Army Sgt. Michael T. Lilly

Died April 7, 2008 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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23, of Boise, Idaho; assigned to the 1st Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, Vilseck, Germany; died April 7 in Baghdad when enemy forces attacked using a rocket-propelled grenade. Also killed was Spc. Jason C. Kazarick.

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Soldier from Boise killed in Iraq

The Associated Press

BOISE, Idaho — Army officials say a soldier from Boise died in Iraq Monday after being attacked by a rocket-propelled grenade.

The soldier is identified as 23-year-old Sgt. Michael T. Lilly, who joined the Army after graduating from Borah High School.

Lilly was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, based in Vilseck, Germany.

Lilly was killed along with another soldier, Spc. Jason C. Kazarick, of Oakmont, Penn., in an attack in Sadr City.

Relatives say Lilly was motivated to enlist in the Army after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. In a statement released through the Idaho National Guard, the family said Lilly, who was married, knew he had an important job to do and believed that serving in the Army was what he needed to do in life.

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Army Sgt. Michael T. Lilly remembered

The Associated Press

Only hours before his death, Michael T. Lilly received a worried text message from his wife of three years, Miseda. He responded: “Please don’t cry. Smile — for our love is eternal as the stars that decorate the heavens.”

Lilly, 23, of Boise, Idaho, was killed April 7 by an explosive in Baghdad. He was a 2002 high school graduate and was assigned to Vilseck, Germany.

He played football, hunted and liked to cook so much he wanted to open a restaurant. He played golf, took boxing lessons, listened to heavy metal and tried to learn how to play the guitar.

During grade school he wrestled, was a member of Cub Scouts and was a backyard football star. He also studied piano with his grandma Catherine and learned to play golf with his grandma Rose.

“Michael loved Idaho, loved the United States and loved the Army,” said his father, John. “He was on his second enlistment, and he told me he was going to re-enlist a third time. He felt so strongly about his career in the Army that he was willing to put that above everything else. With Michael, it was Army and country first.”