Army Command Sgt. Maj. Edward C. Barnhill

Died May 14, 2004 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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50, of Shreveport, La.; assigned to the 431st Civil Affairs Battalion, Army Reserve, North Little Rock, Ark.; died of a heart attack May 14 in Baghdad.

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Shreveport man, husband, father, grandfather, deacon and soldier dies in Baghdad

By Francis McCabe

Shreveport (la.) Times

Friends described Edward “Carl” Barnhill as a superman often disguised in Clark Kent clothes. His wife of 28 years says “he was just a good man.”

Barnhill, a command sergeant major with the Army Reserve’s 431 Civil Affairs Battalion based in North Little Rock, Ark., and serving in Iraq, died in Baghdad on Friday. He was 50.

Barnhill of Shreveport leaves behind his wife, Paula, two sons, Jason, 24, and Marcus, 26, two grandchildren, his mother, two sisters and two brothers.

Army officials told Paula Barnhill her husband had a heart attack and could not be resuscitated, she said.

Sunday, sitting in an arm chair in the living room of their home on Pebble Beach Drive, wearing a black dress and holding a blanket over her lap, Barnhill’s wife was having a hard time coming to terms with his death.

“It really doesn’t seem real. I know it is real, it just doesn’t feel real,” she said staring at a picture of her and her husband taken during a 21-day leave in March. “It still seems like he should be coming home anytime now.”

The last time Paula Barnhill spoke to her husband was on May 9. “He called and wished me a happy Mother’s Day,” she said.

Support has been constant in the form of visits from friends and neighbors, fellow Greenwood Acres Full Gospel Baptist Church members where Barnhill served as a deacon, said Paula Barnhill, who works at the Riverside Elementary School.

“Carl was a good friend and a good family man,” said Leo Davis, a friend of the family. “He was like Clark Kent. Mild-mannered.”

“He was a good example to follow. Anybody who knew him will tell you what a fantastic man he was. He will be missed by everybody,” said Davis’ wife, Peggy.

Barnhill, a 32-year veteran of the Army Reserves, was called to active duty in February 2003 and left for Iraq in March 2003.

He was very proud to serve the nation, Paula Barnhill said. Their 28th anniversary was Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day.

The couple met nearly 30 years ago at a church in Tennessee, where Barnhill was from. Paula Barnhill, originally from Illinois, had traveled down to Tennessee with her own church to visit. “He wrote me (letters) for a while,” she said, before they officially started dating.

They moved to Shreveport 14 years ago for a job Barnhill had gotten with Poulan Weed Eater.

“He always made time to come to my (football) games,” Barnhill’s son, Jason, said. “He was there at the right times. When I needed him.”

Barnhill was most recently employed as an engineer with the state Department of Transportation and Development and was a graduate of Western Kentucky University, Paula Barnhill said.

The U.S. Department of Defense listed Barnhill’s death as noncombat related and under investigation and would not give any further information when contacted Sunday.

Barnhill was awarded the Bronze Star in July 2003 while serving in Iraq, Paula Barnhill said.

Funeral arrangements have not been made by the family as they do not know when Barnhill’s body will be brought back into the United States.

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Louisiana soldier dies of heart attack in Iraq

SHREVEPORT, La. — The last time Edward “Carl” Barnhill spoke with his wife of 28 years was during a phone call from Iraq on May 9.

“He called and wished me a happy Mother’s Day,” said Paula Barnhill, still struggling to accept the news she received of her husband’s death in Baghdad on Friday.

Barnhill, a 50-year-old father, grandfather, and deacon at his Shreveport church, had been awarded a Bronze Star — given for heroic or meritorious achievement — for his efforts in Iraq.

He died of a heart attack, not in combat, the U.S. Department of Defense told his wife.

“It really doesn’t seem real. I know it is real, it just doesn’t feel real,” she said staring at a picture of her husband and her taken during a 21-day leave in March. “It still seems like he should be coming home anytime now.”

Barnhill, a 32-year veteran of the Army Reserves, was called to active duty in February 2003 and left for Iraq in March 2003. He was a command sergeant major with the Army Reserve’s 431 Civil Affairs Battalion based in North Little Rock, Ark.

He was proud to serve, his wife said.

The couple met nearly 30 years ago at a church in Tennessee, Barnhill’s home state. Paula Barnhill, originally from Illinois, had traveled there with her own church group.

“He wrote me (letters) for a while,” she said, before they officially started dating. Their 28th anniversary was Valentine’s Day. They had two sons — Jason, 24, and Marcus, 26 — and two grandchildren.

“He always made time to come to my (football) games,” Barnhill’s son, Jason, said. “He was there at the right times. When I needed him.”

They moved to Shreveport 14 years ago for a job Barnhill had gotten with Poulan Weed Eater. Barnhill most recently worked as an engineer with the state transportation department and was a graduate of Western Kentucky University, his wife said.

Funeral arrangements have not been made by the family as they do not know when Barnhill’s body will be brought back to the U.S.

— Associated Press