Army Staff Sgt. Santiago M. Halsel

Died May 16, 2006 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

---

32, of Bowling Green, Ky.; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died of injuries sustained May 16 when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was conducting a dismounted clearance mission during combat operations in Baghdad.

---

Soldier followed in footsteps of his military family

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — A 101st Airborne Division soldier from Bowling Green killed in Iraq this week came from a family with a long tradition of military service, his father said Thursday.

Staff Sgt. Santiago M. Halsel, 32, was struck Tuesday by a roadside bomb in Baghdad while patrolling on foot after dismounting from his vehicle, the Army said.

Halsel, who lived in Bowling Green, was on his second tour in Iraq, his father, Vesdon Brooks, said in a phone interview. He was about seven months into his second tour, Brooks said.

Brooks said he was notified of his son’s death Wednesday morning.

“It really hasn’t sinked in yet,” said Brooks, who lives in Lexington.

Halsel was an infantryman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team. He entered the Army in 1996 and arrived at Fort Campbell in 2002.

He played tailback on the football team at Warren East High School but passed on an opportunity to play at an Atlanta college, opting instead for a career in the military, Brooks said.

“When he was a little boy, we used to call him ‘Sarge’ and he always wanted to go into the Army.”

Brooks served in the Army and Navy and his father was a Master Sergeant in the Army, he said. He said he was proud of his son’s service, but he is frustrated with the war effort in Iraq.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Brooks said. “I don’t think we should be there. It makes me mad.”

Halsel is also survived by his wife Susan, and their two children who live in Bowling Green. Halsel’s mother died in 1988, Brooks said.

The funeral will be in Bowling Green, but arrangements are pending, Brooks said.

Halsel is the 40th member of the military with a Kentucky hometown of record to be killed in Iraq. In addition, 150 soldiers from Fort Campbell, including Halsel, have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003.

A memorial service for Halsel will be held in Iraq.

— Associated Press

---

Bowling Green soldier laid to rest

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — A 101st Airborne Division soldier from Bowling Green killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq last week will be laid to rest on May 25.

Funeral services for Sgt. Santiago M. Halsel, 32, will be at 1 p.m. in the Mount Zion Baptist Church, and will be buried at Cowles Chapel Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery. A visitation will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. before the funeral at Mount Zion.

Halsel served as an Army infantryman with 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team. He entered the Army in 1996 and arrived at Fort Campbell in 2002. He died on May 16 while patrolling on foot in Baghdad. His father, Vesdon Brooks, said it was Halsel’s second tour in Iraq.

Halsel’s survivors include wife, Susan Halsel; son, Donovan Halsel; daughters LaShae Halsel and Sydney Covington; sister, Shurrea Brooks Donley and brother, Tauricus Halsel.

Halsel is the 40th member of the military with a Kentucky hometown of record to be killed in Iraq. In addition, 150 soldiers from Fort Campbell, including Halsel, have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003.

— Associated Press