Army Sgt. Daniel R. Gionet

Died June 4, 2006 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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23, of Pelham, N.H.; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; killed June 4 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his M1A2 tank during combat operations in Baghdad. Also killed was 1st Lt. Ryan T. Sanders.

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Hundreds turn out to honor Army medic

The Associated Press

PELHAM, N.H. — As the hearse carrying Army Sgt. Daniel Gionet’s casket rolled by Pelham High School, hundreds of students lined the sunny street Friday to pay their respects to the graduate killed in Iraq.

It was the same scene outside the town’s elementary and middle schools — pupils holding American flags formed a human guardrail, watching silently as the motorcade made its way to St. Patrick’s Church for Gionet’s funeral.

American flags also adorned the church, where mourners filled the pews and a downstairs room where a video screen was set up. The service was followed by burial at Gibson cemetery in Pelham.

Gionet, a newlywed and Army medic, was killed June 4 when an explosion hit his tank in Taji, Iraq. He was 23, and the sixth New Hampshire serviceman killed overseas this year. His widow, Katrina, is 19. They married last November, and he was expected back home in July for a 15-day leave.

Family and friends remembered the young man for his sense of humor, big bear hugs and devotion to family.

“Danny was just an awesome human being. He was a giver,” said Joe Connors, Gionet’s high school baseball coach. “He was the first guy to take a new kid under his wing. He was a selfless soldier.”

That included Gionet’s final moments, Connors said. Military officials speaking to Gionet’s family after his death said Gionet, unaware he was mortally wounded, told medics to treat his lieutenant first, Connors said.

“He assured his family [he] was safe, but of course nothing is safe in war,” said the Rev. Robert Guillemette.

Gionet was killed during his second overseas tour. He had served as a cook at Kandahar Air Field in Afghanistan but re-enlisted because he wanted to do more, his family said.

“He said ‘Pledge Allegiance’ not only to the flag, but to yourself. Don’t forget to breathe deep, live your dreams and reach for your own stars,” Gionet’s sister, Alycia, told mourners Friday.

Gionet also is survived by his mother, Denise Gionet, of Pelham, father, Daniel Gionet, of Lowell, brother Darren, 20, and grandparents Ernest and Theresa Trepanier, of Pelham. He was born in Lowell but moved to Pelham with his mother after the fifth grade. He graduated from Pelham High school in 2001.

Since April, five Army soldiers and one Marine from New Hampshire have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, most recently Army Sgt. Russell Durgin, of Henniker, who was killed Tuesday by gunfire in Afghanistan.

In March, two members of the National Guard were wounded. Pvt. Richard Ghent, of Rochester is recovering at home; Sgt. Jose Pequeno, of Sugar Hill, still is being treated for a severe head injury and soon may be transferred to a rehabilitation facility in California.

Next month, 150 more New Hampshire Army National Guard troops will deploy to Iraq for a security mission.

In an open letter released Friday, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Clark, Adjutant General of the Guard, addressed the state’s recent military losses.

“It has been a trying spring for New Hampshire’s military and the local communities of several native U.S. military servicemen,” Clark wrote. “Our recent losses underscore the reality that we are STILL at war, fighting an unconventional enemy.”

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Section of Route 4 dedicated to fallen soldier

The Associated Press

DANBURY, N.H. — A fallen soldier is being honored in New Hampshire, as the state dedicated a section of Route 4 in Danbury in his name.

Sgt. Dan Gionet, an Army medic, was killed in Iraq a year ago Monday. On Sunday, his mother, Denise Gionet, place a wreath of flowers and an American flag on a new dedication sign on the side of the road.

The state has designated Route 4 as a Purple Heart Trail route, meaning sections of the road are dedicated to those killed in the military. Along the road, from Lebanon to Portsmouth, are the names of more than 20 New Hampshire service members killed in wars ranging from World War I to Iraq.

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NH bridge dedicated in soldier's memory

The Associated Press

PELHAM, N.H. — A bridge in the New Hampshire community of Pelham has been dedicated in memory of a soldier who was killed in Iraq in 2006.

About 100 people attended Sunday's dedication for the Main Street bridge over Beaver Brook in honor of Sgt. Daniel Gionet.

The 23-year-old Army medic was killed by an improvised explosive device in Iraq in 2006, only weeks before he was scheduled to return home.

"The bridge will bear his name and people who cross it will remember," Gionet's mother, Denise, told WMUR-TV. "A Gold Star mother's worst fear is one day her children will be forgotten. This is just another step in making sure he isn't forgotten, and it's a great honor."

Gionet was born in Lowell, Mass., and moved to Pelham after the fifth grade. He joined the Army shortly after graduating from high school and served a tour at Kandahar Air Field in Afghanistan. He re-enlisted after his original duty ended in May 2004 to become a medic.