Ryan M. Bell
Profile
Age: 21
From: Colville, Wash.
Assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Incident: Army Spc. Ryan M. Bell died March 5 in Samarra, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit during combat operations. Also killed were Staff Sgt. Justin M. Estes, Staff Sgt. Robert M. Stanley, Sgt. Andrew C. Perkins, Spc. Justin A. Rollins and Pfc. Cory C. Kosters.
Died: March 05, 2007
Fort Bragg paratrooper dreamed of becoming a doctor
The Associated Press
COLVILLE, Wash. — Spc. Ryan Bell joined the Army hoping to eventually become a doctor. That dream was cut short this week when a bomb exploded near the Fort Bragg paratrooper’s vehicle in Iraq, killing him and five other soldiers.
The 21-year-old from Colville attended the Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Ga. He graduated in 2003 and had many college scholarship offers, said his father, Michael Bell of Colville. Instead, the younger Bell decided to join the Army, hoping his training and GI bill would help him become a doctor.
“There’s no regrets at this end,” Michael Bell said. “He was a responsible young man, he was sensible, he knew what he wanted to do with his life.”
The young man joined the Army in 2004 and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C., in January 2005. He was a member of Company C, 2nd...