Army Pfc. Julian L. Colvin

Died July 22, 2012 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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21, of Birmingham, Ala.; assigned to the 508th Special Troops Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died July 22 in Zharay, Afghanistan, of wounds caused by an improvised explosive device. Also killed was Army Staff Sgt. Richard L. Berry.

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Friends, family say goodbye to fallen soldier

The Associated Press

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Friends, family members and fellow soldiers said farewell Aug. 4 to a soldier from Alabama who was killed in Afghanistan.

The flag-draped casket of Army Pfc. Julian L. Colvin stood at the front of Sixth Avenue Baptist Church in Birmingham, The Birmingham News reported, as mourners heard tributes from those who knew the 21-year-old combat engineer.

The Rev. Thomas E. Hunter, pastor of the church Colvin attended growing up, said in his eulogy the young soldier “just didn’t die. He died for a cause.”

Friends and Army colleagues described Colvin as a diehard Alabama sports fan who enlisted in the Army in March 2011. He deployed to Afghanistan with a unit of the 82nd Airborne Division from Fort Bragg, N.C.

An improvised bomb blast killed Colvin and another soldier, Army Staff. Sgt. Richard L. Berry, on July 29 as they conducted a dismounted patrol in Zharay, Afghanistan.

Outside the church, a few people lined the street with flags and signs to show support as Colvin’s casket was taken by a horse-drawn hearse to nearby Elmwood Cemetery. Mourners stood at attention as Colvin received a 21-gun salute, followed by the playing of Taps.