Army 1st Lt. Jeffrey J. Kaylor

Died April 7, 2003 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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24, of Clifton, Va.; assigned to C Battery, 39th Field Artillery Battalion, Fort Stewart, Ga.; killed in action in Iraq.

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Jeffrey Kaylor grew up in Clifton, Va. played football in high school and married his college sweetheart.

“He wanted to be a hero,” said his older sister, Patricia Kaylor, 25. “He is a hero. But it’s hard for us. If only he could have held out for two more days, this might have all been over.”

Kaylor, 24, was on reconnaissance when he was killed by a grenade April 7.

He graduated in 2001 from Virginia Tech’s Cadet Corps, where he met his wife, Jenna Cosby. They were married in July. She also is in the Army, deployed to Kuwait. Now, she is accompanying her husband’s body home.

“He loved cars. He loved high school. He had a wide circle of friends,” his sister said. “He was the kind of person who always wanted to bring up everyone else’s spirits.”

Col. Rock Roszak of Virginia Tech, said: “Kids come to college and you watch them grow up. You watch them make youthful mistakes. But I don’t think I ever saw Jeff make a mistake that he would be ashamed of. I’d go by his room at 1, 2 o’clock in the morning, and his light would be on. He’d be studying.”

— USA Today and The Associated Press