Army Sgt. 1st Class Keith A. Callahan

Died January 24, 2007 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

31, of McClure, Pa.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died Jan. 24 of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was conducting a combat patrol south of Baghdad.

* * * * *

N.C.-based soldier killed in Iraq

The Associated Press

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A North Carolina-based soldier has died from wounds he suffered while fighting in Iraq, the Defense Department announced Jan. 25.

Sgt. 1st Class Keith A. Callahan, 31, of McClure, Pa., died Jan. 24 after an improvised explosive device detonated while he was on combat patrol south of Baghdad.

Callahan was a platoon sergeant assigned to 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, at Fort Bragg, N.C.

Callahan posted himself at a road crossing to act as additional security for his platoon when he was killed, said Lt. Col. Ross E. Davidson of the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Squadron, 73rd Calvary Regiment.

“At the time, of his death his sole concern was for the welfare of his men,” Davidson said.

Callahan joined the Army in February 1996 and reported to Fort Bragg in October 2001. He was on his fourth deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom when he was killed, according to a statement released by the 82nd Airborne Division.

Callahan is survived by his wife Doty, sons Devin and Brady, daughter Brooke and stepson Tyler, who live in Fayetteville, N.C. Their ages were not provided.

Dody Callahan said her husband was a sports enthusiast who loved his children and family. He also treated his fellow soldiers as family, she said.

“Keith loved his soldiers, and his dedication to duty lasted to the end,” Dody Callahan said in a written statement. “He gave his life to protect his soldiers. He would now want his soldiers to bravely forge ahead in his mission and continue his legacy.”

* * * * *

Woburn native killed in Iraq

The Associated Press

BOSTON — A former Woburn resident has been killed in Iraq during his fourth deployment to the country.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Keith Callahan, 31, was killed Jan. 24 when his vehicle struck an explosive device south of Baghdad. Callahan, of McClure, Pa., was providing security for his platoon, Army officials said.

In Woburn, childhood friends and former teachers at Woburn Memorial High School, where he graduated in 1993, grieved.

“When I heard that he had died, I was devastated,” John Morandi, Callahan’s former wrestling coach, told The Boston Globe. “He was this little short guy who was just so fast and extremely coachable. He did everything to help out the team, and you could see back then that the military was a great fit for him.”

Principal Bob Norton said Callahan’s name would be added to a memorial at the school for Woburn residents killed in the line of duty since the Revolutionary War. The last of more than 200 names on the memorial is Cpl. Charles McMahon, a Marine killed during the evacuation of Saigon on April 29, 1975.

“We have a lot of kids who are in the military and have been to Iraq, and up to Wednesday, we were very fortunate that none had died,” Norton said.

Callahan joined the Army in February 1996. He was on his fourth deployment as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom when he was killed, according to a statement released by the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C.

“Keith loved his soldiers, and his dedication to duty lasted to the end, shown by the fact that he gave his life to protect his soldiers,” his wife, Dody, said in a statement.

Callahan also is survived by sons Devin and Brady, daughter Brooke and stepson Tyler. He will be buried near McClure, with a memorial in Woburn planned for next week.