Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael P. Shannon

Died January 17, 2010 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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52, of Canadensis, Pa.; assigned to Headquarters, 7th Army and U.S. Army Europe, Heidelberg, Germany; died Jan. 17 in Kabul, Afghanistan, of a heart attack.

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Soldier suffers heart attack in Afghanistan

The Associated Press

CANADENSIS, Pa. — Sgt. 1st Class Michael P. Shannon would keep a straight face while telling a joke, his family says, and it often took a moment to realize he was kidding.

Though he had a healthy sense of humor, Shannon was serious about the Army.

“He was a soldier through and through,” said his wife, Donna. “The Army was his life. The only thing equal to the Army in his life was his family.”

Shannon, of Canadensis, suffered a fatal heart attack Jan. 17 while serving in Afghanistan. He was 52.

The New York City native first enlisted in 1977. He earned a bachelor’s degree at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, then a master’s in degree criminal justice at Long Island University in Brookville, N.Y.

He met his wife while working as a corrections officer in New York. He retired in 2001 as an assistant deputy warden.

“His attitude was, we’re all going die some way,” Donna Shannon said. “No one has a master plan to avoid it, so don’t use it as an excuse to not do your part for your country and your family. That’s the kind of man he was.”

He is survived by his mother, Lorena; and three children, Rhea, 21, Michel’le, 18, and George, 9.

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Possessed a dry sense of humor

The Associated Press

Michael Shannon would keep a straight face while telling a joke, his family says, and it often took a moment to realize he was kidding.

Although he had a healthy sense of humor, Shannon was serious about the Army.

“He was a soldier through and through,” said his wife, Donna. “The Army was his life. The only thing equal to the Army in his life was his family.”

Shannon, 52, of Canadensis, Pa., died of a heart attack Jan. 17 while serving in Kabul, Afghanistan. He was assigned to a unit in Heidelberg, Germany.

The New York City native first enlisted in 1977. He earned a bachelor’s degree at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, then a master’s in criminal justice at Long Island University in Brookville, N.Y.

He met his wife while working as a corrections officer in New York. He retired in 2001 as an assistant deputy warden.

“His attitude was, we’re all going die some way,” Donna Shannon said. “No one has a master plan to avoid it, so don’t use it as an excuse to not do your part for your country and your family. That’s the kind of man he was.”

He had three children, Rhea, 21, Michel’le, 18, and George, 9.