Army Cpl. Damon G. LeGrand

Died June 12, 2007 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

---

27, of Lakeside, Calif.; assigned to the 571st Military Police Company, 504th Military Police Battalion, 42nd Military Police Brigade, Fort Lewis, Wash.; died June 12 in Baqubah, Iraq, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with anti-tank mines, rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire.

---

Slain soldier was ‘proud parent’ of two daughters

The Associated Press

Army Spc. Damon G. LeGrand’s unit arrived in Baqubah, Iraq, late last year to train the Iraqi police force in one of the country’s most troubled provinces.

“I hope we instill in them and their children what it is to fight for freedom, for the ability to have a good life and not have someone dictate everything to you,” LeGrand told an Army journalist.

LeGrand, 27, of Lakeside, Calif., was killed June 12 during an ambush in Baghdad. He was a 1995 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Lewis, Wash.

“He was looked upon by his fellow soldiers as a mentor, a leader and a brother,” his family said in a statement.

From 2000 to 2002, LeGrand served with the Utah Ogden Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He enlisted in the Army in April 2005 and trained as a military police officer.

He is survived by his wife, Ashley, and daughters, Moira, 2, and Kelsie, a toddler whom he never had the chance to meet.

On his MySpace page, LeGrand described himself as being 6-foot-1 and athletic. He also wrote that he was a “proud parent” — reflected in images that show him romping with Moira.