Army Sgt. Ian T.D. Gelig

Died March 1, 2010 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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25, of Stevenson Ranch, Calif.; assigned to the 782nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died March 1 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device.

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Soldier ‘was always there for you’

The Associated Press

A paratrooper who served with Ian T.D. Gelig called him a “good friend and a great person.”

“He was always there for you when you needed something. He will be deeply missed by everyone in this unit, for a piece of us went with him,” said David Tryon.

Gelig, 25, of Stevenson Ranch, Calif., was killed by a roadside bomb March 1 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, near the Pakistani border. He was assigned to Fort Bragg.

Gelig graduated from Hart High School in Santa Clarita, Calif., in 2002, said Principal Collyn Nielsen. He enlisted in the Army in October 2006 and was deployed to Afghanistan in September.

After his death, thousands of people lined the streets of Santa Clarita to honor him as a funeral procession passed.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued a statement saying Gelig’s “great courage and selflessness reminds all Californians of the extraordinary sacrifices our men and women in uniform make to keep us safe.”

Gelig is survived by his parents, Tim and Delia Gelig, and his sisters, Vanessa and Liana.

Gelig’s family held a private memorial service for him in March.