Army Pfc. Jason N. Lynch

Died June 18, 2004 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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21, of St. Croix, Virgin Islands; assigned to 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery, 1st Infantry Division, Bamberg, Germany; killed June 18 by small-arms fire as his unit was engaging the enemy in Buhriz, Iraq.

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Growing up in the Virgin Islands, soft-spoken Jason Lynch loved the laid back sounds of Reggae music and the sport of cricket. But he always dreamed of being a soldier. He worked out tirelessly in preparation for basic training and even bought a pellet gun for target practice, said his 14-year-old brother, Jamil. "Jason always wanted to go into the Army. He wanted to fight. He didn't want to be behind a desk," said his girlfriend Elizabeth Castro, 18, who resisted Lynch's entreaties for her to join the Army, too. Lynch, of St. Croix, Virgin Islands, died June 18 in an attack in Buhriz, Iraq. He was stationed in Bamberg, Germany. Lynch turned 21 in Iraq, where he took his assignment in stride, regularly sending letters to his mother, Paula Lynch, and video games home to Jamil. The last such bundle arrived a few days after his death. "He was never a child to worry about anything. I was always the one who worried," said his mother.

— Associated Press