
Michael P. Pittman would stop by the Army recruiter’s officer right after work, hoping for good news.
“He was very eager to get in, and he checked in every day,” said Sgt. Eric Kleineweber. “As an older recruit, there was a lot of paperwork for him to fill out and get passed through. When one piece of paper cleared, he was ready to get another in.”
Pittman, 34, of Davenport, Iowa, was killed June 15 in Baghdad by a bomb blast and small-arms fire. He was assigned to Fort Riley, Kan.
“He had his down times, but he was pretty much the one who was encouraging everybody,” said his wife, Jennifer. “He was just always putting others in front of...