” said his mother, Vickie.

In addition to his mother and fiancée, Croft is survived by three sisters and a brother.