Army Spc. Stephen M. Scott

Died August 23, 2003 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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21, of Lawton, Okla.; assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Carson, Colo.; died on Aug. 23 near Fallujah, Iraq, from non-combat injuries.

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Spc. Stephen M. Scott and his wife went to high school together in Lawton, Okla., and both joined the military. They had recently celebrated their first anniversary.

“We talked about what we would do if something ever happened to one of us,” said Marie Scott, 19. “I decided I would become a nun. There’s just no other guy who can compete with him. He’s perfect.”

The 21-year-old Scott died Aug. 23 near Fallujah, Iraq, of a gunshot wound in a non-combat incident. Scott was a cook and stationed at Fort Carson.

— Associated Press

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Services held for Oklahoma soldier

Associated Press

LAWTON, Okla. — An Oklahoma soldier killed in Iraq was a “gentle giant,” his wife said.

Marie Scott’s husband, Spc. Stephen Michael Scott, 21, died Aug. 23 of a gunshot wound.

Scott’s death, from a “non-hostile gunshot incident,” was under investigation, Fort Carson officials said in a news release.

The Scott’s were high-school sweethearts and had been married a little more than a year.

“He was amazing,” said Marie Scott, 20. “He was 6-foot-5 and weighed 225 pounds, but he was so gentle. If there was a little guy getting picked on, he’d be the one to stand up for him.”

The couple met in a psychology class at Eisenhower High School in Lawton and married on the Fourth of July 2002, soon after Marie graduated from high school.

“He was the most honest person I ever met,” she said.

Scott said her husband was “the kind of person who let everyone know how much he loved them.”

Both enlisted in the Army. Stephen Scott was a cook and was in Iraq since June.

Marie Scott is assigned to the 14th Public Affairs Detachment at Fort Carson, where she does community relations.

While she was aware of the risk involved in her husband’s deployment, Marie Scott never thought her office would be handling a news release announcing his death.

“Especially not Stephen,” she said. “He was amazing. I’m so sad, but sometimes I can’t help but smile. He was so goofy he would make you laugh. He was very spiritual. He was very strong. We had a lot of plans.”

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Fort Carson soldier remembered as ‘Superman’

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — When he was a boy, Army Spc. Stephen Scott would race around with a blanket or sheet on his shoulders playing Superman, his family said.

“As he got older, he found different ways to be Superman,” Joey Hobbs said Thursday at a memorial for his little brother. “He is a very beautiful person.”

Scott, a cook in 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, died Aug. 23 in Iraq from a noncombat gunshot wound. The Army is investigating.

Scott was born in San Antonio and moved several times before settling in Lawton, Okla., where he graduated from high school.

At 6 feet, 5 inches tall, Scott loved playing basketball and hoped to play professionally.

He joined the Oklahoma National Guard in 2001 and chose to go on active duty a year ago. One of his brothers encouraged him to become a full-time soldier to improve his life, Hobbs said.

Scott married his wife, Marie, last year. A private first class, she is assigned to the public affairs office at Fort Carson.

Scott’s commander in Iraq, Capt. James Hayes, recalled him as a soldier who worked hard and had an easy disposition. Other troopers felt they knew him from somewhere else.

“They (troopers) wondered why he was so happy,” Hayes said during a memorial to Scott in Iraq that was read at Thursday’s service.

Adam Scott remembered his younger brother as his best friend, closest confidant and hero. He didn’t judge people and said laughter was necessary for life.

“He will always be our loving Superman,” he said.

— Associated Press

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Military identifies Fort Carson soldiers who died in Iraq

FORT CARSON, Colo. — Two soldiers killed in Iraq were identified Aug. 25 as members of units based at Fort Carson.

Spc. Stephen M. Scott, 21, of Guthrie, Okla., died Aug. 23 near Fallujah of a gunshot wound. Scott was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment.

Scott’s death from a “non-hostile gunshot incident” was under investigation, Fort Carson said in a statement.

The second soldier, Pfc. Vorn J. Mack of Orangeburg, S.C., also died Aug. 23. Officials said he drowned near Hadithah Dam, west of Ramadi. Mack was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment.

Memorial services for the soldiers were pending.

In all, 16 soldiers from Fort Carson have died in Iraq.

— Associated Press