John M. Smith
Profile
Age: 22
From: Wilmington, N.C.
Assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Irwin, Calif.
Incident: Army Sgt. John M. Smith was killed May 12 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Iskandariyah, Iraq.
Died: May 12, 2005
Soldier killed in Iraq laid to rest
Associated Press
WILMINGTON, N.C. — A Wilmington native who always wanted to be a soldier was buried Saturday in a national cemetery among some 6,000 other service members who died in their country’s service.
Sgt. John Smith, 22, died May 12 when a roadside bomb exploded next to his convoy in Iskandariyah, Iraq.
“Smitty was a great soldier,” said Sgt. 1st Class Richard Mitchell of the 82nd Airborne Division at Smith’s funeral. “He died doing what he wanted to do.”
Brig. Gen. Mike Ferriter of the 82nd Airborne Division presented Smith’s mother, Judy Smith, with four medals — the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, the Iraqi Campaign Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.
Sgt. 1st Class Mitchell presented Mrs. Smith with the American flag that was draped over her son’s casket. She dabbed away tears as she pressed the folded triangle of red, white and blue to...