Army Spc. Jarrett B. Thompson

Died September 7, 2003 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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27, of Dover, Del.; assigned to the 946th Transportation Company, U.S. Army Reserve, Lewes, Del.; died Sept. 7 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Thompson was in a convoy on Aug. 30 when a civilian vehicle passed the convoy and swerved between the lead military vehicle and an approaching Iraqi truck. The driver of the civilian vehicle hit Thompson’s truck. Thompson was medically evacuated to WRAMC where he later died of his injuries.

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Spc. Jarrett B. Thompson worked hard but knew how to have fun, too. He appreciated good beer and good music, and was a guitar player himself.

“Elvis and the Grateful Dead were his favorites,” said his wife, Kelly Thompson.

Thompson, 27, of Dover, Del., died Sept. 7 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center of injuries he suffered Aug. 30 in a vehicle accident in Iraq.

He is also survived by two sons, ages 2 and 6. Thompson served in the Army for two years after graduating from high school in 1993 and joined the Army Reserve in January 2000.

Before being deployed overseas in April, he worked in computer animated design. Neighbor Kevin Yingling recalled the first time he met Thompson.

“He came over wearing a tie-dye T-shirt and carrying two microbrews,” Yingling said. “That’s how he introduced himself.” A military history buff, Thompson recently had taken up brewing and golf, and was making plans to get his pilot’s license.

“He was a good, wonderful husband and father,” Kelly Thompson said. “He was our hero.”

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Family, friends gather at Delaware soldier’s funeral

Associated Press

GALENA, Md. — Hundreds of friends and family gathered Saturday to remember a 27-year-old Dover, Del., resident who died Sept. 7 from injuries sustained in Iraq.

Close to 400 people filled St. Dennis Roman Catholic Church in Galena, Md., for a memorial Mass for Spc. Jarrett Thompson.

Thompson, who was assigned to the Army Reserve’s 946th Transportation Co., based in Lewes, Del., was in a convoy in Iraq on Aug. 30 when a civilian vehicle hit Thompson’s truck, according to the Pentagon’s Public Affairs Department.

Thompson was taken to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, where he died Sept. 7 as a result of his injuries.

Thompson was born in Dover and grew up in Millington, Md.

Thompson received a military burial with full honors, including a 21-gun salute and a bugler playing taps.

Maj. Gen. Karol Kennedy of the 99th Regional Readiness Command, which oversees the 946th Transportation Co., presented the flag draped over Thompson’s coffin to his widow, Kelly.

The Army awarded Thompson the Bronze Star on Saturday.

“The Bronze Star is one of the highest medals that is given in a combat environment,” Kennedy said. “It is given for service and valor in that environment.”

Thompson is the third Delawarean to die since the United States invaded Iraq in March.

“Every soldier’s loss is something that lasts forever,” Kennedy said Saturday.

Thompson had two young sons with his wife — 6-year-old Connor and 2-year-old Collin.